1.) Is Amanda selfish? Or does she only want the best for her children? Be specific and point to specific places in the play that support your answer.
2.) Does Jim help or hurt Laura by what he says and does? Is she changed for the better as a result of this interaction, or has he further damaged her?
3.) Compare Tom’s opening and closing speeches in the play. What’s his tone in each? Has he changed by the end of the play? How? For better or worse?
Overview
Family connections Separation-individuation, according to Parrish (2014), is “the desired outcome of infants developing a sense of identity distinct from that of their mothers” (p. 90). Amanda’s family remembers her as a laid-back, obedient child during her early years.
She enjoyed social interactions and found it difficult to relax when alone with someone other than her mother. The fact that Amanda spent her early years in the care of her maternal grandmother may have contributed in part to her laid-back demeanor with others. Six weeks after Amanda’s birth, her mother went back to work, but her grandmother took care of Amanda and maintained a legally permitted childcare center. Amanda was subjected to the arrivals and departures because of the daycare center’s nature.
It’s likely that this experience helped her preserve the confidence that her mother will always come back for her while also allowing her to form a sense of self apart from her mother. As Amanda talked about the passing of… additional material
Her grades started to drop, she started sneaking out of her parent’s house, she started drinking, and she started getting into trouble at school. Because they were unsure of what was happening or how to assist Amanda during this time, Amanda said her parents were saddened and concerned. The “desire for social acceptance” that characterizes this stage of adolescence, according to Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman (2013), causes teenagers to develop a type of group mentality where they tend to operate as a whole rather than as individuals.
