A child growing up on the prairies, and trying to understand the world around her during the great depression. The prairies have a profound effect on the author Margaret Laurence, writing through the eyes of a young adventurist Vanessa. Vanessa’s adventurist nature allows her to experiment with words and emotions. She analyzes her surroundings and tries to make sense of the way words are used in her small town of Manawaka. Manawaka might be small, but it has a large impact on the life of Vanessa. Through words Vanessa expresses her desire to express opinions, utilize expressions, and rationalize emotions.
Vanessa is consistently looking for words to express how she feels. Feeling is something that she has trouble describing to those around her, especially when she feels strongly about an event. An event that sticks out to Vanessa most is the Remembrance Day parade, which she does not want to go to. The reason she does not want to go is because the outfits in the parade
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Vanessa took it tough when her father died because she couldn’t understand what people were saying as he was saved, and that he is going to heaven. Vanessa finally lashes out “shut up… he didn’t need to be saved”, her father meant a lot to her, why would he need to be saved (93). Whether Vanessa meant these words is not known, she still is playing around with words. Vanessa’s feelings are still evident and in this manner it is her emotions that take over and cause her to use words she might not have meant. She meant what was best for her father, but how can Vanessa rationalize where he went if she still is trying to understand words. Understanding words is what this all comes down too, Vanessa uses the most pungent words she can in this situation because they express her feelings at the time. Spur of the moment feelings are something we see from Vanessa, feelings that are expressed through strong
“Winter lies too long in country towns; hangs on until it is stale and shabby, old and sullen” (“Brainy Quotes” 1). In Edith Wharton’s framed novel, Ethan Frome, the main protagonist encounters “lost opportunity, failed romance, and disappointed dreams” with a regretful ending (Lilburn 1). Ethan Frome lives in the isolated fictional town of Starkfield, Massachusetts with his irritable spouse, Zenobia Frome. Ever since marriage, Zenobia, also referred to as Zeena, revolves around her illness. Furthermore, she is prone to silence, rage, and querulously shouting. Ethan has dreams of leaving Starkfield and selling his plantation, however he views caring for his wife as a duty and main priority. One day, Zeena’s cousin, Mattie Silver, comes to assist the Frome’s with their daily tasks. Immediately, Mattie’s attractive and youthful energy resuscitates Ethan’s outlook on life. She brings a light to Starkfield and instantaneously steals Ethan’s heart; although, Ethan’s quiet demeanor and lack of expression causing his affection to be surreptitious. As Zeena’s health worsens, she becomes fearful and wishes to seek advice from a doctor in a town called Bettsbridge giving Ethan and Mattie privacy for one night. Unfortunately, the night turns out to be a disastrous and uncomfortable evening. Neither Ethan nor Mattie speaks a word regarding their love for one another. Additionally, during their dinner, the pet cat leaps on the table and sends a pickle dish straight to the floor crashing into pieces. To make matters worse, the pickle dish is a favored wedding gift that is cherished by Zeena. Later, Zeena discovers it is broken and it sends her anger over the edge. Furious, Zeena demands for a more efficient “hired girl” to complete the tasks ar...
Particularly, you can analyze that this quote contains a strong voice that can be portrayed as descriptive. She uses a handful of adjectives that foreshadow the character’s personalities.
clearly grieving for her baby but also she seems happy for Vanessa and to be over with
Like Harvey, Vanessa reacts to situations in ways very similar to the ways her main influences would react to those same situations. When talking to her brother about what to name her new dog she notices that her voice carries a “disturbing echo” of her grandfather’s voice.
