Analysis

5 Pages 1351 Words

Literary analysis on Mrs. Dietrich




“Shopping” by Joyce Carol Oates is based on the problems of a mother daughter relationship that are exposed during their annual shopping trip. Mrs. Dietrich is a middle age woman whose marriage collapsed due to betrayal by her husband. Mrs. Dietrich’s only outlet for giving and receiving love is through her seventeen-year-old daughter Nola, who she desperately wants to have intimate relationship with. Mrs. Dietrich tries to preserve Nola’s childlike image, fearing to that Nola would not need her when she becomes an adult. Her overwhelming fear of loosing the love of Nola is causing her to be more of a friend than parent. Mrs. Dietrich unwillingness to enforce parental guidelines combined with lack of communication is pushing Nola away, and could ruin their relationship.
Mrs. Dietrich was twenty nine years of age when she finally got pregnant with Nola. Mr. and Mrs. Dietrich had been trying to get pregnant for nearly five years. The new found happiness suddenly brought them closer that they had been. Never before did the Dietrich’s have such intimate feelings towards each other. In awe of his wife’s beauty, Mr. Dietrich got Mrs. Dietrich a reproduction of a famous painting. The painting was of a radiantly beautiful pregnant woman, this would a token of appreciation for being pregnant with their child. Theses acts of kindness and intimate feelings for each other would be their last.
Even before Nola was born, Mrs. Dietrich knew she would try to live vicariously through Nola, but this time her life would be perfect “It would be herself again, reborn and this time perfect” (262). Nola was born and by the age of eleven she grew up to be a quite “plain, rather chunky, unhappy child” (261). Nola in her awkward adolescences would say crazy things for attention. For instance one night at dinner with her parents and some guest, Nola told an offensive story about a blac...