In studying Canadian literature Margaret Atwood concludes that the family is an inescapable trap (Survival, pp. 131-132). This trap forces the members of the family to sacrifice any longings or desires that run contrary to the benefit of the family as a whole, is generally accompanied by an atmosphere devoid of love, and often has an overt hypocritical use of religion as justification of its presence. For the Gare family of Ostenso's Wild Geese and the Amundsen and Lund families of Groves Settlers of the Marsh this statement holds a distinctive measure of truth. The family is presented as a trap maintained for the most part by the paternal figure via harsh and tyrannical treatment of the individual family members. However, this is not always the case and as we shall see in this essay the trap can also be equally maintained by maternal figure and the general inability of parents to function adequately. The trap may be best viewed as having three critical stages; the first stage comes to us as the trap is being maintained, the second stage focuses on the effects the trap has on the children of each family, and the third stage, (contrary to Atwood's comment) gives us insight as to what happens when the trap is broken. Although the trap and its subsequent consequences before and after it is broken is unique for each family, this essay will try to find their relationships by comparing and contrasting their similarities and differences in order to present the family trap in its entirety.

In both the Gare and Amundsen families the trap can be seen as being maintained by the paternal figure via different mechanisms of harsh and tyrannical treatment over the other family members. The Lund family is the exception to this rule in that the father is physically and mentally incompetent. However, in all three families there is direct and indirect confirmation of the trap by characters outside the family.

The first outside confirmation of the tyranny maintained by Caleb Gare in the family trap comes to us from the narrator. He characterizes Caleb as ". . . a spiritual counterpart to the land, as harsh, as demanding, as the very soil from which he drew his existence."(Ostenso 35). In essence, it the author herself who directly confirms that the family is a trap being maintained by the paternal figure and thus, sets the stage for other outside characters to do the same in accessing the Gares.

The second outside confirmation comes from Lind who feels that Caleb deliberately imposes the rigid routine of the farm to keep anything from out of the ordinary from happening. Lind confirms the tyranny and oppression of Caleb when talking with Mark and finally concludes that the entire family (with the exception of Judith) ". . . all have a monstrously exaggerated conception of their duty to the land - or rather to Caleb. . . "(Ostenso 92).

Additional confirmation on the state of the Gares comes to us from Mark who says that Caleb is called the devil himself and Mrs. Sandbo the nosy next door neighbour who upon paying an investigative visit to the Gares is "renewed [in her] awe at the tyranny of Caleb Gare" (Ostenso 136).
In the Amundsen family the narrator is once again the first to confirm the tyranny of the household and thus give that crucial insight of the author. In Neils first visit of the Amundsen farm the narrator presents the only character for whom the trap is currently in effect (Ellen) as one of "self centered repose and somewhat defiant aloofness" (Grove 15), especially toward her father. It is this crucial piece of information revealed about Ellens attitude that allows us to infer that similar to the Gares, her family too, is a place of stifling, repressive, unhappiness maintained by the father. The second confirmation comes to us from Nelson who warns Neils not to take too much interest in Ellen lest Mr. Amundsen throw him off the place. Neils also confirms the Amundsen trap as he recalls the "bare austerity of the Amundsen house" (Grove 28) in a visit to the Lunds. However, it is the entire community who ultimately confirms the harsh atmosphere of the Amundsen house hold by their presence at the funeral of Mrs. Amundsen.

Although the situation is somewhat different for the Lunds in that their is not an overt paternal figurehead maintaining the trap for the family, it is Neils who speculates and concludes that similar to the Amundsens and the Gares an attitude of hopeless and utter despair exist in the household. Immediately after his first visit to their household Neils draws a striking similarity between Ellen and Olga and sees them both as "easy-going sloth and what was almost asceticism" (Grove 28). But, perhaps even more significant is his assessment of Mrs. Lund after she reveals her dreams to him: "He understood that this woman was at the end of her life and that life had not kept faith with her. . . . It was the cry of despair. . ." (Grove 30).

