6.0 Prompt #3

Emile Fierro

10/4/15

1B

Mr. Keating

6.0 Prompt #3

I believe that Emily's character in "I Stand Here Ironing" is rather flat. This is because there is simply not much context about her except a brief description about her and what she has been doing through the narrator's eyes. We are not sure whether she remains the same throughout the story or not. For example, as a child Emily never complains about anything or asks anything. She's generally quiet throughout the story and when she says she wants to see her mother, she does it indirectly. However, every once in a while throughout the story we get a unique glimpse about Emily. For example, she has a "rare gift for comedy on the stage that rouses laughter out of the audience". Emily is apparently a brilliant comedian, which shows a bit of her personality. Also, we see a bit of her wits when she compares her own mother to Whistler's mother, and joking about her ironing; “Aren’t you ever going to finish the ironing, Mother? Whistler painted his mother in a rocker. I’d have to paint mine standing over an ironing board.” So overall, Emily is a flat character in the story but we do see every once in a while parts of her personality.