Mothers and ChildrenW. Collins, 1918 - 166 pages These 14 brief, contrasting vignettes, which each stand alone and deal with one mother and her child, provide glimpses of a huge range of mother-child relationships. Most extol the passion, depth and fulfilment of maternal love, which is likened in some tales to divine love, even protecting a child from beyond the grave (EILEEN). Some mothers invest all ambition in their offspring (ARTHUR). Some stories describe tragedies – MARGUERITE turns out ‘a dumbie’, longed-for PHI-PHI is an ‘idiot’, clever GERALD has a serious accident at Eton, BOBBY dies aged 4, devastating his mother, idolised CHARLIE becomes delinquent and ruins the family (though retaining his mother’s adoration). DOUGLAS’s adoptive mother cannot love him as his own mother still does. Some children return this devotion - GERALD comforts his anguished mother after his accident, MAUD gives up married love to care for her blind mother. NORMAN’s mother, fleeing a drunken, murderous husband, is redeemed and comforted by her son. Other mothers, like DERRICK’s, hate their children, with reciprocal dislike. GLADYS, spoiled by her mother, grows up selfish and arrogant. JANEY’s mother despises husband and child, and Janey dreams of her absent father. |
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Page ix
... months of anxious consideration , I have decided on their publication . They are barely stories , little more than raw material - unpolished studies for some great picture she conceived but was not allowed to execute ; yet there is ...
... months of anxious consideration , I have decided on their publication . They are barely stories , little more than raw material - unpolished studies for some great picture she conceived but was not allowed to execute ; yet there is ...
Page x
... months . She cherished no illusions about her health ; face to face with a painful , lingering death , she eyed it understandingly , calmly , resolutely ; discussed it openly with astounded doctors , reasoned it out undismayed with ...
... months . She cherished no illusions about her health ; face to face with a painful , lingering death , she eyed it understandingly , calmly , resolutely ; discussed it openly with astounded doctors , reasoned it out undismayed with ...
Page 22
... months old before it began to inspire her with the passion that now dominates her so exclusively . What precise moment of emotion lit the spark , it is impossible to say . Perhaps the glow of pride when one of her acquaint- ances ...
... months old before it began to inspire her with the passion that now dominates her so exclusively . What precise moment of emotion lit the spark , it is impossible to say . Perhaps the glow of pride when one of her acquaint- ances ...
Page 32
... months of her bereavement , when neither sympathy nor religion could heal the cancer that lay hid in her breast , aching with an anguish that only the poet's voice could soothe . They told her that God had taken the boy in mercy ; to ...
... months of her bereavement , when neither sympathy nor religion could heal the cancer that lay hid in her breast , aching with an anguish that only the poet's voice could soothe . They told her that God had taken the boy in mercy ; to ...
Page 33
... months after the day on which he heard that his first wife had perished in the wreck of the Oceana . It was the latter end of the nineteenth century ; too modern a time for marvellous tales of small boats surviving in stormy seas , of ...
... months after the day on which he heard that his first wife had perished in the wreck of the Oceana . It was the latter end of the nineteenth century ; too modern a time for marvellous tales of small boats surviving in stormy seas , of ...
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Common terms and phrases
ambitions arms Arthur asked Aunt Bessie baby beautiful Bobby brain caresses Carson Charlie child Chisel Danby's Derrick Devereux Douglas dream Eileen Eric Eton everything face father Frank Danby Frazer friends genius Gerald girl glad Gladys grew growing hair hands happy head heard heart ache Heaven husband Janey Jessie Joanna John Evans kiss knee knew light lips little angel little one's lived look Marguérite Margy marriage married maternity Maud Maud's measles months mother-love mother's eyes MOTHERS AND CHILDREN Mummy Mumsey ness nestled never night nurse nursery old Celia old maid pain pale passion perhaps Phi-phi Phyllis Vane's pity Poor little Poor mother Reuben Carson's seemed shadow world Slowcumb smiled Stanford University story sympathy talk tears tell Temple thought tin soldier told touched tremulous trouble turn Ursula voice watch wife woman words Wyvern young young doctor
Popular passages
Page 21 - I HAD a little daughter, And she was given to me To lead me gently backward To ,the Heavenly Father's knee, That I, by the force of nature, Might in some dim wise divine The depth of his infinite patience To this wayward soul of mine.