Katherine Mansfield
1. Characters
The character’s in Katherine Mansfield’s The Doll House are the Burnell sisters, Isabel, Keiza and Lottie, all of whom are of a wealthy family, and the Kelveys, Lil and Else who were of a low income family, with a father that was nonexistent. Other minor characters include Mrs. Hay who gave the Burnell sisters the Doll House and Aunt Beryl.
2. Setting
The Doll’s House is set in New Zealand in the early 1900’s, a time of great social injustice.
3. Conflicts:
There are many conflicts within the Doll’s House. The first of which is the most obvious that exists between the Burnell sisters, specifically Keiza and whether or not she should invite the Kelveys to look at the doll house. Another conflict that exists is the conflict between The Kelveys and their classmates, in how they are always being picked on and the constant struggle of the Kelveys to somehow let it go. Both of these conflicts would be man vs. man but there does exist a conflict in the form of man vs nature. This is made evident when the reader sees how the Kelveys are so close and help one another through difficult times despite what early 20th century New Zealand social class may tell them about their insufficiency.
4. Plot
“The Doll’s House” is a short story by Katherine Mansfield, written in the year 1922. The story reveals the extent to which class consciousness has wreaked havoc in the social set up, so much so that the other children are discouraged from talking to the children from the lowest of the social classes. The story traces the problem of class consciousness through the character of Kezia, and her journey from innocence to the symbolic world of experience.The Burnell children receive a doll’s house from Mrs Hay, who had come to stay with them. The children were so excited about the doll’s house, and they decide to show it off to their school friends. With the arrival of the doll’s house, the Burnell children get so excited and greatly attracted to it. While the two older children admire the red carpet, the red chairs, and the gold frames of this richly decorated house,Kezia, the youngest of the girls, takes an interest in the rather simple lamp.In school, during playtime, Isabel, the eldest of the Burnell children, was surrounded. The girls of her class nearly fought to be her special friend. All the girls, giggling together, pressed up close to have a look at the doll’s house, which was the cynosure of all eyes now. The only two who stayed outside the ring were the little Kelveys. Many of the children, including the Burnells, were not allowed to speak to them. The Kelveys were shunned by everybody. When Kezia asks her mother, “Can’t I ask the Kelveys just once?” To which, the response is, “Certainly not, Kezia!”The fact that even the teacher had a special voice for them, and a special smile for the other children speaks to the discreet (or rather distinct) ways in which class consciousness is practised even by teachers themselves, in maintaining the social hierarchy.Kezia took a great liking for the undecorated lamp. While the others seem to be interested in the gaudy decorations that adorn the house, for Kezia, “the lamp was perfect”. “It was so real”. When Isabel, the bossy eldest sister went on describing the various features of the doll’s house, Kezia broke in and said, ‘You’ve forgotten the lamp, Isabel’! “The lamp’s best of all” cried Kezia. But nobody paid attention. The lamp here symbolises the ‘working class’. These lamps are the sacrificial lights in the altar of the wealthy capitalists. According to Marx, these working classes or proletariat are individuals who sell their labour power for wages and who do not own the means of production. He argued that they were responsible for creating the wealth of a society, but ironically, are treated with contempt and disdain by society.
Kezia decides to make friends with the Kelveys because she has not been so far indoctrinated with the class consciousness which seem to have corrupted her older sisters. Mansfield beautifully interweaves the contradicting forces of Kezia’s innocence with the bigoted views of those who live in the world of experience. While the others keep reminding her of her high class status, Kezia insists on her thoughts of equality to the prejudiced views of the members of her social class. By doing so, she is metaphorically, trying to break the social hierarchy of class inequalities.
Mansfield brings out the bitter truth that the discrimination between the wealthy ‘haves’ and the underprivileged ‘have nots’ was based solely on wealth and class. The fact that “the line had to be drawn somewhere” speaks volumes to the social hierarchy prevalent in society. At the end of the story, Aunt Beryl shouts at Kezia, ‘How dare you ask the little Kelveys into the courtyard?’ in her furious voice, adding, ‘Run away, children, run away at once. And don’t come back again!’ “Burning with shame, shrinking together, the Kelvey sisters huddled through the big courtyard and squeezed through the white gate.”
