Elizabeth is Home
I had wondered back in the For Better or For Worse strip on December 27, 2007, when Elizabeth said, “Let’s go home, Anthony” and they left Elizabeth’s apartment, exactly what that meant: Sleeping together, living together, joint properly ownership?
When Warren Blackwood showed up this past week spouting the same “home”-related language, I had speculated that what “having a home” meant was “to have a woman in the home committed to taking care of the house and the kids”. This was because Anthony’s original “I have no home” cry, was made at a time when he had a physical house and he was married. His anguished cry meant that his wife had refused to take care of his house and their child. Moreover, he asked Liz to “wait for him”, which we have found means to “wait for him to get rid of the other woman, so that Liz can become the woman who takes care of his house and his child.” It seems almost like the Sound of Music, where what the man really needs in his life is a housekeeper and a nanny, not the evil Baroness, who wants to send the children to boarding school.
After all this speculation, I always had in the back of my mind that this could not possibly be the message Lynn Johnson was sending. I thought she must have meant something else and that the problem was that her poor story-telling skills were getting in the way. And yet, we have this past week that clearly Elizabeth Patterson still lives in her apartment and she is not sleeping with Anthony Caine. Then we have today’s For Better or For Worse strip which shows Elizabeth Patterson, in Anthony Caine’s house, making food for little Frannie Caine, without Anthony’s name being mentioned even once as an explanation for why Liz is there and Anthony is not there.
Naturally, there are a whole host of reasons why Anthony could not be there, and Liz could be there, which would not say that Liz has officially accepted the role of taking care of Anthony’s house and Anthony’s child. However, I consider the fact that Lynn Johnston has not felt the need to present any of those reasons, even in a speech or thought balloon to be very telling. If you are the standard Sunday colour only strip reader, the last Liz and Anthony strip you had was the one where they read the lists to each other and after Liz smooches on Anthony, he asks for the cheque, as if the next thing they would do is to find a room someplace for some private nookie. After that, you have this strip, so what conclusion would you draw?
When Warren Blackwood showed up this past week spouting the same “home”-related language, I had speculated that what “having a home” meant was “to have a woman in the home committed to taking care of the house and the kids”. This was because Anthony’s original “I have no home” cry, was made at a time when he had a physical house and he was married. His anguished cry meant that his wife had refused to take care of his house and their child. Moreover, he asked Liz to “wait for him”, which we have found means to “wait for him to get rid of the other woman, so that Liz can become the woman who takes care of his house and his child.” It seems almost like the Sound of Music, where what the man really needs in his life is a housekeeper and a nanny, not the evil Baroness, who wants to send the children to boarding school.
After all this speculation, I always had in the back of my mind that this could not possibly be the message Lynn Johnson was sending. I thought she must have meant something else and that the problem was that her poor story-telling skills were getting in the way. And yet, we have this past week that clearly Elizabeth Patterson still lives in her apartment and she is not sleeping with Anthony Caine. Then we have today’s For Better or For Worse strip which shows Elizabeth Patterson, in Anthony Caine’s house, making food for little Frannie Caine, without Anthony’s name being mentioned even once as an explanation for why Liz is there and Anthony is not there.
Naturally, there are a whole host of reasons why Anthony could not be there, and Liz could be there, which would not say that Liz has officially accepted the role of taking care of Anthony’s house and Anthony’s child. However, I consider the fact that Lynn Johnston has not felt the need to present any of those reasons, even in a speech or thought balloon to be very telling. If you are the standard Sunday colour only strip reader, the last Liz and Anthony strip you had was the one where they read the lists to each other and after Liz smooches on Anthony, he asks for the cheque, as if the next thing they would do is to find a room someplace for some private nookie. After that, you have this strip, so what conclusion would you draw?
posted by howard at 10:15 PM
11 Comments:
As I said before, the notion that Lynn meant exactly that by the word "home" comes from the earliest days of the strip. John explained his refusal to even entertain the possibility of Elly working outside the house because without her raising the children, cooking and cleaning, he would no longer have a home. He grew up in a 'home' so he wanted his children to have the same thing.
howard
You present a cogent line of reasoning, as usual.
so what conclusion would you draw?
