Shiloh Bobbie Ann Mason Analysis

Her dad carried her away from the hospital without payment, and then her mom permitted her to cook again, moreover she said, “ Getting right back into the saddle” ( Glass Castle 47). Jeanette was not angry at such young age and soon the family had to pack their belongings into bags and “do the skedaddle” as her parents always said. The parents were fleeing from bill collectors. Although Jeanette's father was an alcoholic, he could get work almost anywhere, often in small towns. The family was moving because of these things, she never complained when they did not have enough food. Jeanette always forgave her parents, she understood what they were going through.

Helmer says, “If the rumor got about that the new manager had allowed his wife to persuade him to change his mind-…do you expect me to make a laughing stock of myself before my entire staff-give people the idea that I am open to outside influence?” Norma’s one opinion has made no influence on Helmer. Since she is referred to as an “outsider” it makes her feel even more “doll-like” when it comes to become significant and keeping Helmer from finding out about the forgery.

For instance, the story begins with Leroy’s wife, Norma Jean, supporting Leroy during his physical therapy sessions while getting in shape herself (616). As well as the fact that Leroy wants to fulfill his promise and build Norma Jean her own house, even if she rejects to the house being a log cabin (617). However, as the story progresses it seems as though Leroy’s love for Norma Jean is not reciprocated. It is also evident that there is an emotional barrier which neither of them wish to cross because of the loss of their infant son (617). Leroy even admits that the loss of a child can cause a marriage to fall apart, but he is still blind to the fact that their marriage had already begun to deteriorate during his long absences. However, he still believes that they can start over and create a better marriage

However, with her alcoholic dad who rarely kept a job and her mother who suffered mood swings, they had to find food from her school garbage or eat expired food they had previously when they had the slightest bit of money. In addition, when bills and mortgage piled up, they would pack their bags and look for a new home to live in, if they could even call it a stable home, since they would be on the move so often. Jeanette needed a dad who wouldn’t disappear for days at a time, and a mom that was emotionally stable, but because she didn’t have that, she grew up in an environment where she would get teased or harassed for it. Jeanette suffered so much, that even at one point, she tried convincing her mother to leave her father because of the trouble he had caused the family already. A child should be able to depend on their parents for food and to be there for them when they need it, and when that part of a child’s security is taken away, it leaves them lost and on their own, free and confused about what to do next.

Leroy and Norma Jean are both victims of rapid social change. Norma Jean was the most affected by her surroundings comparing to Leroy. Norma Jean had to marry at the age of eighteen to the man who got her pregnant, and in a cruel twist of fate, the child dies of sudden infant death syndrome. This event from her life prevents her to look towards the

The life she would have had if Randy had not died, or the life that they could have had if Leroy would have stayed and dealt with everything with Norma Jean. I think that her finding new hobbies can also help their relationship not just hurt it. They need to first discuss how the death of their son affected them when it happened, and how it is affecting them now. They should talk about why Leroy chose to stay away from home for such long periods, and how now that he is home how they feel awkward and uncomfortable around each other. They need to communicate with each other, let each other know how the death has effect them and try to move on from there.

In “Shiloh” by Bobbie Ann Mason, the author talks about a married couple that has experienced some life changes. The husband Leroy was in a bad accident that would injure his leg from a highway accident while driving his tractor-trailer. And a wife name Norma Jean that is attending a body-building class and works at a drugstore, and would soon have to see her husband every day. The couple not only endures new changes in their lifestyle considering the husband it temporarily not working but will soon engage in marriage obstacles.

After the death of her husband, Mother struggles to keep her family together by providing the support and guidance they need, and encouraging them to use good judgment and think of the family as a whole before making their decisions. As the family faces various obstacles, each seemingly more severe than the last, Mother begins

Each character in this story is experiencing an emotional battle which they try to find healing but for some it will be too late. The narrator in the story is Sheppard. Sheppard is a widow, his wife died in less than a year before the story began. Sheppard experiences emotional distress by trying hard to change a troubled teen, Rufus, into an honorable young man while teaching his son, Norton, to be selfless. Instead

