WHAT KIND OF MOTHER WAS ELLEN O’HARA?

 WHAT KIND OF MOTHER WAS ELLEN O’HARA?

To Scarlett, her mother was the heart of Tara. Ellen was gentle and composed, but there was strength behind her quiet manner. She cared for the sick, guided her daughters, and seemed to Scarlett like the one person who could make everything right.

Scarlett loved Ellen deeply. She also placed her on a pedestal. Ellen was everything Scarlett thought a “great lady” should be, while Scarlett knew she was impulsive, stubborn, and often unwilling to behave as her mother expected. She wanted Ellen’s approval, even when she could not follow her example.

That is why Ellen’s death changes so much for Scarlett. After the terrifying journey home from Atlanta, Scarlett reaches Tara hoping her mother will be there. Instead, the person she always counted on is gone, and the family now depends on her.

Ellen and Scarlett were very different women. Yet when Scarlett refuses to give up on Tara and the people in it, we can see some of her mother’s strength in her too.

Do you think Scarlett was more like Ellen than she realized?