life as it is, and Blanche enters and changes all that. Blanche, on the other hand, never faces reality because it makes her so unhappy, and yet the illusion does little more than hide her unhappiness for a short time.
Lila Wingo is revealed through the eyes of her son. There is no doubt that Lila has good reason to be unhappy, as do her children, for the horrors of their family situation and family history are made clear in the course of the novel. She is unhappy in her marriage, and she blames her children for that fact in an odd way:
She was the only mother I ever met who held her children responsible for her unfortunate choice of a husband. She looked upon our births as crimes we committed against her (Conroy 215).
Lila harbors a desire to be admired and to have a higher place in society than can ever be achieved with Henry as he husband. Her unhappiness is taken out on her husband, her c
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