Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler: Bedloe Family Declining with Age Essay Example
Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler: Bedloe Family Declining with Age Essay Example

Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler: Bedloe Family Declining with Age Essay Example

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In Anne Teller's Saint Maybe, Doug Boodle's perspective reveals that the Boodle family is declining with age. The Boodle family begins to diminish as the years go by and everyone begins to age. Dogs acknowledgment of Bee's growing illness of arthritis creates her personality to develop into unpleasant bitterness. Doug observes, "In the dark, Bee's special white arthritis gloves glowed eerily. She lay on her side, facing him, with the gloves curled beneath her chin. The slightest sound used to wake her hen their own three children were little-a cough or even a whimper.

Now she slept through everything, and Doug was glad. It was a pity so much rested on Ian, but Ian was young. With Dough's point of view, it shoes how Ian doesn't have much of a choice to take care of the child

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ren. He is left with the responsibility of taking over for his mother because her illness limits her abilities. The family starts to fall apart without her; she is the 'glue' of the family if you will. In addition to Dandy's passing way, Beasties death verifies that the family is becoming smaller and is affecting the family emotionally as well.

Doug illustrates, "When Doug saw her velvety snout against the clay, tears came to his eyes. She had always been such an undemanding dog, so accommodating, so adaptable. This is important to Dogs character because it shows how much it hurts him to lose family. Beasties death is symbolic because everyone is getting old and reaching their time of departure. The loss of Danny and Bee's arthritis is causing the traditions in the Boodle house to cease along

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with the family.

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