The only thing Mildred ever knew was to become independent, and not to rely on anyone to help her. For example, when Mildred is asked to help contribute to Doll, her daughters' wedding, she agrees although she knew she didn't have the money to do so. Her pride also got her in the way of asking others for the money. "There wasn't a soul Mildred could borrow from, not even Big Jim,...and her daddy she couldn't ask him." (273).
Money experiences isolation because he feels like everyone is after him and no one is on his side. When he gets released from jail, he tries his best to find a job but fails at doing so. This makes him even more depressed because he feels like a failure. "...I'm gon' go crazy. Keep on getting high when I get depressed, which is damn near always. I'm tired, can't you understand that? Sometimes a person just gets tired." (291).
