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I read the story “ Gift of Laughter “, written by Pearl. S. Buck. A story about mom-son relationship.
1) Mrs. Barton has only one son, Ranny, 27 years old, a lawyer, not married. Now was in the place near front. Her husband died in last war. Her father Ranald died at age 60. Mrs. Barton did not remarried. She lived with her Butler, old Henry and his wife Old Anne. She had a chauffeur Dicken, Dicken will go to front soon. Mrs. Barton was lonely, she missed her son very much, worried about him being died. Christmas is coming soon. Mrs. Barton went shopping some present for her son, she knew the name of her son’s regiment, so she could send the Christmas box in time . Mrs. Barton originally intended to invite some old friends like old Marnie Lewis to celebrate Christmas together, they are also lonely like her. But she knew it is no use adding other loneliness to her loneliness!
2）On Christmas Day noontime, Mrs. Barton came back from church. She saw someone in the library at home. Old Henry told her the person was a girl, Ranny let her in. When Mrs.Barton went into the library, the girl told her that her son asked her to come. Mrs. Barton felt very sad that her son had a girlfriend and did not tell her, she had lost her son. She doesn't want to talk to the girl. Let her go. The girl said that she was asked by her son to send Christmas presents. Open the gift box, there is a picture of Ranny when he was a child.. Mrs. Boston very happy to see. The girl said to Mrs. Borton “you have too many restrictions on your son, and he will listen to you. You are afraid of losing your son. You are not really concerned about your son. You are selfish!” Mrs.Borton unhappy and said:”you’d better go “ The girl continued to introduce herself, she is a reporter. She met her son in a case three years ago. Her son proposed to her.
3)it's time for lunch. The girl is leaving. Mrs.Borton asked the girl where to go. The girl said she was an orphan. She grew up in the orphanage and left when she was 17 years old. Her name is Jenny Holt. Mrs.Borton led Jenny into her son's room for a rest. When they had lunch, Jenny told Mrs.Borton :”your son was afraid of you, but I thought you were very kind” . Mrs.Borton was so happy, her son was still alive. She said:”I laughed today." She asked Jenny:”Why you not marry Ranny?” Jenny reply:” I’m plain, afraid to “. Mrs. Borton said “ I want my son to marry you “ Jenny was happy, she had a mother now. They write a letter to Ranny: present received, engage approved.
.4) I think Mrs. Barton was a good mother. She loved her son, worried about his safety worried about his marriage. She is not selfishness .
It is good that Ranny can understand her mother's loneliness and pain, and persuade her to remarry to Topham Stokes , father’s friend and think of her everywhere. This is not restricted by the mother, nor is it afraid of the mother.
Jenny was abandoned by her mother, so she could not understand the feelings of mother and children.
I left home at the age of 16. Although my mother has been thinking of me, I care little about my mother and feel ashamed now !
1) Mrs. Barton has only one son, Ranny, 27 years old, a lawyer, not married. Now was in the place near front. Her husband died in last war. Her father Ranald died at age 60. Mrs. Barton did not remarried. She lived with her Butler, old Henry and his wife Old Anne. She had a chauffeur Dicken, Dicken will go to front soon. Mrs. Barton was lonely, she missed her son very much, worried about him being died. Christmas is coming soon. Mrs. Barton went shopping some present for her son, she knew the name of her son’s regiment, so she could send the Christmas box in time . Mrs. Barton originally intended to invite some old friends like old Marnie Lewis to celebrate Christmas together, they are also lonely like her. But she knew it is no use adding other loneliness to her loneliness!
2）On Christmas Day noontime, Mrs. Barton came back from church. She saw someone in the library at home. Old Henry told her the person was a girl, Ranny let her in. When Mrs.Barton went into the library, the girl told her that her son asked her to come. Mrs. Barton felt very sad that her son had a girlfriend and did not tell her, she had lost her son. She doesn't want to talk to the girl. Let her go. The girl said that she was asked by her son to send Christmas presents. Open the gift box, there is a picture of Ranny when he was a child.. Mrs. Boston very happy to see. The girl said to Mrs. Borton “you have too many restrictions on your son, and he will listen to you. You are afraid of losing your son. You are not really concerned about your son. You are selfish!” Mrs.Borton unhappy and said:”you’d better go “ The girl continued to introduce herself, she is a reporter. She met her son in a case three years ago. Her son proposed to her.
3)it's time for lunch. The girl is leaving. Mrs.Borton asked the girl where to go. The girl said she was an orphan. She grew up in the orphanage and left when she was 17 years old. Her name is Jenny Holt. Mrs.Borton led Jenny into her son's room for a rest. When they had lunch, Jenny told Mrs.Borton :”your son was afraid of you, but I thought you were very kind” . Mrs.Borton was so happy, her son was still alive. She said:”I laughed today." She asked Jenny:”Why you not marry Ranny?” Jenny reply:” I’m plain, afraid to “. Mrs. Borton said “ I want my son to marry you “ Jenny was happy, she had a mother now. They write a letter to Ranny: present received, engage approved.
.4) I think Mrs. Barton was a good mother. She loved her son, worried about his safety worried about his marriage. She is not selfishness .
It is good that Ranny can understand her mother's loneliness and pain, and persuade her to remarry to Topham Stokes , father’s friend and think of her everywhere. This is not restricted by the mother, nor is it afraid of the mother.