Although the confirmation of characters outside the family is helpful in revealing the overt, stifling, repressiveness of the family, it is only by analysing the individual members of the family members (apart from the paternal figure who maintains the trap) can we get a serious assessment of the depth of this trap. The first family member we shall look at is the wife who in the case of all three families suffers to a great extent from the induced tyranny by simply being the most obvious target of the trap.

For Amelia the effects of the trap are directly linked to Calebs harsh and cruel behaviour. Even the most basic of desires (in this case dentures) is denied to her as Mrs. Sandbo reveals in telling Lind that "She [Amelia] don't expect not'ing - not from him" (Ostenso 31). Furthermore Caleb directly humiliates Amelia in front of the family as he refuses to take Martin to church with him on the basis that his collar is insufficiently ironed. Knowing that Caleb is fully conscious of his control over Amelia gives us a direct insight into the depth of the trap that he imposes on his wife. The fact that Amelia has illegitimately conceived Mark Jordan and has devoted her whole life to preventing him from finding out provides the principle basis for which Caleb chooses to exert his tyranny. Armed with this knowledge and his fully conscious control, Caleb demonstrates the extent to which he can dominate Amelia via blackmail as he threatens to make Amelia confess her secret to Mark or tell Mark himself. More than this Caleb has come to enjoy his tyranny over Amelia, to him the knowledge ". . . had lost its serious significance and had become a sort of game by which he amused himself" (Ostenso 124) even referring to this knowledge as "his trump card" (Ostenso 184).

For Mrs. Amundsen the trap is just as bleak and despairing but, manifest itself through different mechanisms. Mrs. Amundsen herself emphatically confirms her hatred of her spouse and the trap that he imposes on her while Ellen is still a young girl. In contrast to Caleb, Mr. Amundsen uses both verbal and physical sexual abuse as a means of maintaining the trap. The first instance of abuse takes place after Mrs. Amundsen becomes pregnant: "He began to speak still more curtly to my mother; and treated her as if she were at fault and had committed a crime" (Grove 125). The second instance, that of Mr. Amundsen forcing himself upon his wife, is recalled by Ellen as being the final cause that leads to her mothers death. But, even before her death while she is deathly sick Mr. Amundsen forces her to do her chores in spite of her protest and only says "Poor people have to work" (Grove 129).

In contrast to both Amelia and Mrs. Amundsen, Mrs. Lund tries to deny that the trap has any effect on her by lying about her real situation, but, as Nelson confirms these lies to Neils, the depth of the trap over her can be seen. In respect to the feeding of the horses Nelson says "I'll bet my bottom dollar that there isn't a grain of oats on the place. . .She doesn't let on how poor they are" (Grove 35). Additionally we get an inadvertent confirmation of how the trap has affected her, when Nelson strike a vein of water while digging their well and Mrs. Lund exclaims "That's the first piece of luck that we've had since we moved out here"(Grove 39). Although Mrs. Lund puts on an air of ambivalence and denial, the reality of her situation is clearly no better than that of the other two wives.

Even though it is the wives who bear the grunt effects of the family trap, one must not forget the other members of the family. Specifically Judith of the Gares and Ellen of the Amundsens both feel the impact of the family as a trap. Although Olga does feel the extent of the trap in a similar way to Ellen the only hint of this is given in her forced labor that will be discussed later in this essay.

