Dory Goldman
Dory Goldman is the mother of Rachel Creed and the mother-in-law of Louis Creed, a woman whose life has been shaped by the loss of her daughter Zelda to spinal meningitis and by her husband Irwin's long-standing hostility toward Louis. She appears in the narrative primarily as a figure of quiet grief and familial tension, caught between her husband's antagonism and her own desire for reconciliation, and her presence underscores the novel's themes of unresolved loss and the fragility of family bonds.
Identity and Background
Dory Goldman is the wife of Irwin Goldman, a wealthy businessman from Lake Forest, and the mother of two daughters: Rachel and Zelda. The family's history is marked by the traumatic death of Zelda, who died of spinal meningitis in 1965 when Rachel was eight years old. Dory and Irwin were not present when Zelda died; they had left Rachel alone with her dying sister, a decision that haunted the family for decades. Dory carries the weight of this event, and her relationship with Rachel is complicated by guilt and the unspoken memory of that day. She is described as a woman who, like her husband, initially disapproved of Louis Creed, viewing him as coming from the wrong side of the tracks and unworthy of their daughter.
Role in the Family and Key Actions
Dory appears in the story primarily during moments of crisis. She accompanies Irwin to Gage Creed's funeral, where she is described as wearing heavy black netting, her face all but invisible, and her hair fashionably blue. She attempts to reach out to Louis after the funeral, saying "Oh, Louis" and making a gesture as if to hold out her arms, but Irwin pulls her back, preventing any reconciliation. Later, after the funeral, she comforts Rachel when Rachel breaks down, holding her daughter and mingling her tears with Rachel's. Dory also plays a role in the aftermath of Ellie's nightmares, when she and Irwin take Ellie to the hospital after the child wakes up screaming about "Oz the Gweat and Tewwible"—a phrase that echoes Zelda's childhood pronunciation. Dory is frightened by Ellie's words, recognizing them as a link to the family's buried past.
Relationships and Conflict
Dory's relationship with her husband Irwin is one of shared grief and complicity. They are a united front, but Dory shows moments of independent warmth, particularly toward Louis after Gage's death, when she tries to bridge the gap that Irwin has created. Her relationship with Rachel is deeply affected by Zelda's death; Rachel recalls that Dory carried a picture of Zelda in her wallet, and that the family never spoke of Zelda, treating her as a "dirty secret." Dory's relationship with Louis is strained by Irwin's hostility, but she is not as openly antagonistic as her husband. She is present when Irwin refuses to shake Louis's hand at the funeral, and she is the one who later urges Irwin to apologize to Louis, saying she feels nervous and wants to know that Louis is all right.
Change and Ending
Dory does not undergo a dramatic transformation in the novel, but her role shifts from a background figure of disapproval to a more sympathetic presence in the face of shared tragedy. After Gage's death, she becomes a source of comfort for Rachel, and she is the one who encourages Irwin to drive Rachel to the airport when Rachel decides to fly back to Maine. Her final appearance is in the aftermath of Ellie's breakdown, when she and Irwin are left to care for Ellie while Rachel returns to Ludlow. Dory's story ends not with her own death, but with her continued existence as a figure of unresolved grief and familial duty, a woman who has lost one daughter and now watches her surviving daughter's family unravel.
Thematic Significance
Dory Goldman embodies the novel's exploration of how families cope—or fail to cope—with death and guilt. Her silence about Zelda, her complicity in Irwin's hostility, and her belated attempts at warmth all reflect the ways in which grief can distort relationships and create lasting wounds. She is a reminder that the dead do not only return in supernatural form; they also haunt the living through memory, guilt, and the patterns of behavior that loss engenders. Dory's presence in the narrative underscores the idea that the most profound horrors are often not the supernatural ones, but the ordinary failures of love and understanding that occur within families.
