Ladder Of Years And Dinner At A Homesick Restaurant

Anne Tyler is known for her novels often depicting a dysfunctional family dynamic. The family hardships apparent in Ladder of Years and Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, in effect, generates female characters to stray from stereotypical gender societal expectations. Ladder of Years centers a woman from Baltimore, Delia Grinstead, who disappears during a family vacation. Delia abandons her family due to the prolong discontent, which is not discern by her husband. During this hiatus away from her family, Delia releases herself from her previous feeling of confinement, recognizes herself as an individual separate from her family, and becomes self-sufficient. On the other hand, Dinner at a Homesick Restaurant focuses on Pearl Tull, who is abandoned by her husband, Beck, leaving her to raise her three children alone: Jenny, Cody, and Ezra.

The lack of a father-figure for the Tull family forces them, especially Pear and Jennyl, to become independent and resilient. Although Pearl is often characterized as demanding and aggressive by Cody and Jenny, this is her way of sustaining a strong front in order to maintain what it is that remains in their family. In this essay, I will examine the impact of family dynamics to the female characters involved. I will further scrutinize how the development of these female characters advocate different aspects of the Feminist Theory. The particular aspects of the Feminist Theory that will be explored in this research are In the novels, Ladder of Years and Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, Anne Tyler promotes different aspects of the Feminist Theory by establishing independent and strong female