Annie Dillard’s mother is weird. Not in the sense that she is bizarre, but instead, is pleasantly peculiar. The first portion of the text is about her fixation with ‘linguistic gymnastics’. She loves the turn of a phrase, the slight nuances of words and the way they’re strung together. She loves to flip meaning and keep people on their toes. She even goes as far as to test the worthiness of others through her absurd wordplay, and those who can keep up earn a special star.
“Anyone who met her verbal challenges she adored. She had surgery on one of her eyes. On the operating table, just before she conked out, she appealed feelingly to the surgeon, saying, as she had been planning to say for weeks “Will I be able to play the piano?” “Not on …show more content…
I feel this stems from the even more overarching characteristic. She has a dissatisfaction with the world around her. She has to spice things up in any way she can by cheating at games and using word play to throw people off. She is playful and thinks that people are much too serious. She gains enjoyment by making these kinds of people uncomfortable.
“She excelled at bridge, playing fast and boldly, but when the stakes were low and the hands dull, she bid slams for the devilment of it, or raised her opponents’ suit to bug them, or showed her hand, or tossed her cards in a handful behind her back in a characteristic swift motion accompanied by a vibrantly innocent look. It drove our stolid father crazy. The hand was over before it began and the guests were appalled.” – Annie Dillard, page 113
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She is smart and I think that she knows this, but isn’t able to use her intelligence for herself. She seeks for deeper meaning in everything within her reach because she isn’t able or allowed to reach her true potential. Therefore, she does everything she can to instill this knowledge into her children. She also, however, keeps her children humble by often reminding them of what they do not know. She feels that there is always something to learn or understand better. Whether it be about the origins of the Tamiami Trail, or how to spell poinsettia. I think the daughter aspires to be like her mother, and was an excellent role model for her throughout
“Anyone who met her verbal challenges she adored. She had surgery on one of her eyes. On the operating table, just before she conked out, she appealed feelingly to the surgeon, saying, as she had been planning to say for weeks “Will I be able to play the piano?” “Not on …show more content…
I feel this stems from the even more overarching characteristic. She has a dissatisfaction with the world around her. She has to spice things up in any way she can by cheating at games and using word play to throw people off. She is playful and thinks that people are much too serious. She gains enjoyment by making these kinds of people uncomfortable.
“She excelled at bridge, playing fast and boldly, but when the stakes were low and the hands dull, she bid slams for the devilment of it, or raised her opponents’ suit to bug them, or showed her hand, or tossed her cards in a handful behind her back in a characteristic swift motion accompanied by a vibrantly innocent look. It drove our stolid father crazy. The hand was over before it began and the guests were appalled.” – Annie Dillard, page 113
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She is smart and I think that she knows this, but isn’t able to use her intelligence for herself. She seeks for deeper meaning in everything within her reach because she isn’t able or allowed to reach her true potential. Therefore, she does everything she can to instill this knowledge into her children. She also, however, keeps her children humble by often reminding them of what they do not know. She feels that there is always something to learn or understand better. Whether it be about the origins of the Tamiami Trail, or how to spell poinsettia. I think the daughter aspires to be like her mother, and was an excellent role model for her throughout