The setting takes place mostly in the woods around Andy’s house in Pennsylvania. The season is winter and snow has covered every inch of the woods and Andy’s favorite place to be in, “They had been in her dreams, and she had never lost' sight of them…woods always stayed the same.” (327). While the woods manage to continually stay the same, Andy wants to stay the same too because she is scared of growing up. The woods are where she can do manly activities such as hunting, fishing and camping with her father. According to Andy, she thinks of the woods as peaceful and relaxing, even when the snow hits the grounds making the woods sparkle and shimmer. When they got to the campsite, they immediately started heading out to hunt for a doe. Andy describes the woods as always being the same, but she claims that “If they weren't there, everything would be quieter, and the woods would be the same as before. But they are here and so it's all different.” (329) By them being in the woods, everything is different, and Andy hates different. The authors use of literary elements contributes to the effect of the theme by explaining what the setting means to Andy. The woods make Andy happy and she wants to be there all the time, but meanwhile the woods give Andy a realization that she must grow up. Even though the woods change she must change as
One of the biggest challenges Francie faces while growing up is loneliness. As a young child living in a Brooklyn slum, Francie has no friends her age. The other children either find her too quiet or shun her for being different because of her extensive vocabulary. Betty Smith describes how most of Francie's childhood days are spent: "in the warm summer days the lonesome child sat on her stoop and pretended disdain for the group of children playing on the sidewalk. Francie played with her imaginary companions and made believe they were better than real children. But all the while her heart beat in rhythm to the poignant sadness of the song the children sang while walking around in a ring with hands joined." (106). Francie is lonely, and longs to be included. As Francie matures, she begins to experience a different kind of loneliness. Betty Smith portrays her feelings as she observes her neighborhood: "spring came early that year and the sweet warm nights made her restless. She walked up and down the streets and through the park. And wherever she went, she saw a boy and a girl together, walking arm-in-arm, sitting on a park bench with their arms around each other, standing closely and in silence in a vestibule. Everyone in the world but Francie had a sweetheart or a friend she seemed to be the only lonely one in Brooklyn without a friend." (403). Loneliness is a constant challenge for Francie but it is through her loneliness that she finds a new companion in her books. Francie reads as an alternative for her lack of friends and companions. It is through her love of reading that Francie develops her extensive, sophisticated vocabulary. Her books lead her into maturity and help her learn to be independent and overcome her many hardships.
When Beth, Vanessa’s mother went into labor and was taken to the hospital because of complications Vanessa was left under the care of her grandmother. When Vanessa’s first heard her mother in pain she knew something was wrong and all she could think about was the time when her sister was born and didn’t make it past birth. Imagining all the scenarios that could go wrong Vanessa worried herself. To occupy her mind she explored the house while her dad took her mother to the hospital. Grandmother Macleod and Vanessa had many different views and butted heads a lot of the time.
The Development of Escape Margaret Laurence's novel A Bird in the House is a collection of independent and intertwined short stories written from Vanessa MacLeod's point of view. As an adult looking back on her childhood, the protagonist examines how she, and essentially everyone in her life, experiences a sense of entrapment and a need to escape. Because the author begins and concludes the novel with the Brick House, the major theme of escape is shown to have developed in Vanessa as she matures through childhood and adolescence and becomes an adult. Firstly, Margaret Laurence emphasizes that freedom and escape are always within reach, even if one does not notice or believe it. For the majority of the novel, Vanessa's greatest want is to escape the confines of Manawaka (her hometown), the Brick House, and Grandfather Connor.
Ethan Frome, the protagonist of the story, is a farmer who has had his family members living and dying in the same farm in Starkfield for generations. Ethan is described as a rather sensitive figure, with a profound appreciation towards nature. He appears to always be on the move, scrambling around and trying to be unstuck—simply with “the cloud in his brain.” In this novel, Ethan lives with his sickly wife, Zeena. Additionally, Mattie Silver, Zeena’s cousin also has been living with them for over a year as a housekeeper. As the story progresses, the reader soon realizes the misery that Ethan faces.
Although she didn’t admit it, she still had that child-like fantasy about their being a happy ending especially since she looked up to Vanessa and Mark as the perfect couple. This proved that although she’s been independent and strong from the beginning, she still ultimately a teen and some real life situations that most adult go through like divorce, is complicated for her to understand and deal with. Ultimately, she stood by her promise and still gave her baby to Vanessa although she would be a single
but then she later realizes that “This was probably not fair,”. Vanessa is a caring person but throughout the story, she changes to become like her grandfather. Vanessa’s caring side is shown throughout the story by her relationship with her
knowing it. In this novel, it is evident that Vanessa does not portray an optimistic
In the beginning of the story we are introduced to a young girl and the setting for the story is laid out. It is through the setting and background information we can compare life to today and the way we live. The young girl is traveling through the woods with her grandmothers cow at dusk. “The woods were already filled with shadows one June evening, just before eight o'clock” (Jewet) The girl is about the age of nine and she is
The phrases she chose are also significant because they allow us to see that her shift in language represents, and coincides, with her shift in emotion and tone. Ph...