In Sherwood Anderson's 'Mother', Tom Willard takes center stage as the obnoxious and vain husband who shamelessly blames his wife, Elizabeth Willard, for his own misfortune. He views her with blatant contempt and finds her existence unbearable to the extent that her very presence is seen as "a reproach to himself." But why does Tom vehemently hate his own wife? It's not just because of the illness that took away her spirit and her beauty. The only explanation provided to readers for her animosity is the superstitious belief that Elizabeth's illness is somehow linked to the hotel's financial decline. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayTom may indeed have been a fortune hunter. He had been one of the many “travelers” who were “guests at her father’s hotel” with whom Elizabeth “paraded through the streets.” It was always obvious that Elizabeth would one day inherit her father's hotel, and on top of that, she had been a beautiful young woman, full of ambition and vivacity. So, in addition to marrying such a passionate and charming woman, Elizabeth's husband would obviously have the added benefit of inheriting his parents' business. It is therefore implied that Tom's marriage to Elizabeth had not only been explained by "crazy emotions" driven by physical intimacy, but also by his interest in her wealth. Unfortunately, now that the business is "forever on the brink of failure", Tom hates the hotel and selfishly blames his wife for its fate. Anderson says how Tom was hopeful of starting life in the hotel business, and yet today, disappointingly, it has turned into "a mere ghost of what a hotel should be." Similarly, Tom sees his wife as a “great ghostly figure,” because she is no longer the lovely wife he married. Elizabeth's appearance therefore reflects the state of the hotel. She is no longer a beauty, but has become so fragile and lifeless that she is compared to a ghost. Age has taken its toll, just as the hotel is now "messy" and "old", with "faded wallpaper" and "tattered carpets". Due to poor health, Elizabeth was unable to perform demanding work while at the hotel. Business probably deteriorated due to his lack of contribution. Tom therefore sees in her the cause of the financial failure of the hotel. Now he despises his wife and the hotel, both of which are "defeated and lost things", because marriage and business had once given him hope of satisfying his ambitions. Tom's objectification of his wife, viewing her as a "thing" that serves no purpose unless it generates a certain income, has greatly affected Elizabeth's self-esteem. From a tall young woman who once had the audacity to walk down "main street" in men's clothing, Elizabeth Willard was belittled to such an extent that her self-confidence faded, as did her health and his youth. She ended up feeling unwanted and useless. Her low self-esteem is highlighted through elements of the narrative such as her bedroom, which is "tucked in a corner of the Old Willard House", and her work as a "maid", such as cleaning the "beds soiled by the sleep of frequent travelers. These descriptions prove Elizabeth's tendency to isolate herself and hide from the eyes of others by doing work that takes her away from the presence of others. Tom's behavior only encourages Elizabeth's lack of self-confidence, with her "thin, graceful" character...