Main Character Of Miss Brill

A narrator, who is without a name, tells of his first hand experiences throughout the story. This is in contrast to ‘Miss Brill’ in which narrative is delivered in the third person, with the use of free indirect speech to depict the story and portray the characters. By Wells selecting a first person narrative he draws the reader closer into the character’s mind set. This gives Wells the ability to convey the primary characters full spectrum of emotional thought, from open mindedness to the conflict and fear within him. First narrative provides the reader insight to thoughts and observations therefore adding suspense of the unknowing into the gothic style.

Another indication that Miss Brill has an epiphany is when Miss Brill puts away her fur. “She unclasped the necklet quickly; quickly, without looking, laid it inside. But when she put the lid on it she thought she heard something crying” (page 4). This represents her putting away her fantasy world and her fantasies about being an actress. In the beginning of the story, Miss Brill takes her fur out of a box and brushes its coat, polishes its eyes, and talks to the fur as if it’s a living thing. This shows the audience her poor mental state and how lonely she really is. The narrator tells us that Miss Brill liked the way the fur’s eyes looked sad at her and how soft the fur was. By the way that the narrator describes the fur as old and shabby, and the way that Miss Brill cares for the fur we understand that the fur represents Miss Brill and her fantasy world. It is also inferred that the crying sound is Miss Brill herself. Also Miss Brill putting away her fur is representative of her loss of innocence and her gaining insight to what her life is really like.

In the Bedford Introduction to Literature, Characterization is defined as "... the process by which a writer makes that character seem real to the reader"(2126). In order to do this a writer has multiple tools at their disposal that add to the depth of a character and simplify roles in a story. This includes the use of Protagonists and Antagonists, static and dynamic characters, showing and telling, and motivated and plausible action, as well as many others. The short story "Miss Brill" by Katherine Mansfield is no exception to this and displays the main character of Miss Brill as the protagonist, who is confronted with the reality of her existence.

She is an elderly woman, but she is not a “normal” old woman. "The old people sat on the bench, still as statues. Never mind, there was always the crowd to watch.” This quote shows what Miss Brill thinks about elderly people. By doing this, she is acting like a teenager, sort of immature. She likes to be different from the other elderly people or people who act like old people. In the same way, when she saw old people who were sitting on benches, she said that they were "nearly all old, and from the way they stared they looked as though they'd just come from dark little rooms or even - even cupboards!” In this way, she is putting herself away from that “old people”. She describes them in a negative tone and showing that she is much more than one typical frail old

Every human builds their own version of the world, complete with perceptions of themselves and others. In "Mrs. Brill" by Edith Wharton, the protagonist struggles to accept reality, but an epiphany reveals the inner conflict of the narrative. An elderly woman living in Paris, Mrs. Brill looks forward to her weekly visits to the local gardens. Her special talent is listening, and she observes the minute details of those around her.

Happiness built on an illusion can only last so long. In the story, Miss Brill's happiness is shattered by a single chance remark when the young couple who she has cast as the hero and herione in her "play" casually insult her. "'Why does she come here at all--who wants her? Why doesn't she keep her silly old mug at home?" (138). The story does not tell us Miss Brill's personal reactions to this remark; instead, the point of view shifts so that we observe her actions as she goes home. However, these actions are enough to illustrate that her self-view has been destroyed. The first example of her change in perspective is when she fails to go into the bakery, the usual climax to the Sunday park visit. "But today she passed the baker's by, climbed the stairs, went into the little dark room--her room like a cupboard--and sat down on the red

In “Miss Brill,” Katherine Mansfield utilizes Miss Brill’s thoughts and actions and the surroundings to characterize Miss Brill as a lonely character. Mansfield immediately introduces Miss Brill with a very odd scene that shows her conversation with the fur coat. This quickly and effectively establishes the type of person Miss Brill is. As a result, Mansfield suggests that Miss Brill is a lonely and an “abnormal” person to illustrate to the audience how society treats those who are not considered “normal” through the later actions of a young couple.

Miss Brill often finds herself personifying this fox fur, giving it gendered pronouns as opposed to objective pronouns. This indicates how the fur seems to be the only companion or friend that she has, and that she projects her loneliness onto this fox fur. The style of Mansfield’s writing shows that Miss Brill deeply cares about this fur, showing some of Miss Brill’s internal monologue as she takes the fox fur out of its box that afternoon. In the park, Miss Brill finds herself listening in to people’s conversations, as she feels like she can be a part of their lives this way even if it was just for a moment. The deep isolation and loneliness that Miss Brill experiences causes her to long for human connection -- though she never figures out how to achieve it. Also, it is interesting to see how Miss Brill describes the other elderly people in the park around her. She observes that they looked as though they had “just come out from dark little rooms or even — even cupboards!” This is significant because she compares them to her fox fur, which is something that she keeps in a cupboard until she is ready to leave her house again. She makes this comparison between the other elderly people at the park, however she does not make this connection to herself. This could show how Miss Brill separates herself from the other elderly people, because she longs for

