Mrs. Lapham, Ephraim Lapham's daughter-in-law, is portrayed as the quintessential working-class Puritan woman of the New England colonies. She has a strong work ethic and expects the same from others. She is a dutiful mother and practical in every matter. Her main concern is keeping the family silver business prosperous. Everything she does is for the benefit of her family and its business. She even marries Mr. Tweedie just to maintain her family's control of the silver workshop. She thinks highly of Johnny Tremain while he is a promising apprentice. She encourages him and frequently praises his work and ability. However, once Johnny is injured and cannot work, she sees him as just one more mouth to feed and encourages him to leave. From the shift we see in the way she treats Johnny before and after his accident, we can see that she only values people based on their ability to work and be providers for their family.
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