Tuesday, January 20, 2009
kids
after frank picks up michael and niffer from the campbells' to tell them about their mother's death, all niffer says is "Mommy is in heaven and we went to a restaurant (p. 345)." do you think she says this b/c she can't truly grasp the severity of the situation, or b/c she doesn't really care (she never really paid the kids any attention), or another reason?
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19 comments:
i believe it is all of those reasons. i think that the daughter in some way resents her mother for not being a real mother to her, and this is the easiest way for her to deal with the pain. unfortunately the kids are bound for the same destiny as their parents as a result of this bad parenting but the fact that the daughter is seemingly unaffected shows how little she cared about her mother and vice versa.
I think she grasps the situation for the most part and Frank really stepped up and did a very good job of breaking the news to the kids about what happened to their mother. I expected that this would go relatively smoothly because Frank always seemed to be a good parent. An example of this is how he would read the funnies to the kids. He seemed to connect more with them than April did which is why he was able to help them understand what happened so effectively.
I think that Jennifer definitely understands what happened with her mom, but I don't think she is that affected. It doesn't seem like she and April had a good relationship at all, so I'm sure she was a little bit resentful towards April. I don't think she was happy that April was dead, necessarily, but maybe indifferent. She and MIchael had been living at the Campbells for the past 2 days, so Jennifer was probably used to being left on her own.
Also, I thought it was really weird how so soon after April died, Frank just moved into the city and dumped his kids with his family. I didn't think Frank would abandon his children, as much as their relationship was strained.
I think she says this because she doesn't really understand what heaven is, or something like that. She may think it's just some other place. Though, the other reasons have support as well. However, I would think that the kids would care about it at least a bit, even if they didn't show it at that moment, they may have been somewhat sad in the restaurant or something.
I agree with Rebecca about the Jennifer was probably indifferent about the whole situation. I think that there were ups and downs of the relationship between April and her children, which is why Jennifer would be indifferent. I think that this comment is just a way of saying that she now has to move on with her life. Basically, the point that I think is trying to be conveyed is that you have to move on. Yes you have to deal with the death at first, but if you never move on, then I think that there is no way for that person to live. I am not saying that you have to totally forget about that person, I am just saying that Jennifer needs to move on with her young life, and she has started to somewhat with this statement.
As a child, I doubt Jennifer had that much resentment towards her own mother. I think that all children love their parents unconditionally, even if they were neglected. This is seen in April's childhood. When I read "Mommy is in heaven and we went to a restaurant." I felt that she was taking these words right out of her dad's mouth. I think that the easiest way to tell a child about death is saying that the person went to heaven.
I don't think that quote represents the relationship between April and Jennifer, but the breaking down of 1950s conformity. Their mother would always have dinner set every night, which represented suburbia. I think the entire restaurant idea is displaying the fact that this nuclear suburban family has fallen apart, and they are no longer going to have family dinners at 6:00, but meals at restaurants.
I think its just a form of childish irony or even bitterness. Kind of like "oh, my mommy died and all my daddy could do was take us to a freakin restaurant." But she concealed it in a way that looked cute and innocent, sort of like her mother did at the beginning of the book. It's more of the idea that she really feels bad about her mom's death, but she can't really direct that into the mourning that we as a society are used to seeing.
i'm not sure - all these ideas are interesting though. i think like anything else in their life on revolutionary road, nothing really means anything. to the kids, there is little to no difference between heaven and earth. they havent been taught like real emotions living there because everybody acts fake and tries to appear proper and sophisticated in this society even when someone dies.
also - gil - i agree but at first i was surprised when i read that he took them on a drive to explain it to them. obviously theyre young so he wasnt being totally honest with them but still i was surprised that he would include them and inform them in a mature manner. however, while understanding that their mother is in heaven is comforting, their mourning period consists of one dinner at a restaurant. whether she neglected them or not, April was their MOTHER and it just seems like she isnt paid any respects in honor of her death, even from her immediate family.
Since Jennifer is a six-year old, i doubt that she really understands what happenened. She said her mother died like it happenend every day. my mom is in heaven and i went ot a restaurant.....
I also doubt that jennifer even knows the feelnig of resentment at age six. THat feeling will probably devlop later in her life.
Did anyone realize that Frank did the same thing that April's parents did? Frank dropped off his children and then would visit and work in the city......
I disagree with some of you. I do think that even a six year old can grasp the significance of and be greatly affected by her mother's death. In fact, I think her comment mentioned by Charlie reflects that; she is unhappy that, when something as serious and sad as the passing of her mother occurs, they spend time in a restaurant - an happy, familial atmosphere - as if nothing happened.
Benjy, that is a great connection which I did not realize at first.
yeah benj its like what goes around comes around - sort of. like you raise your kids the way you were raised
i think she obviously cares that her mother is dead. But like most surprising unexpected things, it takes a long time to sink in. Plus when you are at such a young age things dont seem as severe.
I believe it is ONLY because of her inability to understand the situation.
She's a child, and therefore is childish. Sure, April wasn't the most attentive. But she was always the one to take care of them, so her children will always connect her to the one who fed and supported them.
Jennifer is only six and therefore I think she is too young to understand the finality of death. She is also still innocent and I don't think she is capable of feeling resentment towards her mother. Everything also happened so suddenly that she hasn't really gotten a hold of it yet and it will take some time to set in.
I think she did genuinely care about her mother. She and her brother were really damaged by this relationship between their parents. They were never taught as children should be taught, but they still had that love for their parents and were bothered and greatly hurt by the fact that it was not returned. This hurt is shown in the scene when Frank and April find Niffer lying on her bed with the string wrapped around her finger. She doesn't even know how to react to the news because she has never been taught emotions. Her parents always have their emotions in check, and kids notice everything. So if they couldn't pick those things up from their parents...
I think that Jennifer did not really care because April never really gave her love and attention, so I think that she in return did not love April. And I think its important that she mentions that she went to the restaurant like it as just as important as the death of her mother, probably to show that her mother does not matter that much to her.
I believe Jennifer does not understand why she is at a restaurant while her mom is dead and in heaven. I feel she understands what has occurred but does not comprehend the severity of the situation as other people said. I also believed the kids never did care for their mother. I feel Frank was a better parent compared to April for the children.
I think it is because she cannot truly understand the concept of death. She does not believe that her mom is "gone", rather, her mom simply exists somewhere other than in her house. No matter how poorly Jennifer was treated by her mom, she is still at that age where kids love their parents unconditionally, so I do not think she did not care about her mother's death, rather, she just did not understand.
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