The Turn of The Key

All the parents described in the book are flawed in some capacity—with many of them contributing to their children’s tragic deaths. The worst parents are fathers, but the mothers are also problematic characters who fail to protect and nurture their children. Rachel has a poor relationship with her mother, who raised her alone for many years after Bill left them. Rachel complains to Mr. Wrexham about never feeling good enough for her mother. No matter how hard she worked, she says, “to be the perfect daughter” (308), her mom would constantly criticize her. Rachel insists that all she wanted was for her mother to notice her. As she grew older, she started to rebel to get attention, but it was to no avail. She could never be the kind of daughter her mother wanted her to be. She left home at 18 and eventually told her mother that she “never wanted to hear from her again” (314). Rachel’s unsatisfying relationship with her mother drives her to seek out Bill and become a part of his family.

While Rachel’s mother is portrayed as cold and dismissive, Sandra, the mother of Rachel’s half-sisters, provides a contrast in that she clearly loves her children.