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Kitty In Gaitskill's Tiny Smiling Daddy

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In countless family relationships, there is some amount of disconnect between members. This disconnection can sometimes be seen obviously, while other times it can be hidden or imperceptible. In “Tiny Smiling Daddy”, Gaitskill depicts how people seek intimacy but don’t know how to achieve it. During Stew’s flashbacks of Kitty as a child, her and Stew were intimate, but as she grew up they separated. Jumping forward in time we see how Stew tries to express his opinions about Kitty, although he doesn’t know how to do it politely and respectfully. Looking back at the title, it is a symbol that depicts their relationship. During Stew’s flashbacks of Kitty as a child, she and Stew were intimate, but as she grew up they separated. While kitty was a child she would laugh at her father's jokes, and she thought it was funny when he touched her nose hair: “When Kitty was a little girl he would do it to make her laugh. Well, he’d say, do you think it’s time we played with the hairs in our nose? And she would giggle, holding her hands against her face, eyes sparkling over her knuckles” (Gaitskill 2). Here, Kitty thinks that it is pretty funny when her dad does that and …show more content…

This symbol can be noticed a few times within the story. One time is when Stew is listening to the radio and hears La Boheme. (4) This song was picked out specifically by Gaitskill since the opera is about bemoaning the loss of their loved one. Which refers to Stew missing the relationship with his daughter, Kitty, and how he wishes he could be closer to her. In addition, another symbol that comes up is the “Tiny Smiling Daddy” which Stew disagrees with. “I would have acknowledged my own needs and created the possibility to connect with what therapists call the good parent in myself” (7). The tiny smiling daddy is representing all of the things that Stew is not supportive of, and all the love that her father didn’t show

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