Alyssa Tan
Ms. Brown
ENG2D1
21 March 2023
The Universal Truth About Parent and Child Relationships in “First Day” by Edward P. Jones
In Edward P. Jones's short story "First Day," a young girl's view of her mother changes from infallibility to imperfection. As her perspective shapes into her own, the ingenuous thoughts of her mother fade, and the mother reveals her shortcomings, the story conveys that as children grow and mature, they will inevitably begin to see their parents' imperfections. At the beginning of the story, the mother goes to strenuous efforts to get her child to her first day of school. Despite not being able to attend the school closer to home after they visit multiple schools, the child is proud that “this is [her] mother: She says, ‘One monkey don’t
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The girl firmly believes that her mother is hardworking and willing to do whatever it is to give her a good school. As a result, she sees what most children do at this age, their parents as infallible. Nevertheless, the mother begins to demonstrate her imperfections and shortcomings. While registering her daughter at Walker Jones school, her inability to read begins to slow her, as she hassles through many papers looking for the right ones. This is embarrassing and new to the girl as “[she] knows almost all of her [mother's] looks, but this one is brand new to [her].” (3). Until now, the child had only seen her mother as perfect, but her mother’s new shortcomings have made her realize that she is not. Her mother is almost diseased with her flaws, and this development puts the child in a difficult position as she now sees what the rest of the world does. Finally, the girl develops a perspective of her own as she grows up. Retelling the story, she recalls that it took place “long before [she] learned to be ashamed of [her] mother” (1). Her perception of her mother changed a lot as she grew up, transforming from her naive