She pays attention to the smallest details. "Wasn’t the conductor [of the band in the park] wearing a new coat, too? She was sure it was new. He scraped with his foot and flapped his arms like a rooster about to crow… Now came a little ‘flutey’ bit—very pretty!—a little chain of bright drops. She was sure it would be repeated. It was; she lifted her head and smiled" (98). Even if she’s only an observer, Miss Brill is an involved observer. She draws enjoyment from simply being in the park atmosphere. However, her enjoyment is more than a passing mood. It’s actually an indication of a deeper emotion—a kind of happiness. This becomes clear after Miss Brill has paid close attention to several small exchanges between people at the park. "Oh how fascinating it was! How she enjoyed it! How she loved sitting here, watching it all!" (99). That Miss Brill does not actually participate in anything is clear to the reader, but not to her. Vicarious involvement in other people’s lives seems to be fulfilling for her, even though there is no actual interplay with others. The most telling evidence that Miss Brill is happy (and that her happiness is based on a false impression) is when she comes to the conclusion that she’s somehow needed at the park. "No doubt somebody would have noticed if she hadn’t been there; she was part of the performance after all… Miss Brill nearly laughed out loud" (100). This realization eventually moves Miss Brill to

The details as told, seem to be coming directly from Miss Brill at times. The narrator gets us settled into the park with Miss Brill and tells us that she sees those around her as “odd, silent, nearly all old, and from the way they stared they looked as though they’d just come from dark little rooms or even-even cupboards!” This tells me that Miss Brill sees herself differently than she sees others, not odd or funny. She is a part of all this life and activity at the park! An actor in the grand play and “somebody would have noticed if she hadn’t been there.” She really loved to be out with others and thought that she was very much a part of the world and not apart from it. Don’t we all feel this way? Some people are truly introverted and care little of interacting, but I think the majority of us strive to become part of the world and at times feel like this life is one big drama and we have a big part. Our role might only be important for one scene, but we feel like the leading man or woman at times. The narrator leads us to what appears to be a fitting climax; a crescendo of music and song, with all players involved. Miss Brill’s dreams of this were quickly shattered. The comments by the young people, “Why does she come here at all-who wants her? Why doesn’t she keep her silly mug at home?” leaves Miss Brill with the cold realization that she is in fact like the odd, old people that she watches in the

Katherine Mansfield's "Miss Brill" is a woman self-contained, not pessimistic but settled, content. She is not a victim of her circumstances, but the satisfied creator of them. You could say she has her ducks lined up the way she wants them. Through the character of Miss Brill, Katherine Mansfield reveals a woman who has the ability to enjoy a simple world of her own elaborate creation.

     “Miss Brill was glad that she had decided on her “fur” for that Sunday afternoon in the

The narrator starts off with Miss Brill taking out her “fur”, something that two characters make fun off. Miss Brill lives a fairly boring life with nothing eventful going on in her life and the only thing she look forward to is going to a concert on Sunday. She observes people, taking pride in the fact she is able to eavesdrop on people’s conversation. During the story she ignores her feelings of loneliness. Miss Brill likes to imagine that her life is a play, something much more interesting than her dull daily life. She even hopes to tell the man she read to that she is an actress. At some point in the story she witnesses a woman being rejected by some man, the woman quickly gains her composure and hides it with a smile. Miss Brill had hoped

Katherine Mansfield’s short story, Miss Brill, is a well-written story of an elderly, unmarried woman in Europe. In Miss Brill, Katherine Mansfield uses stream-of-consciousness point of view to show alienation and loneliness, appearances and reality, and Miss Brill’s perceptions as she attempts to make herself fit in with the park goers. Miss Brill is an older lady who makes a living teaching English to school children and reading newspapers to an “old invalid gentleman” (Wilson 2: 139). Her joy in life comes in her visits to the park on Sunday where she is notorious for “sitting in on other people’s lives” (Wilson 2: 140). It is there that her ritualistic, monotonous journey that Miss Brill refers to as a “play” takes place.

Shenli Song College of Foreign Languages, Zhejiang Gongshang University Office of Foreign Language College at Zhejiang Gongshang University Xia Sha City-University-Town, Hangzhou 310018, Zhejiang, China E-mail: windyforever@gmail.com Abstract Katherine Mansfield, remembered as one of the finest writers of English short stories, enjoys enduring fame and a somewhat awesome literary status with her short stories, Miss Brill as one of her representative pieces. The interest of our Chinese critics, in general, locates more in the modernist techniques and devices she employs to present the inner world of the characters in her stories,