Caleb's harsh and cruel behaviour over Judith can be seen as the direct cause of the trap. It is Judith herself who directly confirms Caleb's tyranny over her and the family as she confesses in a rage to Lind "I'm through putting up with it! He's got to quit thinkin' we're animals he can drive around" (Ostenso 28). It is also Judith who sees that the more material possessions Caleb amasses the less freedom she and the family will ever have. But, perhaps Judith confirms Caleb's overt tyranny best when Lind tries to assure that they can't stay there forever under Calebs tyranny and Judith responds "Oh, yes we can. We can stay here until Ellen goes blind and I go crazy and the others die" (Ostenso 112). Judith is also denied the opportunity to complete her schooling and makes clear to Lind that "Wantin' and goin' is two different things," (Ostenso 23). After Judith attempts to murder Caleb his exploitation and tyranny take on an attitude similar to that of his dealings with Amelia. Judith, knowing the kind of control that Caleb has over Amelia speculates on how Caleb will use the incident to blackmail, exploit, and control her: "She fancied him standing before the ax, gloating over it as a symbol of his control over her"(Ostenso 232), and it is Judith who comes to the critical realization of what this incident will mean for her future "He had not for a moment forgotten the ax. He would not for a moment let her forget it" (Ostenso 233).

Similarly Ellen must contend with the stifling constraints of the trap maintained by her own father. Like Judith Ellen is also denied the opportunity to complete her schooling. In spite of her mothers faithful protest when Ellen was young Mr. Amundsen simply would not even consider the matter on the basis that he wanted her for labor in building a house. Even immediately after her fathers death, Neils comments on "her unquestioning obedience to him who was dead" (Grove 69).

In the case of the Lunds the text is somewhat less than direct about how the trap is manifested over both Olga and Bobby. However, we can infer from Neil speculations about Olga that the atmosphere of the household is one that repressed any attempt to break free from it: "She [Olga], too, had a dream,. . ." (Grove 31). As for Bobby the case is highly similar to that of Judiths and Ellens in that he isn't allowed to adequately complete his education either. Even though the reasons aren't quite as overtly obvious as with Judith and Ellen it can still be implied in all three children that their inability to get an education is a direct barrier to having them obtain the intelligence necessary to break free from the bonds of the family trap.

Another mechanism through which the father exerts his tyranny over the family is though excessively hard labor. As in the case of all three families the issue of this back breaking labor can be seen as directly linked to the utter despair and helplessness they feel in the family trap. There is direct confirmation from characters outside the family about the over exploitation of family members via excessively hard farm labor. In addition, the family members who are caught in the trap are able to confirm this for themselves, reassuring us that with opinions from both sides, this induced labor can clearly be seen as a means of overt and tyrannical control by the father, and as yet another consequence of the family trap.

In the case of the Gares it is Lind who makes the out side observation on "the unbelievable amount of work that was done by the women of the Gare household" (Ostenso 262). At one point even Judith confirms the effects of this forced labor: "It was deadening work, so that after a while the sprit forgot to follow the body. . . " (Ostenso 175), and thus directly confirms Calebs ultimate intention of keeping her sprit broken in the fields. But, perhaps the most surprising insight comes to us from Martin who in spite of his inept character, has the potential for conscious realization of the trap: "Caleb must have some other reason for not taking on extra help. It was his idea, apparently, to blind them all with work - an extra man would give them time for thinking and dreaming" (Ostenso 176).

For the Amundsens both Neils and Nelson are able to make the critical outside observation on the issue of forced labor as part of the trap for its family members. In his first meeting with Mr. -Amundsen Neils becomes keenly aware that something is profoundly wrong with Mr. Amundsens attitude toward his wifes sickness, and that "his daughter worked like a man" (Grove 18). Nelson gives Neils further insight on this as he tells him the real cause of Mrs. Amundsens demise, that of being over worked (Grove 19). However, as in the case of the Gares mere outside speculation can be verified by the comments and insights of those who feel the burden of this forced labor first hand. Ellen confirms to Neils the amount of work that she and her mother were forced to do on three separate occasions during her childhood. In the first two instances Ellen talks about how her mother worked as hard or even harder than the neighbours wives and how she "worked with an ax and brute force" (Grove 126). In the third comment she reveals that both she and her mother combined did just as much work as her father. Ultimately, even Mrs. Amundsen can no longer just ignore her unjust overwhelming work load and confesses to her daughter "Oh he is hard, . . . as hard as God" (Grove 127).

