comedy. She wishes she could help Emily in developing this talent, but knows that with the lack of money and resources, the young girl’s gift will probably wither and die: “Let her be. So all that is in her will not bloom—but in how many does it? There is still enough left to live by” (480). Pain and disappointment are felt for her daughter who was robbed of her mother’s love and affection, and she clings to the hope that her daughter will overcome her boundaries and realize she is “more than this dress on the ironing board, helpless before the iron” (480). In totality, the mother did all that was within her limited reach for her child, yet she is filled with maternal anguish because she knows there could’ve been a better outcome for Emily if all things were possible. There is much, no doubt, that many mothers whose “wisdom came too late” would like to convey to their grown children. This mother’s decisions were made out of necessity, rather than choice. Because of that, the mother, though she is literally ironing the dress, is the dress lying helpless before the iron of society.The exploration of the above three stories found a mother who was the typical, selfless, socially accepted norm, a mother who would stop at nothing to provide what she thought was the best for her child, and a mother who could only do her best with what was possible for her child. Although these parents share the common bond of being the natural government of their children’s lives, they show the world that the role of the mother is unique for each woman who carries this title. ...