The restaurant strip tried to show (not just tell) the commitment between Anthony and Liz; today’s strip shows the bonding between Liz and the child. Anthony is nowhere in the picture because this strip is not about him. Isn’t this the first time Francie is having a genuinely great time with Liz?
This strip reminds me of a somewhat wacky friend of ours. When his kid would get his face dirty with food he did not hesitate to bend over and lick it off. Although I found this to be somewhat repulsive, I could also see that he had a very close bond with his child--a rapport that our friend lacked with his parents.
I have the same reaction to this strip. It’s messy, harmless, and I can’t imagine doing it, but it does show a lighter, more accommodating side to Liz.
Because Liz is wearing glasses, I infer that she spent the previous night at Anthony’s.
Anon NYC
I don't know, Anon NYC -- I was thinking maybe Liz maybe went over there the same day with her glasses on. But I don't usually pay attention to when she wears glasses or not.
Muzition.
But I don't usually pay attention to when she wears glasses or not.
Glasses off during wedding sequence.
Glasses off during park date with Anthony.
Glasses off during dinner date with Anthony.
Glasses off during conversation about Thérèse with Candace.
Glasses on during Liz launders and is caught by a student.
Glasses off during post-Grandpa Jim Stroke II sequence
Glasses off during laundry with April.
Glasses off for sequence at Anthony’s house before going to the mall.
Glasses off for holiday sequence with Thérèse.
Glasses off for Christmas Dinner sequence.
Glasses off when Candace and Rudy are over.
Glasses on when by herself and during Warren interruption.
The only conclusion I can draw is that Liz wears glasses when she is by herself.
DreadedCandiru2,
John explained his refusal to even entertain the possibility of Elly working outside the house because without her raising the children, cooking and cleaning, he would no longer have a home.
It is nice to know that Lynn Johnston has been consistent in her definition over all these years.
Anon NYC,
Today’s strip shows the bonding between Liz and the child. Anthony is nowhere in the picture because this strip is not about him. Isn’t this the first time Francie is having a genuinely great time with Liz?
Aside from when Liz bribed her with ice cream, I would say yes. As I have known for quite some time, the parent or grandparent or uncle or aunt who is the favourite with the kids is the one willing to get down on the floor and play with them. When my nieces and nephew were little, this meant pony rides and the like. Now that they are in or approaching their teenage years, it often means just having a conversation with them where you listen to and respect their opinion.
In that respect, I can see Liz working along those lines. Francie is making a mess and Liz is doing the same thing, except with a lot of extra noise. I had complained months ago that we needed to have at least one moment of Liz bonding with Francie before the readers could accept her as a mother, and I find it extremely amusing that the area where they bond is over the Patterson’s disgusting eating habits. That’s not my choice; but it seems so appropriate for a Patterson. What I had hoped, was this moment would occur before Francie and Liz ran into Thérèse at the mall, where Liz got her hug from Francie by default instead of because she had moments like this.
howtheduck:
I find it extremely amusing that the area where they bond is over the Patterson’s disgusting eating habits. That’s not my choice; but it seems so appropriate for a Patterson. What I had hoped, was this moment would occur before Francie and Liz ran into Thérèse at the mall, where Liz got her hug from Francie by default instead of because she had moments like this.
Well, Lynn never did have very good timing so it's not so much of a surprise that she did things out of their proper order. As for Liz and her glasses, what I took away from your list is that she wears them on occasions when she's not trying to impress people, which explains why she's wearing them when she's engaged in (eating-like-a-)horseplay with Francie.
dreadedcandiru2,
she wears them on occasions when she's not trying to impress people
Now the next question is whether or not she is at ease enough with Anthony to wear glasses around him.
This story arc is confusing and titallating. Mike dressing as a woman is somewhat confusing, but not when you consider the Weed storyline.
Is he Norman Bates? Is he leading a secret life as a woman? Is this a teleplay in his head, where he goes behind his love Weed's back for another man? "Stone Soup III: Tranny Season" is sure to be interesting.
At least, that's how I'm reading the strip from now on, considering the art.
Correction. It should read "Stone Season III." As I've stated before in the blog, "Stone Soup" is the newsletter of USA Curling. The reason I get it is I figure I can start training now and be ready for curling in the Olympics in 2024. After all, it's a sport for old men like bowling, right?
P.S. I love this blog.
Post a Comment
<< Home