The Lund family also has to contend with the element of excessively hard labor, though is not specifically the direct result of Mr. Lund's tyranny but, rather the result of his incompetence. Nelson sums it up best to Neils when he says "He is. . . the laziest fellow I've ever met. The woman and the girl do all the heavy work; and the boy, too, does twice his share. After Nelson marries Olga he tells Neils that what remains of the Lund household is falling apart because they no longer have Olga to slave for them.

The preceding effects of the trap maintained by the paternal figure gives rise to a general lack of love toward the family members. As this really shouldn't be a surprise given the other effects of the family trap, it is still helpful to have this direct insight that allows us to see that the family is both physically and emotionally dysfunctional. In the case of all three families this lack of love both provides and contributes to the atmosphere for which the other effects of the trap function.

In the Gares it is Caleb who reveals to us directly his thoughts about his children in comparison to Mark Jordan and thus confirms the lack of love he has even for his own kids: "Caleb's children, what were they? Well born, . . . But, twisted and gnarled and stunted as the growth of the bush he owned, and barren as has been his acres before he had put his own life's blood into them for a meagre yield" (Ostenso 68-69).

For the Amundsens the confirmation is nearly as direct as Neils comments on the state of Amundsen's wife: "There was something repulsive about his self-sufficiency. His wife was lying at the point of death; but, he had not even called in what help human skill and knowledge might give. " (Grove 18).

The Lund family stands in contrast to the other two in the sense that the lack of love expressed is indirectly revealed to us through Mr. and Mrs. Lunds marriage. On three separate occasions they both openly criticize each other, the first time over there past education and working experiences, the second time when Mrs. Lund tells Neils that the owner of the land can take everything Mr. Lund could possibly prove up, and the third time is when Mrs. Lund accuses Mr. Lund of ". . . getting to be like a child,. . . " (Grove 92). Further evidence is shown in their violent confrontation with each other after Mrs. Lund accuses Mr. Lund of lying about letting the calf out. Ultimately the final mark of their lack of love for each other is revealed when Mr. Lund runs away.

The final effect of the trap that is maintained by the father is an overt hypocritical use of religion as justification for either the tyranny imposed or present status of the trap. Since there are no references about the Lunds in this case we shall concern ourselves with how this hypocritical use of religion manifests itself in both the Gare and Amundsen families. The fact that religion has been introduced in this ways serves to reveal to us that in some way the trap even transcends control by the paternal figure head and in essence, is an institution of divine origin and will, thus elevating any attempt to counteract it grounds for condemnation as sin.

This is especially the case for the Gare household. Although Caleb does not permit his family to go to church, he feels that by reiterating the Sunday sermon in his own words he has accomplished his Christian task. His overt hypocrisy can clearly be seen as he gives the family the revised sermon: " 'Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of the spirit.' Better live here like we are, poor and content than to seek the world. . . " (Ostenso 47).

Similarly, Mr. Amundsen uses religion as justification for his wife's illness when he says things like "It has pleased God to confine her to bed" (Grove 14) and "She is in the hand of God" (Grove 18). But, it is Neils who realizes the true intent of all Mr. Amundsens religious rhetoric during the prayer before breakfast: "And, standing he spoke with a firm and insistent voice a prayer which sounded as if he were laying down the law. . . " (Grove 15).

The family trap is not only controlled and maintained by the father, and as in the case of both the Gares and the Amundsens the trap is also maintained by the maternal figure. By means of conscious and unconscious control the mother is able to do a comparable job of fostering an atmosphere of stifling repressiveness against the children of the family.

