Summary

This short story, told in the conventional third-person, describes a woman who has had a "very hard interior time of it indeed" (284) her entire life. Specifically, the woman is chronically depressed due to a combination of high self-expectations paired with incredible self-loathing. The woman gives birth to a son, a development that only increases her self-loathing, as she interprets all of her son's behavioral issues as further flaws of her own personality. The story concludes with the implication that it is the son that commits suicide (286).

Analysis

There are potential connections between this story and previous stories in the collection. Specifically, the self-tortured woman in this story could be a potential match for the main character in "The Depressed Person." Also, the incredibly layered relationship between a mother and her son are reminiscent of the themes explored in the...