mommy dearest
...her daughter’s annual birthday visit as nothing more than a mere disruption in her quiet mundane life. For Nan, it appears as though the annual birthday visit to her mother’s is based on a sense of duty more than anything else. Sadly, there is no denying that Mrs. Mason is neither pleased, nor particularly interested in seeing her daughter when Nan unexpectedly arrives a week early. “My birthday’s next week,” (p1) she says, though to imply that Nan should go away and come back next week. It’s [[It is]] no wonder that Nan, feeling like an emotional hostage in her mother’s presence, chooses to have an [[grammar: a ]] companion escort her whenever she visits her mother. Mrs. Mason, clearly a heartless mother, thwarts any hopes of having a pleasurable visit with her daughter when the first words to leave her lips are: “Good god, What have you done to your hair again” (p1)? Without wasting any time, she further scorns her daughter when she asks if her companion is strapped down in the car, implying that her daughter dates such subservient men; “You sure got him trained,” her mother later says (p3). As if shaming her daughter was not bad enough, Mrs. Mason takes it upon herself to enlighten Nan’s companion that he means nothing to her daughter; “She brings a different car every time,” she boasts (p2). Interestingly, Nan, who has obviously had many men accompany her to her mother’s house before, must know that her mother is not only going to humiliate her in front of her guests, but embarrass the innocent chaps as well. This is our first indication that Nan, like her mother, may be somewhat entertained in the presence of mortification [[?? I do not see what evidence there is that Nan finds all this entertaining]]. We learn [[that]] Nan, like her two siblings, is a successful young professional, who leads a life of great excitement and financial freedom; something most mothers wish for their children. Whereas, Mrs. Mason, a simple homemaker, appears to be uneducated and lacks the basic of social skills, clearly disregards any of her children’s accomplishments[[X frag: “whereas” sets up a subordinate clause; cannot be punctuation as though it were a complete sentence. Could use a conjunctive adverb phrase: “On the other hand, Maude….” ]]. Indeed, it is amusing, when Mrs. Mason says, “If the boy can’t pray me out of purgatory, and the baby can’t dig me out, then I guess Nan will just have to bail me out” (p6). How funny that she is not quite so dim-witted to realize that she may be in need of some serious repenting in the future[[frag]]. Indeed, Mrs. Mason seems to view the relationship she has with her daughter, much like a household chore, but with less enthusiasm. For instance, Nan’s visit is seen as more of an intrusion than anything else; she just happens to interrupt her mother while washing the kitchen floor. Mrs. Mason, not known for her diplomacy, expresses her displeasure with her daughter’s untimely imposition as she peers down at the half-washed kitchen floor and says, “I had the floor nearly mopped. Only fourteen squares to go“ (p2). Mrs. Mason goes on to explain that she only counts the red squares, not the white squares; suggesting that the white squares are insignificant, much like her children. Vaguely aware that she is an unwanted distraction[[another reading is that she is genuinely busy, and has slotted in the visit to her mother in a busy timetable]], Nan quickly gathers her things and heads for the door. We have tickets for the theatre Nan announces. “The show‘s free here,” (p6) her mother mocks [[her]], at least partly understanding that her life is similar to that of a circus act. Whe...