Saturday, November 1, 2008

I’m Proud

Yannah's analysis of Joyce Maynard’s-
“Honoring Mothers: Four Generations”
http://www.joycemaynard.com/columns-articles/
parenting-hm-four-generations.shtml

From the primeval women perspective to the present, there was the occurrence of change. As millenniums past by, there was a drastic transformation from their low social stratification in the ancient times to someone more significant today.

Joyce Maynard, a beloved daughter and now a mother, shares with us her own outlook with regards to a woman’s worth not only in the society but also in their own families. She begins her essay stating the impact and difference that her mother, Fredelle, had provided her. She uses the line “…and the kind of mother I am is wrapped up with the kind of mother I had” to express that a mother’s contribution to the growth of her child is perennial and becomes the basis of the child’s decisions and way of living.

She also shares with us the natural reaction of a child being scolded or prohibited of doing things they wants to do. She provides us with the line “Of course, I’ve rejected, railed against and even cursed parts of my heritage, as most daughters have” to convey her own reaction with regards to the way deciding and culture circulates in a typical family.

Her technique of using her own stories and recalling of the past accounts helps us visualize what had occurred and clearly understand how her mother influences her with everything she does. Her great narration of stories that she kept in sequence and her writing greatly paves way to the avoidance of confusion to the readers.

She also shows us through her essay the appreciation of a mother to her child even from the littlest things she do to the huge ones. With her essay, she reveals to us that the appreciation of a mother will always be the best ever for it provides the greatest feelings ever. Being cherished with the actions you do, makes an individual feel more blessed and provides high self-esteem. And only the mother will and can do make her child feel more blessed and make her more courageous and proud of herself. For a mother underwent those experiences already for once, she was a daughter.

Joyce Maynard also includes the native culture that circulates in the family. Its system of passing on a tradition or a significant item, element to another generation was also stated.

She proposes this thought by her line: “Someday it will be yours”. In the last parts of her essay, Joyce Maynard provided us with the sentiment of loosing someone who had influenced and took part in our growth. The death of grandmother, Rona Bruser, set the tears on her eyes. Using the line “But in the end, when I said we had to go, it was me, not Grandma, who cried” shows how painful it is to leave someone who actually know that maybe by the moment you set foot outside the door, she will die. Joyce’s such act lets us feel her sorrowfulness for such death. If we were on the same situation, the person who has molded our mother to what she is and the same manner that our mother passed on to us was yellow, dying and only an IV tube to support her life, what would you feel? Joyce’s whole sentiment actually leads us to this realization.

On a more serious view, Joyce Maynard paints there essay to make the readers feel and give importance of their own mothers. Yes indeed, a mother too has lots of mistakes but she knows what is best for us for, again, she was also once a child.

Feelings that touch the hearts of the readers was the equipment Joyce uses in her essay “Honoring Mothers: Four Generations”. Her way of expressing her deepest thoughts with strong feelings makes the readers understand this whole idea of a mother. Basically, her thought of appreciating our mothers and giving honor to them for their endless efforts and eternal care for us is what she wants her readers to feel and do. With her feelings, Joyce provides us with the gust to be proud of our mothers for raising up such great individuals of today. For who we are is what our mothers were.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks! It helped me understand the essay.

among petals and thorns said...

You're welcome...im glad it helped you...enjoy reading...