Essay Questions

Why does Alma poison Reynolds?

Reynolds has no idea how to live his life in a way that truly includes Alma and her needs. She winds up driving him mad, and he wants no part in figuring her out. Alma doesn't want to leave Reynolds, so she chooses to weaken him in order to make him vulnerable in a way that he must completely and totally rely on her, something he does not do with anyone, ever. By putting a poisonous mushroom in his tea or food, she makes him physically weak, and she nurses him back to health. For them, it allows him to open up and let his feelings come through, a purging of emotion. While for her, it makes her feel that she is truly needed by him.

What is the significance of Reynolds seeing a vision of his dead mother while sick?

After drinking a tea made from poisonous mushrooms, Reynolds has fallen gravely ill. While in bed he sees his mother in her wedding gown, the one he made for her marriage to her second husband. The significance of seeing her is that Reynolds realizes his mortality, that he is not invincible to death, and that his life will be over before he knows it.

Why does Reynolds get upset with Alma for sending the workers away so that she could make dinner for him?

Reynolds is a man who runs his existence by the book. Every day he lives in the same exact way, and he expects it to be so that his creative genius can be sharpened and he can be at his best. Thus, when Alma sends everyone home for the evening, including his sister Cyril, it's as if a tornado has touched down within him. He believes he is being attacked rather than loved and cared for as all of the things he relies on are taken away and he must now sit before a woman who loves him, and hopes for him to be vulnerable with her as she is being with him. However, her gesture gets twisted and he lashes out.