In a some what ironic twist to the blackmail that Caleb exerts over her, Amelia in turn uses it as a means of controlling the children. Held at whim of Caleb revealing the truth to Mark Jordan, Amelia decides that she must do anything to keep her illegitimacy a secret, even to extent of betraying her own progeny:

Ellen, Martin, Judith, Charlie, they were only the offspring of Caleb Gare, they could be the sacrifice. She would bend and inure them to the land like implements, . . . She would see them dry and fade into fruitlessness . . . there would be no pity in her (Ostenso 105).

With the stage set for her to help maintain the trap against even her own children she too, becomes a type of Caleb. Eventually Amelia energies in maintaining the trap become focused on Judith, the one threat that might bring about the revealing of her secret. "And Amelia would harden her heart. . . " (Ostenso 211), "Judith must be broken" (Ostenso 223) in both instances clearly distancing herself by emphasizing "Judith was Calebs' child" When Amelia realizes that her emotional distancing of her self won't be sufficient stop Judith, she takes a more direct approach in trying to keep Judith bound to the trap of the family: "You shan't go - you shan't go, Judith! I forbid you to go! . . . You are not going to leave this farm" (Ostenso 280).

In contrast, Mrs. Amundsens psychological tyranny is the result of her attempt to give her daughter a better life. On two distinct occasions in Ellens life Mrs. Amundsen gives her daughter advice that will help her to avoid the kind of life that she must endure from Mr. Amundsen. It is this advice that will exert a tremendous amount of psychological constraint over Ellen and maintain the family trap long after she dies. The first instance comes in Ellens childhood and thus has a huge impact on her: "You are big and strong, . . . Don't ever marry. Marriage makes weak. . . " (Grove 127). The second instance comes on Mrs. Amundsens death bed and thus for Ellen will be the final words that bind her into obedience: ". . . Ellen, whatever you do, never let a man come near you" (Grove 131).


The next section of this essay shall deal with the effects of trap on the children of the family. Given the different mechanism of control used to maintain the trap, each child in each of the three families is affected differently. Responses range from a complete and utter submission of mind, body and spirit to violent emotional struggle to break free of the traps confines. I will begin by analysing each of the children who for whom the text has provided enough sufficient information on in order to clearly determine the effects of the family trap. The bulk of these comparisons will center around the Gares and the Amundsens as the text on the Lunds doesn't reveal too much about how their children are affected.

Ellen of the Gares is perhaps the most negatively affected by the tyranny imposed by Caleb in maintaining the trap. She serves as a model for one extreme of the spectrum in the effects of the trap on the children. Evidence for this is confirmed by both Martin and Lind. Martin specifically likens Ellen to "a pea pod that had ripened brittle, but, could not burst open" (Ostenso 176). Lind notices that in speaking with Ellen she calls everything "his" (Caleb's) (Ostenso 164). For Ellen there is nothing that she will do that might be contrary to what Caleb would want. This can be seen in her sacrificial denial of pleasure represented by her rejection of Malcolm:

"The coming of Malcolm into her life again was like a scene in a mirage which she hoped with her whole heart were solid land, even while she knew it to be only a vision. It could not materialize. Nothing ever did" (Ostenso 165).

But, perhaps the most vivid effect of the overwhelming effectiveness the trap maintained by Caleb has had in subduing and breaking her spirit., is revealed as she defends Calebs neglect for her eyesight and intention to bind them all to the farm against Linds questioning.

Martin has the unique distinction of living a bovine existence, that is he possesses the potential to break from the constraints of the trap but, is generally ambivalent in his reactions and thus, often becomes unconsciously subdued. Early on in the novel Lind confirms his presence as one equivalent to that of Ellens: "Poor Martin! At twenty he understood only one thing: work" (Ostenso 27) and even the narrator passes Martin off as being completely submissive. But, it is Martin himself who transcends his implied nature and comes to the brief realization about his true self:

"Then he realized that he, too, was a closed pea-pod . . . He felt as if he had just learned to think . . . Then one of the horses stumbled, and in pulling the reins Martin lost his idea. His mind closed again. . . " (Ostenso 176).

