The Summer of the Swans

In the Godfrey household, responsibility comprises both elective gestures of sacrifice and expected responsibilities. Aunt Willie promised to raise the Godfrey siblings prior to their mother’s death. Aunt Willie’s brother Sam, the children’s father, took up work as a teenager in order to support a young Willie after their father died; Aunt Willie continues to depend on her brother for financial support. Sara assumes her father distanced himself out of grief over his wife’s death and Charlie’s illness—that he betrayed and rejected the family. In Aunt Willie’s opinion, Sam made a necessary sacrifice, his role essential to maintaining the home from afar. While Sara thinks otherwise, hints at the Godfreys’ surroundings indicate that Sam probably moved as far as he did to find work lucrative enough to support them.

Due to them being close in age, Sara bears much of the responsibility for Charlie. Charlie requires constant supervision, but being a growing girl, Sara naturally has interests of her own. The expectation that Sara continue to care for Charlie in the future is likely to be a subject of debate once she reaches Wanda’s age. At 19, Wanda spends most of her time furthering her career and education, her current relationship being one that may very well result in marriage.