Jenny was abandoned by her mother, so she could not understand the feelings of mother and children.
I left home at the age of 16. Although my mother has been thinking of me, I care little about my mother and feel ashamed now !
As I read and reflected on this month's story "Gift of Laughter," I became more and more intrigued by how very near its end the story takes a dramatic turn when Jenny and Mrs. Barton suddenly burst out laughing, recognizing the absurd track that Mrs. Barton's attempt to avoid learning anything about her son's love interest has taken. Over the next four or five pages, Mrs. Barton does a complete "about face,' inviting the girl to Christmas dinner, confessing her selfishness to her son's photo, asking Jenny to marry her son, and inviting her to live with her until her son returns from the war. Needless to say, I was more than skeptical that such a dramatic change could take place so quickly and began to question the quality and effectiveness of the story. So I did what I usually do--a little research. I wanted to see what members of the scientific community had to say about the effects of laughter on the mind and body of the human being and just how long they had been saying it. Pearl Buck wrote this story in 1942. Had she been exposed to scientific studies on this topic or was she extrapolating from her experience, anecdotal reports, or her undergraduate studies in psychology?
Here is some of what I learned. According to an article from a publication by the Canadian Family Physicians in October 2009 entitled "Laughter Prescription," the "potential benefits of laughter's medicinal effects can be traced back to the Bible ('A merry heart doeth good like medicine, but a broken spirit drieth the bones' (Prov. 17:22)." This article mentions as well Norman Cousins' history- making essay in the 1979 New England Journal of Medicine, extolling the potential medicinal benefits of laughter and humor. But it reports that it wasn't until 1995 that laughter as beneficial exercise emerged through the creation of laughter clubs, led by "laughing yoga" instructors to promote energy and laughter. And it continues, saying that even though subsequent research [completed by 2009] support[ed] a variety of medicinal benefits achieved through laughter, the medical community remain[ed] cautious, insisting that : "Scientific evidence of the benefits of humor on various health-related outcomes still leaves many questions unanswered."
Several later articles published by the Mayo Clinic ("Stress Relief from Laughter" It's No Joke," (July 29, 2021), by a group called helpguide.org ("Laughter is the Best Medicine," updated July 2021), and one called Select health.org ("7 surprising Benefits of Laughing") insist to the contrary that scientific studies demonstrate the positive effect of laughter on heart health, obesity, stress, anxiety, and so on.
According to these articles, laughter provides the following physical, mental, and social benefits:
· Draws people together in ways that trigger healthy physical and emotional changes in the body
· Boosts mood and the immune system, brings body back into balance, reduces anxiety and depression
· Lightens burdens, connects us to others, helps to release anger and to forgive others sooner, defuses conflict, strengthens relationships, attracts us to others
· Makes us feel good and produces a positive feeling that tends to last, even if we can't alter a stressful situation
· Gives us courage and strength to find new sources of meaning and hope, even in the most difficult times
· Helps us relax, shifts perspective
· Allows us to be more spontaneous, less defensive, releases inhibitions and allows us to express true feelings
· Stimulates organs, enhances intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates heart, lungs, muscles
· Relieves pain by releasing endorphins, which increase pain tolerance
· Fires up and then cools down stress response
· Increases chances of becoming pregnant (I saved the best for last. Ask me about the clown experiment.)
I was surprised by how much the behavior of Jenny and Mrs. Barton reflected the assertions made in these studies regarding the effects of laughter on the total human person, and I was both puzzled and impressed by the author's awareness of laughter's impact on health at a time (1942) when, as far as I could tell from my reading, the scientific community had not commented on it to any great extent and that there was not a lot of interest in or support of it among members of the medical community.
"Gift of Laughter"
1. The original title of this month's story, written in 1942, was "Mrs. Barclay's Christmas Present ," but when the story was published in 1943, it was renamed "Gift of Laughter." Using either of these titles as entryways into Pearl Buck's story can take the reader on an interesting journey through the life of Mrs. Barton during a few weeks leading up to Christmas Day during WWII. Which title do you prefer and why?
2. What is the mood of the story as it opens? How did it affect you?
3. Mrs. Barton is the main character in this story, but we are not given many details about her past or her everyday life-- Did she go to college, ever hold a job, belong to clubs or a book discussion group? Was she active in her church, apart from just attending services? We just don't know. What does the story reveal about her life style and her personality?
4. We don't know much at all about Mrs. Barton's marriage either. What is your sense of the relationship between Mrs. Barton and her husband?
5. What is the relationship between Mrs. Barton and her son Ranny like? How has the nature of their relationship affected each of them?
6. There is an obvious suggestion of an Oedipal complex here , with the potential for serious harm to both mother and son, but both are saved from it. How?
7. What is Mrs. Barton's initial reaction to Jenny, the young woman who arrives at her home on Christmas Day?
8. What is Jenny like? How does she respond to Mrs. Barton?
9. Why is Mrs. Barton so eager to get Jenny out of her house? Does it seem likely that Mrs. Barton resists Jenny in part because she looks so different from Alicia, the young woman whom Mrs. Barton had hoped her son would choose as a wife?
10. The author uses the device of shared laughter to break the ice and create harmony and warmth between the two women and to evoke repentance in Mrs. Barton. Is that a believable moment in the story? Is shared laughter really that powerful? Have you ever experienced such a moment? ( See Some Thoughts on Laughter and Health notes.).