Outstanding Scenes

Outstanding Scenes in Tangles
Outstanding Scenes, sometimes referred to as Vivid or Strong Scenes, are those scenes, frames, or chapters which reflected the most important or definitive events of the story, or which a climax moment occurred.

Sarah Leavitt’s Tangles featured many emotional scenes, but few represented major outstanding scenes.

P. 19 – The Airport Bathroom Trip
Arguably one of the most climactic and crucial story-moving scenes of the entire novel occurs when Sarah’s mother and father went to visit Sarah after her second breakup with her first Girlfriend. At the airport, Mariam (Sarah’s mother) wasn’t sure where Rob (Sarah’s father) had gone, and they stood at the baggage carousel waiting. Upon returning very shortly after, Sarah’s father explained that he had just went to the bathroom, and that he told Mariam this before leaving. This scene is the very first time in the story that a relatively clear hint is given suggesting that something might be wrong with Mariam. Earlier events only developed a natural progression, whereas this was Mariam’s first major hiccup on the path to Alzheimer’s.

P. 25 – Mariam Admits that She has Alzheimer’s
In this panel, Sarah and Rob are sitting on the couch and trying to find some way to talk to Mariam about her increasingly apparent symptoms. After a troubling start to the talk, Mariam finally comes out with 3 words “I have Alzheimer’s”. At this point, Mariam hasn’t actually been diagnosed by a medical professional. However, she has self-diagnosed the problem through observation and deduction. It will be over a year before an official diagnosis.

This is the first point in the memoir that the work Alzheimer’s is floated as an explanation for Mariam’s condition.

P. 36 – First Major Diagnosis
The series of scenes on page 37 is the first official diagnosis of Alzheimer’s from a medical professional. This scene is crucially important because it confirms the suspicions of the audience and the family. From this point forward, anything that occurs during the memoir can be directly attributed to the Alzheimer’s disease.

P. 47 – The Lone Garlic Seeds
On page 47, an entire page is used to reflect a letter sent from Sarah’s parents which included garlic seeds and a note hoping that the chive seeds flourish in Vancouver. Garlic is one of Mariam’s favourite scents from her garden in the summer, and this scene suggests that she cannot smell the garden any longer, meaning she may believe the plants are not flourishing. This is not apparent from the first read through. Later on page 59 the garlic in the garden is referenced, and the loss of scent is explained. For someone familiar with Alzheimer’s disease, this page may have been more obvious than for someone who has never dealt with the disease in the family.

Page 47 provides a clue that the disease is far more developed then is immediately visible from the behaviours at home.

P. 68 – How much Longer Until I can Die?
This scene is the moment that Mariam has expressed her feelings about losing hope and wanting to die. A phone call between Rob and Sarah reveals these shocking details. This scene is one of the last times that Mariam is able to express her internalized emotions and rationalized thoughts. From this point forward in the story, Mariam begins to experience separations from reality and a blissful ignorance.

P. 97 – Mariam Never said Hannah’s Name Again
Sarah came back to Fredericton to see her mother after learning that Mariam had stopped saying Hannah’s name. When Sarah arrived, Mariam looked right through her at a cat, not noticing her daughter. This moment illustrated a major decline in Mariam’s capacity to interact with the family.

P. 116 – Mariam Never Walks Again
During this scene, Mariam slept for 36 hours, unable to be woken by anyone. After finally waking up, the family learned that she was unable to walk again. This scene begins the slow decline to Mariam’s death, and represents the first significant loss of motor function due to the Alzheimer’s. Prior to this moment, Mariam would simply forget to open doors and walk down stairs, but on this day, Mariam never walked again.

P. 122 – Mariam Passes-Away in her Sleep
The family was well-prepared for Mariam’s passing, and everyone was visiting her daily in the nursing home. Sarah was at home when her mother stopped breathing. Rob and Sarah raced to the funeral home to spend their final moments with Mariam.

This scene provides closure for the story, and settles a long and arduous buildup to this moment.