What is the mother's situation in Terranova's poem "Rush Hour"?

We must infer the mother’s situation, but it seems clear
that she is economically dependent on the husband who has been assaulting her and the
children. She cannot appeal for help, much as she might like to, because she would lose
this support and also because she supposes that her husband would seek her out and
become more severe in his abuse. The irony of the raised arm is that the sign for a
blessing is the same as it would be for a blow. In addition, the raised arm is the sign
made when a person, in this case the husband, pledges his word of honor. The husband
made that pledge in the ceremony of marriage, but he is renouncing the pledge by
committing violence against the members of his family. The references to the gesture of
the raised hand should create interesting thoughts within the
reader.