Through the portrayal of the predicament of the Kelveys, Mansfield brings out the class consciousness that was faithfully handed down by one generation to another, from parents to children and vice versa. Moreover, through the deft portrayal of the character of Kezia, Mansfield tries to challenge the existing social class consciousness which was wreaking havoc on the social fabric.
5. Theme
Mansfield’s main theme in “The Doll’s House” is the injustices and cruelty associated with class distinctions. Set in colonial New Zealand, Mansfield shows that differences set along class lines are rigidly adhered to. She also shows that those in a higher class take an almost perverse pleasure in being cruel to those of lower classes.
Along with these ideas, Mansfield does show that there is some hope because the classes are forced to deal with each other in everyday situations. This is shown through the character of Kezia and the lamp.
My Lord The Baby
Rabindra Nath Tagore
1. Characters
The main character is Raicharan. The others are the mistress, master, Anukul, group of Gypsies,
2. Setting
In the village.
3. Theme
My Lord the Baby is a story that demonstrates a father’s love for his son and the … He could give and sacrifice his own happiness just to see Anukul to be happy.
5. Plot
The main character here is named Raicharan. He was only 12 years old when he became a servant. His Master made him a private servant to his Son. He took good care of him, until the time that the little Master Anukul grew up and got married. When Anukul had a son of his own. Anukul still made Raicharan his Son’s private servant. But fate got in the way, the little Master disappeared when Raicharan was taking him for a stroll. No one knows whether the Baby was taken by a group of Gypsies who were hovering nearby or He drowned in the river. Anukul’s wife got so distressed and furious that there is no reasoning with her. They made Raicharan go back to his Village. There he learned that his wife just gave birth to a Baby Boy but she died immediately. At first Raicharan didn’t want to accept his Son because he knew that he cannot sire a child. But as the Boy grows, he can see similarities with his young master. And so he thought that his son is the reincarnation of the young master. Raicharan gave everything and anything his son would want, he made his son live like a rich man up to the point that he is sturbing himself to death. When he can no longer give Phailna, his son, all that he wants, he decided to go back to Anukul and told him that his son was with him all along, Raicharan let them think that he’s the one who kidnap their son. This just goes to show that a Father can and is willing to sacrifice almost anything just for the good of his beloved son. Even if it means that he will lose his son forever or it would mean his death. Also, the story relates on the belief that there is reincarnation, life after death.
HILL LIKE WHITE ELEPHANTS
1. Characters
The American – The male protagonist of the story. The American never reveals his name, nor does the girl ever directly address him by name. He is determined to convince the girl to have the operation but tries to appear as though he doesn’t care what she does. He remains disconnected from his surroundings, not really understanding or even listening to what the girl has to say.
The Girl – The female protagonist of the story. The American calls the girl “Jig” at one point in the story but never mentions her real name. Unlike the American, the girl is less sure of what she wants and appears reluctant to have the operation in question. She alternates between wanting to talk about the operation and wanting to avoid the topic altogether.
The Bartender – The woman serving drinks to the American man and the girl. The bartender speaks only Spanish.
2. Setting
Hemingway sets “Hills Like White Elephants” at a train station to highlight the fact that the relationship between the American man and the girl is at a crossroads. Planted in the middle of a desolate valley, the station isn’t a final destination but merely a stopping point between Barcelona and Madrid. Travelers, including the main characters, must therefore decide where to go and, in this case, whether to go with each other and continue their relationship. Moreover, the contrast between the white hills and barren valley possibly highlights the dichotomy between life and death, fertility and sterility, and mirrors the choice the girl faces between having the baby or having the abortion. The girl seems torn between the two landscapes, not only commenting on the beauty of the hills but also physically walking to the end of the platform and gazing out at the brown emptiness around the station
3. Plot
“Hills Like White Elephants” opens with a long description of the story’s setting in a train station surrounded by hills, fields, and trees in a valley in Spain. A man known simply as the American and his girlfriend sit at a table outside the station, waiting for a train to Madrid.
