Story Overview

This is a true, semibiographical story about a young woman who was raised by a very strict and abusive father in the Midwest. She led a very oppressed life growing up and then marrying a very abusive husband.

Beginning of the Story

The story begins in a hospital, where Jean has lost the will to live. A kindly priest, Father Warner, making his rounds of the hospital ward, encounters Jean, who then relates the story of her life to him.

Jean's Concerns and Father Warner's Role

Jean, who now has children of her own, is very depressed that her own children may very well experience a similar fate as each generation seems to pass on to the next the oppression that they themselves experienced while growing up. Father Warner takes it upon himself to help Jean in whatever way possible to restore her willingness to live.