“while there may have been a time when a woman could keep a house, tend a garden, sew and spin and raise twelve children, things are different now; life is more complicated. You owe your husband something; you owe yourself something. I want to get on, to study, to travel, to be a companion to my husband. I don’t want to be a mere servant!”
“How many of you are there?”
“Seven.”
“Seven? My heaven-seven children!”
“My grandmother had ten. Imagine having ten children.”
“Everything’s different now. Everything’s more expensive. Life’s more complicated.”
A ’60s feminist overheard? Women analyzing the Duggar’s latest announcement? No. These lines were published in 1911 which completely surprised me. I really assumed the sentiments were fairly contemporary. Apparently not.
I have a stack of new books here and this one was devoured in two days. Mother, written by Kathleen Norris in 1911 tells the tale of Margaret Paget, a small town schoolteacher who gets the opportunity to pursue a career in New York. She sees this as her ticket out of what she considers the drudgery and hopelessness her parents are locked into. She finds plenty of sympathetic, encouraging voices in the world. Somehow they begin to ring hollow in time.
I don’t think I give away the ending any more than the book jacket does when I say that she comes full circle to reject the self-absorbed lifestyle rampant in her new world and embraces family in the end. She learns that:
“Travel and position, gowns and motorcars, yachts and country houses, these things were to be bought in all their perfection by the highest bidder and always would be. But love and character and service, home and the wonderful charge of little lives…..these were not to be bought; they were only to be prayed for and worked for and bravely won.”
This is the book I will share with my daughters by way of explanation. This is the book I will hand those who ask “Why? Was it worth it? Didn’t you want something more?”
More? More than everything, you mean? I have some wonderful apologetic type books but nothing is as compelling as story. This story richly demonstrates the bible verse that:
“…whoever wishes to save his life will lose it and whoever gives up his life for my sake will find it.”
(note – You will want the Vision Forum restored edition. It seems later editions of the original edited out the heart of the story. )
Starry Sky Journal 
I love that middle quote about it being “bravely won”. How sad (but I’m not surprised) that later editions of the book were too edited.
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It is definitely not for the faint of heart. ; )
Kathleen Norris was one of the authors that I studied in a women’s lit class in college. Thank you for the review. I just put “Mother” on hold at the library. The library supposedly has 3 of the original 1911 copies, but we will see as they all say check shelf.
This sounds lovely! I will be reserving it now!
I have my own copy of this book and love it.
What age were you thinking you’d give it to your girls to read, Kim?
Kayleigh is off to college this fall and is a wide and varied reader. She “might” read it but I know she’s reading three other books right now and with college starting I’m wondering if I should have had her read it long ago.
The other two girls are 10 and 6. I’m wondering if it would make a good read-together with the 10 yr old. Or should I wait until she’s about 12-13? It’s been so long since I read it.
I’m not surprised as that time period was the one that ushered in the pro-birth control era of the 20’s and 30’s, and of course, look what we have now, very small families.