It is hot, and the man orders two beers. The girl remarks that the nearby hills look like white elephants, to which the American responds that he’s never seen one. They order more drinks and begin to bicker about the taste of the alcohol. The American chastises her and says that they should try to enjoy themselves. The girl replies that she’s merely having fun and then retracts her earlier comment by saying the hills don’t actually look like white elephants to her anymore.They order more drinks, and the American mentions that he wants the girl, whom he calls “Jig,” to have an operation, although he never actually specifies what kind of operation. He seems agitated and tries to downplay the operation’s seriousness. He argues that the operation would be simple, for example, but then says the procedure really isn’t even an operation at all.
The girl says nothing for a while, but then she asks what will happen after she’s had the operation. The man answers that things will be fine afterward, just like they were before, and that it will fix their problems. He says he has known a lot of people who have had the operation and found happiness afterward. The girl dispassionately agrees with him. The American then claims that he won’t force her to have the operation but thinks it’s the best course of action to take. She tells him that she will have the operation as long as he’ll still love her and they’ll be able to live happily together afterward.The man then emphasizes how much he cares for the girl, but she claims not to care about what happens to herself. The American weakly says that she shouldn’t have the operation if that’s really the way she feels. The girl then walks over to the end of the station, looks at the scenery, and wonders aloud whether they really could be happy if she has the operation. They argue for a while until the girl gets tired and makes the American promise to stop talking.
The Spanish bartender brings two more beers and tells them that the train is coming in five minutes. The girl smiles at the bartender but has to ask the American what she said because the girl doesn’t speak Spanish. After finishing their drinks, the American carries their bags to the platform and then walks back to the bar, noticing all the other people who are also waiting for the train. He asks the girl whether she feels better. She says she feels fine and that there is nothing wrong with her.
4. Theme
Talking versus Communicating
Although “Hills Like White Elephants” is primarily a conversation between the American man and his girlfriend, neither of the speakers truly communicates with the other, highlighting the rift between the two. Both talk, but neither listens or understands the other’s point of view. Frustrated and placating, the American man will say almost anything to convince his girlfriend to have the operation, which, although never mentioned by name, is understood to be an abortion. He tells her he loves her, for example, and that everything between them will go back to the way it used to be. The girl, meanwhile, waffles indecisively, at one point conceding that she’ll have the abortion just to shut him up. When the man still persists, she finally begs him to “please, please, please, please, please, please” stop talking, realizing the futility of their conversation. In fact, the girl’s nickname, “Jig,” subtly indicates that the two characters merely dance around each other and the issue at hand without ever saying anything meaningful. The girl’s inability to speak Spanish with the bartender, moreover, not only illustrates her dependence on the American but also the difficulty she has expressing herself to others.
5. Conflict
One of the most basic conflicts present in the Hemingway short story is how two people balance the demands of their own needs with the realities of their relationship. I think that Hemingway draws out a situation that is gender driven in that the man and the woman hold a difference of opinion about both the pregnancy and their own relationship. Yet, there is a larger conflict present in terms of how a relationship can make demands on personal freedom. Both characters struggle with the reality of the shared relationship, but also with the basic idea of how their own individual freedom is exacted by the constraints of their relationship. Jig constantly finds her own voice is subjugated by the realities of their “happiness.” The idea of what will be best for their relationship must drive what happens to both of them. The American keeps on saying to Jig that whatever “she” wants is fine. Yet, in the end, the reality is that while their own freedom and independence is present, both understand their relationship is there and demands their attention. The interesting thing is that Jig seems resigned to the fact that the relationship will swallow her own freedom and she accepts this at the end, while studying the hills ahead of her.