Isolation in her relationship with her husband, Leroy, causes Norma Jean to defy typical women's roles, as it helps her develop a sense of physical and mental power, eventually leading her to the desire for a separated life from her husband in which she holds dominance. After the death of Randy, their infant son, Norma Jean and Leroy’s relationship is stretched, as they are isolated from each other and their emotions, and Leroy provides no support for Norma Jean when he goes onto the road as a truck driver. Leroy leaving Norma all by herself leads to her growing independence and her advancements in her emotions towards the past tragedy. When Leroy is hurt from his truck accident and stays at home, his views on Norma Jean have changed as she is stronger than ever, and “Standing with her legs apart, [Norma Jean] reminds Leroy of Wonder Woman”(Mason 1). The representation of Norma Jean as Wonder Woman can display the growing physical power that the author has demonstrated in her. The character of Wonder Woman is strong and is able to challenge men who are supposed to be stronger than her, contributing roles the woman have and how the society views them. Furthermore, the accident that Leroy is involved in leads to his gradual defeat in his dominance over his marriage, whereas Norma Jean is able to gain power through the weakness in the masculine power in her marriage. However, the roles that women are expected to follow, are to obey the husband and not to display preeminence over them. These roles are established so that the feminine power is always smaller compared to the masculine power. Moreover, when Leroy needs a physical therapist in order to make himself stronger again, Norma Jean uses this as an advantage of making herself stronger. By establishing herself as a physically stronger individual, Norma Jean moves forward to be mentally stronger which would allow her to be the most powerful. Despite the roles that women are expected to follow, Norma Jean chooses to challenge them and be equally or more powerful than men. Through mental power, an individual can control one’s emotions and feelings towards other. Norma Jean chooses to bring herself outside her home as she finds a job and starts to take writing

“Shiloh” by Bobbie Ann Mason is the story of the struggling marriage of a middle aged couple, Leroy and Norma Jean Moffitt. A series of events lead to the ultimate demise of the relationship, which seems to be out of control of the narrator, Leroy Moffitt. Why had his wife left him after over 25 years of marriage? In the end of the story Leroy self reflects, in an attempt to grasp an understanding, and doubts himself as a person. Various themes and symbols in the story lead the read to the answer to Leroy’s question. An answer that he also sees throughout the story, but chooses to ignore. The departure of Norma Jean Moffitt is no secret. In Bobbie Anna Masons “Shiloh” Norma Jean is compelled to leave her husband due to the transformation of

A point comes where both Norma Jean and Jocasta believe that they have defeated their obstacles. Norma Jean takes Leroy to Shiloh, a battlefield in the South, in hopes of telling him that she soon will be leaving him and the marriage they once had. While picnicking near a cemetery, Norma Jean builds up enough strength to finally tell Leroy, "I want to leave you" (500). Surprising Leroy with this bold statement, Norma Jean thinks that she has acknowledged the ending of their marriage, and the preparation for this moment has paid off. Little does Norma Jean know of what is about to happen in her life. Jocasta also has a period of time when she believes that she has won her fight. She refuses to let fate rule her life. Jocasta assumes that she has defied fate when her husband, Laius, was supposedly killed by a group of men, and she had her son killed to save her husband from this ill fate. Jocasta explains to Oepidus, one night, how she manages to defy fate:

The new job consisted of just three things: tend to the man’s needs, keep a close eye on him, and make him happy. The man? Will Traynor, a 31 year old, successful and adventurous. At least–– he used to be. Two years prior; Will was in an accident with a motorcycle as he was crossing the street, permanently paralyzing him from the neck down. A man stripped of his ability to do things for himself, isn’t a happy man. Indeed this was Will, a

The level of incapacitation is also another aspect of the diagnosis to be taken into consideration. If Leroy’s diagnosis of prostate cancer does not inhibit him from fulfilling his role as a provider, he may be more accepting of the illness. The nuclear family system may experience a change in relationship patterns, depending on the level of incapacitation (Priest, 2015). Tiffany would have to embrace a new role in the family, if Leroy now has to be dependent on her. This would be difficult for not only Leroy, but for Tiffany as well. This major life incident has caused both of them to possibly reverse roles in the family (Priest, 2015). This may also cause marital conflict, which is a theme in the family systems theory. The idea of marital conflict can be thought of as tension

As the years go by Leroy and Norma Jean begin to become strangers in their own marriage. When they do communicate they are not communicating effectively and they are certainly not addressing the fact that the once binding portion of their marriage is gone. They grow further and further apart from one another until Leroy is involved in a motor vehicle accident forcing him to be at home more than ever