Miriam : A Psychological Interpretation In Truman Capote's 'Miriam'

This story is based on her husband’s death, her reaction to his death, her feelings after finding out about his death, and her reaction when she finds out he is still alive. This story is based on Mrs. Louise Mallard and the author does a tremendous job describing all these details about her.

Richler excelled in her character development of the main character, Miriam. Miriam is at first raised traditionally, but through her life became a somewhat reluctant – but nevertheless – an activist. She grows from a floundering child to a strong, independent woman.

Miller and Miriam have basically no identity already, Miriam attacks Mrs. Miller's identity by changing what people think of her in the outside world and how she acts. To the outside world Mrs. Miller is a lonely widow who does not adventure further than the grocery store. Whereas when Miriam shows up she starts going to movies and even goes shopping! Her shopping is especially weird because in the text in mentions “a series of unaccountable purchases had begun, as if by prearranged plan:a plan of which she had not the least knowledge of control” (Capote 10). First she is shopping something that Mrs. Miller never did and that too without control. After Mrs. Miller wakes up from having a frustrating night with Miriam coming to her house, she goes outside to Schrafft’s “where she ate breakfast and chatted happily with the waitress” (Capote 9). Both these things are odd and things she basically never did except on holidays. Her going to a restaurant to eat is something new as for she only made trips to the grocery store and back. Then her talking happily to the waitress also something else she never did as she was very independent and did not talk with anyone. Why has she changed so much from just meeting a little girl, Miriam? In the text it shows that she is really upset and mad that Miriam keeps coming but once she leaves all her actions change thus for the townspeople she is looked at

Miller made in her life upon being enslaved by Miriam with conflict. As Miriam’s brazenness intensifies Mrs. Miller finally admits that, she doesn’t “want to see her again” or be “anywhere near her”. Upon meeting Miriam for the first time, Mrs. Miller becomes “oddly excited” and is “glad” to do a favor for her but as she begins to take advantage of her solitude Mrs. Miller is more forceful in getting rid of her. When Miriam pushes Mrs. Miller over the edge and demands on living with her, “she began to cry as though she had not wept for a long time, she had forgotten how“ and she loses her self-preservation. Mrs. Miller finally confronts Miriam and frantically pushes her out as opposed to her leniency when she negotiates with Miriam. Over time, Mrs. Miller learns that she can only get rid of Miriam if she loses her passivity and stands up for

His message is explored through the use of extensive foreshadowing throughout the section preceding the murders. Capote writes, “There’s him. Her. The kid and the girl. And maybe the other two. But it’s Saturday. They might have guests. Let’s count on eight, or even twelve. The only sure thing is every one of them has got to go” (Capote 37). The obvious foreshadowing expressed in this piece is just the first part to the rest of the sections that force us to realize how vital it is to appreciate life and live it to the fullest. It exemplifies how life can change at any given moment and the suspense offered in this quote further embodies that idea.

Therefore, when most of the story is being told from Perry's perspective it is almost as if it's really just Capote's perspective in disguise. Although Capote isn't directly mentioned in the story he is always there.It is as if Perry and Capote become one character and they become the subject of the book.

In the story, the reader can note the use of indirect and direct characterization to visualize character Mrs.Miller before and after she met Miriam. Before she met Miriam “her interests were little and she had no friends to speak of” (page 1 Capote) To me, this examplifies that as said before, Mrs.Miller is quite lonely and blane although she has very little interests which means she’s probably home a lot and rarely goes anywhere which may cause her to become insane in the long run. Since Mrs.Miller is so isolated and rarely goes out there may be a possibility she could develop a sickness, such as schizophrenia which would cause her to imagine things and think of situations with Miriam that are just a fragment of her imagination. When the readers read the book they see that as Mrs.Miller went to the movie theatre and met Miriam, she changed to a more alive person than what she was before she met her, which in my opinion proves that maybe Miriam had changed Mrs.Miller by just talking to her for that short amount of time. Although, we see Miriam go to Mrs.Millers house later that day, she tries to get Mrs.Miller to give stuff to her and she also tries to get Mrs.Miller to kiss her as shes leaving. Later on that night Mrs.Miller is sick and goes to rest. The following morning Mrs.Miller stayed in bed “only rising once to feed the canary and drink a cup of tea” (page 8 Capote) This means that Mrs.Miller had gotten a little shooken-up on how Miriam showed up last night, so maybe that’s just the beginning of her insanity.

