character analysis of Mrs Lyons

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  • Created by: loupardoe
  • Created on: 27-10-16 12:17
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  • Mrs Lyons
    • very manipulative
      • once she has Edward, she fires mrs Johnston to stop her binding with him. shows that she's not interested in other people's problems and is prepared to hurt them to get what she wants
      • lies to her husband throughout the play. he 'wanted his own son, not someone else's' but she adopts a child behind his back.
      • exploits mrs Johnston's superstitious belief by making up a superstition to stop her telling anyone about the boys- she uses other people's weaknesses to her advantage
      • mrs lyons takes action to try to change fate
      • exploits mrs Johnston's poverty to persuade her to give up a child. uses rhetorical questions such as 'how can you possibly avoid some of them being put into care?' to make her argument sound reasonable and persuasive
    • changes in the course of the play
      • at the start of the play, she's in control. dominates mrs Johnston, and gets what she wants
      • commands like 'they shall be raised apart' and 'you won't tell anyone' establish her authority
      • mrs lyons struggles to control her anger when Edward swears, hitting him 'hard and instinctively'
      • afterwards, she repeats phrases such as 'my son' showing her panic that she's pushed him away
      • she becomes paranoid about Edward's relationship with the johnstons, and wants to move away
      • repetition and ellipses show that she's obsessive, and is losing her ability to argue properly
    • wealthy but unhappy
      • smothers Edward, doesn't want him 'out playing' with other children. over protective
      • many of her insecurities are caused by the fact that Edward isn't hers. this makes her increasingly paranoid
      • finds motherhood difficult. insecure about her mothering abilities and relationship with edward
      • desperate for a child- 'we've been trying for such a long time now'
      • in the 60s and 70s, women were expected to have children. mrs lyons has none, so she feels she's failed as a woman
      • manipulative- 'you'll be able to see him every day'
      • mrs lyons is desperate for a child- her 'rather large' house emphasises how empty her life feels without children. she thought children would just 'come along' which makes her childlessness more painful
      • paranoid- 'I feel something terrible will happen'
      • the lyonses are typical late-twentieth century middle-class couple- they have plenty of money, which mr lyons earns whilst mrs lyons stays at home and spends her husbands wages

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