ughed in her face.When I pointed them out, she laughed uproariously, with her hand to her bosom and her eyes closed. She laughed, not out of happiness, but because what I had done proved to her that I was without one sign of intelligence.(p. 79)Ruth was just a child who made a simple mistake, but May had so much anger inside of her that she was even cruel to her own daughter. This created a hostile relationship between May and Ruth, one that stayed with them until the day May died. She constantly put Ruth down and told her how dumb she was. In Mays eyes, nothing compared to Matt, the perfect son. When he left, another man who meant so much to her was gone. This contributed to Mays suffering. Although Matt did come back for Ruths wedding and certain holidays, he had his own life. His life did not include his mother and his sister. Her perfect child, who was supposed to love and look up to her, did not follow her plans. So when Justy was born, she thought she could make him fit the job. Ruth describes Mays reaction when she holds Justy for the first time.She petted his cheek. She didnt say anything except Bless you to him, in a thin, wavering voice, one I had never heard her use before. She couldnt believe that here in the flesh was another chance for her; here was a baby coming to live and grow at her house. She was listening, already, to the stories Justy was going to tell about his grandmother, how she leaped up on the roof when the house was burning and pulled him from the fire.(p. 213)Mays last years were made happy by Justy, but because of her constant nagging of Ruby and every move that he made, she sent her son-in-law off the deep end. The events that shaped May also killed her. If she hadnt been so negative to Ruby, he wouldnt have lashed out at her and brutally murdered her.The characters in The Book of Ruth all dealt with their suffering in different ways. Ruth, Daisy, and Matt chose to do something about it. ...
