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I Stand Here Ironing Analysis

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We all go through things in life that stick with us forever, some may argue that these past experiences/ memories may hinder a person's identity, but I believe in the opposite. There is good in everything, it's all about finding it, instead of being too lazy to search for it. Furthermore, I believe when we choose to look upon our past experiences/memories they shape who we become as individuals; we start viewing life in a more positive way and become stronger than we ever were, our identity will remain the same no matter how bad the situation was.

When we look back at our past experiences, we can connect it with our present and see how it has shaped us into the individuals we have become. In the article “How Your Past Affects Your Present” …show more content…

In the beginning we see Emily struggle with accepting her appearance and lacking in confidence. “She tormented herself enough about not looking like the others, there was enough of the unsureness, the having to be conscious of words before you speak, the constant caring - what are they thinking of me? without having it all magnified by the merciless physical drives.”(Olsen 5). This . On top of that, Emily also had abandonment issues, as a result of her mother constantly sending her away. “I used to try to hold and lover her after she came back, but her body would stiff and after a while she’d push away.” (Olsen 4) Emily’s abandonment issues caused her to think no one would love her, making her act cold towards others. At the end of the story Emily tries out for a comedy show and ends up winning. She continues to do more shows, thus leaving even her mother in shock, because she changed into a new, unrecognizable Emily. “Then: Was this Emily? The control, the command, the convulsing and deadly clowning, the spell then the roaring stamping audience unwilling to let this rare and precious laughter out of their lives” (Olsen 6). Emily didn't allow her lack of confidence and appearance worry her as she was up on stage. She didn't let her abandonment issues convince her that the audience wouldn't like her. All of her past experiences/ memories didn't hinder her identity, Emily was still able to become a better version of

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Her mother is persuaded to send her to a covalent home and Emily had a difficult time there because they didn’t allow any of the girls to keep personal belongings or "love anyone" (Olsen). After Emily came back from the covalent home, she became distant and refused her mother's attempts of comfort. A bright spot in Emily's life is her gift in comedy. The biggest obstacle for Emily would be not believing that she is helpless to the hardships life has thrown at

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Unfortunately, they are both trapped physically in the environment that they lived, and emotionally with the constant unintentional neglect from Sonny’s brother and Emily’s mother. Emily found her escape through being on stage preforming comedy for others, her mother states “Now suddenly she was Somebody, and as imprisoned in her difference as in anonymity” (Olsen 6). Emily was now her own being, not the person she was forced to be for her entire life. Being on stage changed who Emily was, since she was constantly being shut out from her mother.

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Emily and Sonny ultimately find their self-identity despite their hardships with the help of understanding from their families. Ever since she was a baby, Emily was already going through hardships. From spending days with the neighbor to being sent to a nursing home. Even though Emily “stayed skeleton thin, not wanting to eat, and night after night she had nightmares,” she still found a way to “[get] laughter out of the audience so dear they applaud and applaud and do not want to let her go” (Olsen 3). This foreshadowed Emily’s success as a comedic speaker at different events.

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Emily took her advice, won first prize, and then became a local star, performing at other high schools, colleges, and state-wide affairs. Though adoring fans often told the narrator that she should nurture Emily's gift and help her pursue it professionally, the mother does not know how to do that. In the present, Emily enters, joking about how her mother is always ironing. She refuses to to come meet the figure from her school, however.

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Despite those intentions, she was forced to leave Emily with unpleasant care takers and even a convalescent home for extended amounts of time while she looked for work, was focused on other children or was simply unable to care for her. She became a single mother when Emily’s father could “no longer endure” and left while Emily was still an infant. The physical distance between the mother and daughter created a much deeper distance emotionally. The story moves on to describe Emily’s childhood pain, growth into a school comedian and her lack of affection towards her mother and other siblings.. The story ends with the narrator asking the unknown caller to “let her be” but also to help her understand “that she is more than this dress on the ironing board, helpless before the

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