More than any of the other Gares it is Judith who is most profoundly affected by the tyranny of the trap enforced by Caleb. Convinced that she is the only person left in the family who's spirit has not been utterly broken, Judith in particular feels that she is constantly being pushed to the edge of her sanity by Caleb's relentless persecution. In the first instance she takes off her clothes and embraces the land, afterward weeping "liked a woman" (Ostenso 62). As the trap becomes more and more constraining, Judith associates the hatred, pain, and suffering that she is feeling with the image of rotting flesh on a dead horse. Ultimately, she breaks from her mental silence and confesses her true feelings to Sven: " I just can't stand it any longer, . . . I'll die" (Ostenso 252).

The fact that Ellen was the only child to come with the Amundsens when they immigrated complicates the effects of the trap on her. In essence, she embodies a little bit of all the different effects that the Gare children exhibited. Neils makes the first speculation on the possible affects of the family trap in his first impression of her: "[she] knew more than her age would warrant, . . . her eyes were stern and nearly condemnatory" (Grove 15), "It was she, she alone, . . . who kept the world away. . . " (Grove 51). Similarly Neils also places Olga in the same category as Ellen.

The most obvious effects of the trap on Ellen comes in her negative responses to Neils. Even in their first meeting Ellen returns Neils comment with a critical disapproving expression. Subsequent meetings between the two of them result in what Neils characterizes as "that forbidding scrutiny that seemed to hold him at a distance. . . " (Grove 49). Eventually Neils comes to the conclusion that the family trap has clearly come to dominate her life: "Between him and the girl [Ellen] an abyss seemed to yawn which nothing could bridge. . . " (Grove 71).

It is these negative responses towards Neils that allow us to infer the main effect of the trap on Ellen, that of her repressed sexuality. Initially Neils provides us with a symbolic clue by describing her "a being that was almost sexless" (Grove 36). His comments are reiterated as the narrator describes the 'something' that has come between there relationship, the something that Neils described before that could not be bridged. Both these comments are directly verified by Ellen herself when she tells Neils that ". . .between me and any man there can be but friendship" (Grove 119). A striking contrast to Ellens repressed sexuality is Judith overt sexuality symbolized by her pregnancy near the end.

The final step in the family trap comes about when the trap is broken. In this, the characters are now free of the physical and psychological obstacles that were the principle cause of maintaining the trap. In the case of both the Gares and the Amundsens this comes about through the death of the father. For the Lunds, the trap is ended in two stages 1) when Olga marries Nelson and 2) when Mr. Lund runs away. The individual family members are now free to explore their own humanity and determine the best way to achieve a meaningful existence.

In the case of the Gare family the death of Caleb comes as a welcome relief for all the family members as the narrator clearly emphasizes: "It was a time of rest on the Gare farm" (Ostenso 300). Amelia, now free of the one person who can reveal her damaging secret, does her chores at 'her pace' and even approves of Mrs. Sandbo visit by serving her "excellent coffee" (Ostenso 301). Judith and Sven have found happiness with one another, and even Martin breaks free of his bovine existence by exhibiting his ability to express how he feels (revealed when he decides to take Bjarnasson invitation even against Ellens disapproval).

For Ellen Amundsen the effects of the trap being broken are not quite as clear cut as in the Gares. Though she expresses a definite change of character following the death of her father, the real trap has been instilled by her own mother. The most evident change following her fathers death is revealed in her relationship with Neils. It is Neils himself who is able to see the change in her: "Her eyes had lost their critical, distancing look. . ." (Grove 82) Eventually Ellen even grants Neils permission to call on her which paves the way for their friendship to grow. However, the more the friendship grows the more we realize that Ellen is still suffering from the effects of the family trap as the narrator confirms: "Between Neils and Ellen a friendship had sprung up; an intimate friendship. . . And yet. . ." (Grove 93).

