The Dangers of City Life vs. The Dangers of Country Life
Early in Lily's life, when she is just a young woman, she moves to Chicago, the only big city that she had ever been to. This is during the Roaring Twenties, an adventurous and romanticized era of American history. Lily loved life in the city when she first got there, but soon found that all was not as it seemed. She got a job as a maid, but hated serving other people and having to keep her head down and her mouth shut around those she found to be dimwitted. One of her employers, an insignificant woman named Mim, fired her for her "attitude," but in reality it was just because Lily was smarter than her. The alternative was working in a factory, where Lily's best friend Minnie worked. However, tragedy struck when Minnie's hair got caught in some gears, sucking her into the machinery. She was killed instantly, her body mangled so badly that they had to have a closed-coffin funeral. But Lily still loved Chicago and didn't want to leave despite all of its downsides. The final straw came when she fell in love with a man named Ted Conover. He was a handsome businessman with a lot of potential. She quickly fell and love with him and they were soon married, but she soon discovered that he was already married and secretly had three children. She promptly got their marriage annulled and left Chicago soon after. City life caused her and her family nothing but pain, especially for her sister Helen. Helen went to the city when she was young, thinking that it would be better than life in the country. However, she ended up dating a long line of men who only played with her feelings and used as a toy. She became pregnant, but the father refused to marry or even acknowledge her after he found out. She moved to live with Lily, but became so depressed that she hung herself at the age of 26. It seems that country girls can never really adapt to the city.
Lily was better suited to country life and all of its quirks and dangers than life in a big city. When she became a school teacher, she would travel hundreds of miles alone with only her horse for company, surviving thieves, avoiding wild animals, and hunting her own food when supplies ran out. She created a life for herself, earning money while having a job that she truly enjoyed. She found a decent husband, especially after the fiasco with Ted, and built a family. When times got hard during the Depression and Prohibition, she ran an illegal alcohol production business, hiding bottles of moonshine under her daughter's crib. She weathered her way through droughts, floods, and deep freezes, but loved the adventure that nature brought to her life.
Lily was better suited to country life and all of its quirks and dangers than life in a big city. When she became a school teacher, she would travel hundreds of miles alone with only her horse for company, surviving thieves, avoiding wild animals, and hunting her own food when supplies ran out. She created a life for herself, earning money while having a job that she truly enjoyed. She found a decent husband, especially after the fiasco with Ted, and built a family. When times got hard during the Depression and Prohibition, she ran an illegal alcohol production business, hiding bottles of moonshine under her daughter's crib. She weathered her way through droughts, floods, and deep freezes, but loved the adventure that nature brought to her life.
Moonshine
During the Prohibition years Lily was no stranger to speakeasies and alcohol. She encountered plenty of them in Chicago and there was an abundance of backwater operations out in the countryside. Unlike city speakeasies, they were not affiliated with gangs or organized crime. The number of speakeasies actually increased during the Great Depression in spite of so many other businesses failing because of the economy. Many people needed a way to earn money, and alcohol was always in demand. Lily owned a gas station with her husband when the Depression hit and needed a way to keep from going bankrupt and to support her family, so she began selling hard moonshine to bring in extra money. She brought in about twenty dollars a month, which was fortune at the time. Everyone in her town enjoyed some alcohol every now and then and never reported her to the police. The only time the cops investigated was after a very drunk stranger came up to Lily's door and asked for some "hooch." She refused to sell him any because he was already completely hammered, but he started screaming at her and reported er operation to the cops. It is important to keep in mind that Lily was a very respectable woman; a capable business owner, a good neighbor mother and experienced schoolteacher. She was the last person anyone would expect to be selling spirits under the table. The police were unsure about investigating the tip, but had to make sure. She quickly hid all the moonshine under her daughter's crib, and the cops were soon scared away by her crying children.
The historical context of the book is important to examine, especially because Prohibition and the Great Depression were such important times in our country's history. Lily is a great example of how to survive in difficult economic times.
The historical context of the book is important to examine, especially because Prohibition and the Great Depression were such important times in our country's history. Lily is a great example of how to survive in difficult economic times.
Locations and Significant Imagery
Lily and Rosemary
Lily's rebellious daughter Rosemary is the mother of Jeannette Walls, who wrote this book as well as The Glass Castle, in which Rosemary was a much more influential figure. Even though they are mother and daughter, Rosemary and Lily couldn't be more different. Rosemary always had her head in the clouds, running around with animals, skinny dipping with a bunch of other people in the middle of the night, drawing art that her mother would never be able to dream of, and dating men that Lily disapproved of. Over the years Lily became more and more strict while Rosemary became harder and harder to control. The reason for her strictness may have been because of Rosemary's resemblance to Helen; Lily was scared that Rosemary would make a horrible mistake like Helen did. Lily wanted her daughter to be self-sufficient and independent from men before she even thought about getting married or having children. Despite her best efforts, Rosemary married Rex Walls, the good-for-nothing idiot and failure of a father that we see in The Glass Castle. They soon had four children whom they loved but did a downright terrible job of raising and providing for them. Lily's grandchildren were a constant point of conflict between the mother and daughter. Lily did her best to care for them when they visited and encourage her daughter pull her life together for the children's sake.
Name Meanings
Lily- a flower that represents prosperity, motherhood, love, unions, partnerships, and long-lasting relationships. They are often given to mothers or brides-to-be.
Helen- beautiful, shining light. Fitting for a woman who had romantic relationship problems, because name famously belonged to Helen of Troy.
Buster (Lily's brother) - a name associated with people who have a desire to lead or gain a higher status. Buster eventually took over his family's ranch and became quite wealthy.
Ted or Theodore- the name means "God-given," which is ironic because Ted was an adulterous scoundrel sent from Satan.
Jim or James (Lily's second husband; also the name of her son.) - a name associated with people who desire a stable, loving family and who are hard workers. Jim is the epitome of all those things, and is great father to Lily's children.
Rosemary- an herb means "dew of the sea." Rosemary is constantly changing like the sea. The name is also associated with those who are good expressing themselves artistically, which is fitting for Rosemary because she is an artist.
Helen- beautiful, shining light. Fitting for a woman who had romantic relationship problems, because name famously belonged to Helen of Troy.
Buster (Lily's brother) - a name associated with people who have a desire to lead or gain a higher status. Buster eventually took over his family's ranch and became quite wealthy.
Ted or Theodore- the name means "God-given," which is ironic because Ted was an adulterous scoundrel sent from Satan.
Jim or James (Lily's second husband; also the name of her son.) - a name associated with people who desire a stable, loving family and who are hard workers. Jim is the epitome of all those things, and is great father to Lily's children.
Rosemary- an herb means "dew of the sea." Rosemary is constantly changing like the sea. The name is also associated with those who are good expressing themselves artistically, which is fitting for Rosemary because she is an artist.