Victim of Love and Isolation
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In this classic collection of short stories, The Long Valley, John Steinbeck captures the simple farmer's life in California. In Steinbeck's "The White Quail," he shows the results of too much love and isolation. From the story we are shown that Mary Teller, a beautiful young woman, who is looking for someone agreeable to her garden. Through the story Mary becomes more and more unstable and stops any attempts from Harry, her husband, to make the marriage work. To many readers Harry Teller might seem like the victim of this unsuccessful marriage. However, I believe that the neurotic Mary Teller would be in that state of mind because of the isolation from her father but moreover, because Harry never complains and gives unconditional love to her, he allows her to become even more unreasonable.
The isolation one experiences as a child often leaves a scar that is nearly impossible to be completely healed. Towards the end of the story Mary thinks back towards childhood and remembers she was restricted in many aspect of being a child. She was only allowed to look and not touch. She was supposed to be "pretty, quiet, and brave" (Steinbeck, 24)...