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Mrs. Ross
The eldest child of Mr. Ross and Mrs. Ross and the sister of Robert, Peggy, and Stuart Ross. She is handicapped by a disease called hydrocephalus and spends her life bound to a wheelchair. Robert has taken a special liking to Rowena since she was a young child and he was a baby. As they grow up, he takes on the self-appointed role of Rowena’s “guardian.” At age twenty-five, Rowena accidentally falls out of her wheelchair and dies while she is playing with her beloved pet rabbits in the family’s stable. Although Stuart was the one who was supposed to be watching her when she fell, Robert blames himself for Rowena’s death and enlists in the army in order to escape his guilt and grief. He carries a photo of Rowena in his kit bag during his time overseas and is reminded of her by Rodwell’s love of animals.
Rowena Ross Quotes in The Wars
The The Wars quotes below are all either spoken by Rowena Ross or refer to Rowena Ross. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1, Chapter 9
Quotes
All these actors were obeying some kind of fate we call “revenge.” Because a girl had died—and her rabbits had survived her.
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Part 1, Chapter 29
Quotes
But Mrs. Ross just stood at the windows of the private car and was afraid to go outdoors. Her mind was full of trolley cars and she knew that if she tried to cross the tracks, then she and everyone would be struck down. Instead, she waved from behind the glass and she watched her boy depart and her husband standing in his black fur coat—it seemed for hours—with his arm in the air and the snow falling down around him. “Come on back to the raf’, Huck, honey.” And this was what they called the wars.
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Part 5, Chapter 5
Quotes
Robert sat on the mutilated mattress and opened his kit bag. Everything was there—including the picture of Rowena. Robert burned it in the middle of the floor. This was not an act of anger—but an act of charity.
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Get the entire The Wars LitChart as a printable PDF.
Rowena Ross Quotes in The Wars
The The Wars quotes below are all either spoken by Rowena Ross or refer to Rowena Ross. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1, Chapter 9
Quotes
All these actors were obeying some kind of fate we call “revenge.” Because a girl had died—and her rabbits had survived her.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 1, Chapter 29
Quotes
But Mrs. Ross just stood at the windows of the private car and was afraid to go outdoors. Her mind was full of trolley cars and she knew that if she tried to cross the tracks, then she and everyone would be struck down. Instead, she waved from behind the glass and she watched her boy depart and her husband standing in his black fur coat—it seemed for hours—with his arm in the air and the snow falling down around him. “Come on back to the raf’, Huck, honey.” And this was what they called the wars.
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Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 5, Chapter 5
Quotes
Robert sat on the mutilated mattress and opened his kit bag. Everything was there—including the picture of Rowena. Robert burned it in the middle of the floor. This was not an act of anger—but an act of charity.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
