Although Annie has regained some of her sight after many operations, she still has very sensitive eyes that hurt all of the time due to light. The dark glasses that she wears helps with this challenge.
Throughout the play, the readers learn that Annie's little brother died when they were young. The nightmares about not being able to save him haunt Annie as a young adult.
The main conflict throughout the play is Helen's unruly behavior and lack of trust and discipline. Annie's biggest challenge of all is to get through to Helen and gain her trust and the trust of her family.