"I Stand Here Ironing"

The events presented in "I Stand Here Ironing" by Tillie Olsen does occur in today's world all the time. There are more and more teenagers having children, single parent households, and neglectful parents. It was obvious Emily's mother hardly made the time for her when the school counselor said "I wish you would manage the time to come talk with me about your daughter"(283). She was only nineteen and the father left. This is a common situation in today's world. Often teens have kids and the young boys don't step up to the plate to help care for them. If the mother doesn't have good family support they often end up homeless and living in poverty. Emily's mother needed to work however she left Emily with people who didn't show her love or care for her. She knew the teacher was evil, she just chose to ignore it (284). She never made use of her time with Emily. She was too worried and never smiled at her. I feel there are many mothers today who have kids but don't make them their number one priority. They choose to become involved with drugs or alcohol or even tend to their own social lives instead of giving their time and love to their children. By the time Emily's mother realized how she had been neglecting her, she had learned to be independent and no longer needed her mother's help. Emily had no desire or drive to live life. When asked about midterms she replied "in a couple of years when we'll all be atom-dead they won't matter a bit"(288). When a child doesn't feel loved they don't feel like they need to bother with life because there's no point.