It can be seen in "The Gardener" by Rudyard Kipling that the relationships are very complex. For example Helen Turrell, Michael Turrell and the gardeners relationship can be perceived in many different ways. The most likely scenario is that Helen is the mother, Michael the son and the gardener is the son resurrected but to determine this each of the characters need to be examined. To establish this theme it is best to look at the three main interpretations, Kiplings own history and his religious beliefs. By doing this it is possible to discover what Kiplings intentions were with the characters in question. It is subtly suggested throughout the story that Helen Turrell is Michael's biological…show more content… When Michael overheard Helen telling her friends it evoked an intense argument but it ends in them being closer 'the wail of mummy! mummy! drew her back again, and the two wept together'(p.281). At the age of ten he again questions his 'civil status', Helen 'breaks down' which predominantly prevents the conversation being discussed until much later when Michael suffers from measles, 'he muttered of nothing else,' and once more 'Helen's voice, reached him with assurance that nothing on earth or beyond could make any difference between them.' (p.281). During both episodes Helen and Michael's relationship grew stronger than one would expect from an aunt and nephew. "Kipling shows how the internalizing of love and the struggle to contain and measure it against conventional standards fracture the relationship between mother and son. They both suffer; they inflict pain in each other" Kemp.S (2004, para 24). This could be seen as confirmation for the mother and son relationship. Comparisons can be made with Kiplings life as he lost his own son during World War One. John Kipling also known as Jack suffered from very poor eyesight he was not allowed to join, "John only obtained a commission because his father pulled strings" Aiden.M.(2007, para 14). Kipling felt a tremendous amount of guilt following his son's death, "One does not know how much Rudyard’s great grief was due to a sense that he was
