The Model Home (in reference to "The Rake")

The image of the model home sticks out to me more than any other object in the story. The irony of it, is just so compelling, I guess. When I think of "model home", in the literal sense, I think of the example home. It is the basis for how the other homes will be constructed and how they will look. It is the home that builders show off when they are trying to get a homebuyer to buy a home from a certain neighborhood. So, of course, it is the best looking and most well-kept home. It has the perfect little yard and the nice well arranged furniture on the inside.

In the figurative sense, the "model home" reminds me of the "model family"--the "perfect family". This is the family that everyone wants to be like, the family that everyone envies. This is the family that is always smiling and is always involved in everything. The parents are in the PTA, and the kids make great grades and play every sport. This is the family that everyone looks at and says how happy they must be.

When you think of the model home in either sense, you can see the irony in the fact that this is the home that David and his family live in. David's family may appear perfect to outsiders, but they are so far from perfect in reality. They are dysfunctional and violent, as a matter of fact. The father can not keep his anger under control, and the mother just goes along with it. The kids are anything but happy-go-lucky. And even though they might be involved in outside activities, when they finally get a big break, their parents do something to take that away.

Even though, things are so bad at home, everyone remains silent--to keep up appearances. It is all about how people perceive them. It doesn't matter how bad things get, they never let their anger or their pain leak out to the outside world. A "model home" could be built the same way. It could be thrust up in just a couple weeksn and have the weakest structure then made to look so good that you could never tell. The yard would be so well made, and the inside would be so fabulously decorated that you would never guess that it could be knocked down by the slightest wind. But then again, it's all about appearances.