The trap is finally permanently broken for Ellen when she comes to the realization that she has been living by the words of her mother for too long. She reveals this knowledge to Neils both symbolically and directly . In the first instance she talks about how "the bush hides, . . . shelters and protects" (Grove 262), symbolic of those dying words her mother passed on to her so she could avoid the hard life that her mother had lived, but, now Ellen responds ". . . I wish I had a vista through it, . . . to the horizon. I want to see wide, open, level spaces" (Grove 262), in essence, expressing her desire to live a meaningful life. Beyond the symbolism Ellen comes out and directly acknowledges her new found realization to Neils, thus, paving the way for her sexual reconciliation to Neils expressed in her desire to have children: "I knew then as I know now that it is my destiny and my greatest need to have children, . . . And I knew then as I know now that there is no man living on earth from whom I could accept them if not you" (Grove 264).

In the case of the Lunds both Olga and Bobby are able to have a meaningful existence once the stifling, repressive chains of the family trap are broken. Olgas freedom from bondage comes as the result of her marriage to Nelson. Even at the wedding Neils is able to make insightful commentary on the her new found liberty: "There was the bride, a bare nineteen years old; and somehow he felt that she must be glad to escape" (Grove 51). In her new role as wife, Neils can hardly recognize her from the girl he had seen before slaving away in the Lund household. However, it is Olga herself who makes the ultimate confirmation of her happiness as she tells Neils emphatically "Everything is just grand!" (Grove 66). For Bobby the trap is broken when Mr. Lund runs away and Bobby finds himself at Neils, his idol, earning real wages. What's more, is that it is only at Neils house, free of the confines of the family trap can we see Bobby's unrealized potential discovered during Neils time of crisis: ". . . it was Bobby who did the farming. It was Bobby who planned, and suggested, directed, instructed" (Grove 210).

For the Gare, Amundsen, and Lund family's life is indeed a trap, manifesting itself through various mechanisms of control. For the most part the trap can be directly attributed to the overtly harsh and tyrannical treatment of the father. However, as we have also seen, the trap can be even more covertly propagated through psychological mechanisms implored by the mother. Harsh and cruel behaviour over family members is confirmed by characters out side the family as well as the family members themselves. In the Gares, the tyranny of Caleb revolves 1) around the unveiling of Amelia's secret illegitimate conception of Mark Jordan and 2) the absolute persecution of the other family members (especially Judith) to break their spirits and keep them from leaving the farm. For the Amundsens, sexual abuse and its psychological consequences form the basis of the trap set forth. In the case of the Lunds the disharmony of marriage gives way to stifling repression for its family members. In all three families the key elements of the trap are the presence of excessively hard forced labor accompanied by a general atmosphere lacking love towards the family members themselves. In addition, both the Gare and the Amundsen families reveal to us an overt hypocritical use of religion as justification for the tyranny imposed.

The traps' consequences on the children in these families have a wide rang of effects. While some children have been completely and utterly broken down, other children are locked in a constant struggle to break free of its constraints, and still others have not yet fully come to terms with what effect the trap is having on them. In all the children the trap forces them to sacrifice any desires or longings they might have (whether it be loved ones or dreams) and live under the mental and physical confines of the family. However, in contrast to Margaret Atwood's comment escape is possible. Either through the death of the paternal figure, marriage, or general breakdown of the family structure, its members are able to break free and pursue a meaningful existence for their lives. Though sometimes (as in the case of Ellen Amundsen) full and conscious realization of every aspect of the trap must come before it can be fully broken, a conscious awareness of the constraints of the trap allows the family members to move beyond them. As part of pursuing a happier life family members break free of their old lives and have unrealized potential discovered. What's more, is that armed with this new elevation of consciousness about the stifling, repressive constraints of the trap, family members now have the power to ensure that the trap never repeats itself again, the ultimate escape from any trap.