The mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and even though the disease was taking over her body she didn't change. The mother was a very strong figure and didn't let the cancer get the best of her. "Sick or not, dying or not, my mother wasn't going to go down easily." (Díaz 59). The mother wasn't affectionate to her kids, she abused them mentally and physically. The reader would think that the cancer would stop her from doing it but it didn't. The author shows in this quote how she didn't let her wall down, it shows how strong the mother truly is. Even when she did talk about her illness, she brought it up like it was something normal and nothing out of the ordinary. "My mother announced at dinner, quietly: I want you both to listen to me: the doctor is running more tests on me." (Díaz 63) The mother had a bad feeling about the test, it was obvious to the reader by the way she brought it. It contributes to the story greatly by showing how even they their relationships is bitter sweet, she still updates them on her illness because she knows that they care. She even uses it as an advantage when tryin to eat her daughter back. "She was on the ground, bald as a baby, crying,...She'd been faking! Her smile was like a lion." (Díaz 71) She knew that her daughter wouldn't leave her on the ground possibly injured and deathly sick. The author shows the reader how the mother uses her illness against her daughter in order to get what she wants. The reader sees how the daughter is effected and eventually fooled by it.
Throughout the story, the author shows the reader how everyone comes together because of the mothers sickness. Her using her illness as an advantage illuminates the story greatly. The reader could easily relate this to the real world and identify how this would happen in a real life situation.
