Journal Entry: April 30, 2009

Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923)

-used "stream of consciousness" (Horton 706)
-New Zealand writer

Noted Works:
-"The Fly"
-"Miss Brill"
-"Feuille D'Album"

Analysis of "Miss Brill"
"Miss Brill," is a story of a woman who, on the outside, seems physically and mentally content with herself. At the beginning of the story, she puts on her fur with all the pride she posessed. She then goes out, and she watches the people around her. She sits there by herself and listens because she just loves people. She observes an old couples and young couples. One young couple in particular who were "beautifully dressed" ("Miss Brill") sat in Miss Brill's vicinity of hearing. She overheard them ask, "Why does she come here at all - who wants her?" ("Miss Brill"). After Miss Brill usually goes to the Bakery to enjoy a honey-cake. This time she skips it and goes straight home to cry. The moral of this story can go two ways. Either one could say that Miss Brill shouldn't be eavesdropping, or different people are still people nonetheless. Even though she's alone in all the events taking place, Miss Brill is still a happy person. She's so content that one might think that no mean word can hurt her. However, in the end, we find out that she's still human like everyone else.

Application
I think we've all been here: in a place that you don't feel loved or openly accepted. Either if it was for an entire school year or for a couple of seconds, it's not a good feeling. For me, I'm really blessed to have my friends because their presence makes me feel accepted and loved. It makes me feel almost guilty that I have companions when other people like Miss Brill don't. We all know that's why, which of our classmates sit alone at lunch. For the past couple of weeks, every other day I've been trying to make it a point to talk to a person whom God has put on my heart to talk to. We have our differences, but I think it's getting close to a new friendship.



Horton, Ronald A. British Literature for Christian Schools. Greenville: Bob Jones University Press, 1992.

Mansfield, Katherine. "Miss Brill." 30 Apr. 2009 .