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Smoked glasses
There are several dolls in The Miracle Worker, including the doll Annie Sullivan brings with her to the Kellers’ home and the doll Aunt Ev makes for Helen Keller. Throughout the play, dolls symbolize education. As a child, Annie first learned how to communicate by interacting with a doll, and during her time with Helen she trains Helen to behave by showing her how to take care of a doll. Dolls play an important role in education because they give people like Helen an opportunity to practice new skills and types of behavior.
Dolls Quotes in The Miracle Worker
The The Miracle Worker quotes below all refer to the symbol of Dolls. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act 1 Quotes
ANNIE: All right, Miss O'Sullivan. Let's begin with doll.
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Explanation and Analysis:
In this passage, Annie begins her lessons with Helen. Annie has brought with her several items, including a large doll, which she intends to use to educate her new student. The doll clearly has special significance for Annie, since Annie began her education at the Perkins Institute for the Blind by studying a doll and, presumably, learning the words to describe it. It’s for this reason that Annie seems to be addressing herself in this passage—by educating Helen, Annie is in a sense revisiting her own early education, except this time she’s the teacher. Annie is an effective teacher for Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Ac
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Dolls Symbol Timeline in The Miracle Worker
The timeline below shows where the symbol Dolls appears in The Miracle Worker. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1
...and the glasses will help her see without pain. The children give Annie another gift—a doll with movable eyelids, which can make a “momma” sound. The doll, the children explain, is...
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...and smoked glasses as well. Then, she finds Annie’s drawers (i.e., underwear), and a large doll. Helen seems to like the doll. Annie, amused, murmurs, “All right, Miss O’Sullivan. Let’s begin...
(full context)
Annie takes Helen’s hand and gently manipulates the fingers, spelling out “D-O-L-L” in sign language. James, who’s been watching from the doorway, says, “You spell pretty well.”...
(full context)
Annie shows Helen the doll again, prompting Helen to spell its name. Helen does so, and Annie gives her the...
(full context)
Act 2
...Helen. Helen takes the card and accidentally pokes her own finger. Next, Helen throws her doll to the ground, and Annie spells “bad girl” on Helen’s palm. Next, Annie makes Helen...
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...Annie and Helen alone, and Helen begins banging around the garden house. She finds her doll and is about to throw it when, suddenly, she begins to cry and sinks to...
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Alone, Annie sits in a rocking chair with Helen’s doll. Happy with herself, she begins singing a lullaby to the doll “in mock solicitude.” As...
(full context)
