Chapter 6: The Third and Final Continent

The details of the narrator’s family are important for the readers to know the personality of the narrator. He went through a rough childhood and grew up in disturbed situations at home. It is necessary for the readers to get a clear idea about the relationship between Mrs Croft and the author. The words which the author used explain the love he had for his mother, which made him to fulfil his role as an elder son till she died. He very badly missed his mother and recollected incidents about how she forgot to drape her head with a cloth before going in front of her husband. When he got to know about the age of Mrs Croft, he remembered how his mother was not able to adjust to the death of his father and turned insane, which deteriorated her health. The death of his mother broke him, but he cared for her till the last moment, even before her funeral. This depicts the reason for the empathy which grew towards Mrs Croft due to her age. Hence, his concern towards Mrs Croft can be seen in the line – “I was mortified. I had assumed Mrs Croft was in her eighties… that this person was a widow who lived alone and mortified me further still.”

A person feels detached from the people staying around him in other countries. Here arises the diaspora feeling. The same thing occurred to the narrator. He was far from his family and home but never grew any affectionate feelings towards anyone in America. He felt unfriendly with the people of America. The course of an action justifies the emotional bonding and attachment which grew between the author and Mrs Croft. In the foreign country, his affection towards the old woman grew due to different reasons. When he found that he was older than a century, he had a sense of responsibility towards her. He was quite awestruck and amazed at the picture of a widow of that age living all alone without having anyone to take care of her. Taking up responsibilities like preparing soup every evening and providing her eight dollars in an envelope every month made him satisfied. All these events clarify the fact that a strong bond was created between the narrator and Mrs Croft.

The different conversations that took place in pieces during the course of action show a lot about the perception of people on the issues and their attitudes towards each other. We see a hypocritical and firm attitude which exists in Mrs Croft’s tone when the narrator reaches her place for the first time. He got to know that belonging to a high-standard place was very important to her, such as Harvard or Tech. The biases and greatness of Americans to be the first to step on the moon consider it as impossibly splendid and unattainable. For the first time, she becomes mild when she gets eight dollars in an envelope from the narrator. Her orthodox ways become visible when she objects to a man and a lady talking privately without a chaperone. Her traditional ways are quite visible by keeping in mind the fact that she had already crossed a century. The path followed by the people in the western world is in contrast to ours when we see Helen, Mrs Croft’s daughter, being indifferent towards the meals and health of her mother. Her normal tone when she states – “She might have slipped,” would disturb the readers. Even with the variations in opinions, norms and perceptions, the relationship between the American widow and the narrator deserves appreciation.

Solution coming soon.