How we cite our quotes: (Paragraph)
Quote #4
In her day she had kept a better house [than Cornelia] and had got more work done (25).
Somebody better crown Granny 'Domestic Goddess of the Century.' Although we have plenty of evidence elsewhere that Granny defies traditional gender roles, she can't seem to shake the belief that a woman's value is at least partly tied to the frequency with which she dusts and vacuums.
Quote #5
[Granny] wasn't too old yet for Lydia to be driving eighty miles for advice when one of the children jumped the track, and Jimmy still dropped in and talked things over: "Now, Mammy, you've a good business head, I want to know what you think of this?. . ." (42).
A mother's work is never done—and that seems to be a good thing for Granny since she clearly bases a lot of her self-worth on being needed by her children.
Quote #6
Granny wished the old days were back again with the children young and everything to be done over. It had been a hard pull, but not too much for her. When she thought of all the food she had cooked, and all the clothes she had cut and sewed, and all the gardens she had made—well, the children showed it. There they were, made out of her, and she couldn't get away from that (25).
The repetition of the word "all" here really emphasizes just how much of Granny's time, energy, and life has been devoted to the activities involved in mothering her children. It's no wonder she can't seem to shut off her "Mom Brain" in other parts of the story.