The narrator’s mother gives orders to the narrator and her sister. She tells the narrator that the Reservoir has clean water, fulfilling some of the narrator’s curiosity, but she consistently orders the narrator to stay away from the Reservoir itself. When she does let the narrator go out and play, the narrator’s mother reminds her to keep a sun hat on and stay away from the Reservoir. With her neighbors, the narrator’s mother discusses the dangers of the Reservoir, including the children who have drowned in it, and she regards the creek reaching high-flow as a terrifying tragedy. The high-strung nature of the narrator’s mother reveals how parental love can become overbearing, while also poking fun at the disregard children have for the valid concerns of their parents.
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The Narrator’s Mother Character Timeline in The Reservoir
The timeline below shows where the character The Narrator’s Mother appears in The Reservoir. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Reservoir
...frightens the narrator, who is afraid of dying of thirst if the Reservoir dries up. The narrator’s mother tells her the Reservoir gives pure, “treated” water. The narrator doesn’t know what “treated” means,...
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...the heat and their lessons by post that they decide to walk by the creek. The narrator’s mother reminds the narrator not to go to the Reservoir, but the children “dismiss the warning.”...
(full context)
...should tell their parents where they have been, but “the question [is] decided for [them].” The narrator’s mother greets the children at the door saying, “I hope you didn’t go anywhere near the...
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