He doesn't try to relate to the people he writes about and writes as unobjectively as possible. Capote delves into the past lives of the Clutter family and their murderers, so the readers can gather as much, or as little information as possible. Even the way the book is introduced, through eyewitness accounts, shows the reader that this is going to be factual, and entertaining writing. To keep his writing unique, Capote keeps his opinions out of the writing, and allows readers to form their own opinions on the people in the novel.

Miller doesn’t know who or what Miriam is, she begins to question her own identity. Miriam was a small disruption to Mrs. Miller’s “routine” and spun her whole world into a tailspin: “The sofa loomed before her with a new strangeness: its vacancy had a meaning that would have been less penetrating and terrible had Miriam been curled on it” (Capote 14). She is beginning to think that maybe it would be better if she had company after all. However, “her head was unbearably heavy; a pressure weighted the rhythm of her heartbeat” It maybe too late for Mrs. Miller to regret her years of solitude (Capote 7). As the story progresses, it seems like her health is dropping rapidly until “she knew she had found again the person who lived in this room, who cooked her own meals, who owned a canary…” (Capote 15). When Mrs. miller thinks she has regained the identity she wants her world stops spinning, even though it may not be the identity she truly

Classic stories have a protagonist who involuntarily steps into struggles, obstacles, and times of self-reflection. The reader envisions the character throughout the plot fighting barriers and instinctively discovers how the character progresses from the beginning, many times having to face personal conflict, to see positive change in the end. In Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird, the main focus and perspective are from Scout who comes face to face with challenges along her journey. She must learn to become the person who she wants to be without the negative impacts of the environment and traditional values she succumbs to. Through the significance of the Cunningham’s, Reverend Sykes, and Miss Maudie, the juxtaposition Scout embraces among these characters help her grow to understand the importance of seeing the

Up to the day of her death at seventy-four it was still that vigorous iron-gray, like the hair of an active man.” , (Chapter 4, Paragraph 6), as her insanity consumes her, her hair starts to change

Miller and Miriam to the author Truman Capote. The double figure present in the story revolves around Mrs. Miller. Mrs. Miller represents a very lonely and sad personality and on the other hand Miriam brings out a complete opposite personality. Michael J. Larsen, author of Capote’s “Miriam” and the Literature of the double, observes that Miriam brings an almost magical and much needed ray of light into Mrs. Miller’s boring lifestyle (Larsen 53). At the begging of the story Mrs. Miller is described as lonely and plain, and as the story progresses Mrs. Miller become just the opposite. She strays away from her everyday life and almost begins a new. At one point in the story Mrs. Miller wakes up feeling better and she opens the window to discover a thawed, mild-as-spring day (Capote). These types of descriptive words can be interpreted as rejuvenating and refreshing. As the story progresses one finds that Miriam is more than just a little girl. Miriam begins to represent the side of Mrs. Miller that is suppressed (Larsen 53). At certain times in the story the reader comes to find Mrs. Miller fixed on Miriam. She seems as if Miriam is starting to control her life. One sees this when Mrs. Miller buys food in preparation for a guest or when she lets Miriam take the pin her late husband gave her. All of these little details show how much of a psychological effect Miriam truly has on Mrs. Miller. The result of this obsession is a woman who cannot grasp reality and realize who she really is. The representation of the double figure throughout the story helps us connect the characters and their characteristics to those

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TedTalk “The Danger of a Single Story” is an effective monologue which highlights our perceived notions as to not always being accurate. When one narrates another’s background with bias information, we paint an unfair picture. The speaker approached the subject with a lighthearted, humorous, and most importantly relatable choice of words. Adichie began her monologue with showcasing a bit of her childhood, and how the books she had read caused a case of “a Single Story”.

Since this passage is research based, the interview excerpt provides a more personal and realistic account of the events, and allows for a better grasp on the situation. Both sections are primarily addressed towards the reader, as the quotes were selected by the author himself, however, some aspects of Wells’ interview in section two are more likely to be formally directed towards Capote, as one can notice the parts during the interview in which he describes his emotions towards the Clutter family, expressing words like “A nice family, real nice. I never forgot them.” in lines 20-21 on the second page.

“The long, curled hair, the dark head bent so reverently, so innocently before her, implied a pair of the finest legs that a young nobleman has ever stood upright upon; and violet eyes; and a heart of gold;