6.5 Miss Brill

Unit 4-5: Supplementary Reading

MISS BRILL I. General remarks II. Introducing Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923) Life: born in New Zealand began literary career after she moved to London in 1908

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Literary reputation: one of the avant-garde of short-story writers that emerged in early 20 C.  popularity resting on her stories, e.g. - The Garden Party and other stories - The Dove’s Nest, 1923 (published posthumously) - Something Childish 1924  Her stories were the first in English to show the influence of Chekhov, whom she greatly admired.  Her stories vary greatly in length and tone, from long, impressionistic, delicate evocations of family life (such as “At the Bay”, “Prelude” ) to short, sharp sketches such as “Miss Brill”.  Her success aroused the jealousy of Virginia Woolf, who began to describe her story as being “hard” and “shallow” 

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III. Analyzing the literary strength as displayed in the story Miss Brill 1. Trifling incidents as subject matter Stories by Mansfield are about some apparently trifling incidents. Her stories are sensitive revelation of human behavior in ordinary situation, through which we can glimpse a powerful, and sometimes cruelly pessimistic view of life. Ask questions concerning the plot of Miss Brill:  What ‘s it all about in the story Miss Brill? Is the story concerned about something very sensational, something extraordinary, such as the trial of the young man in “The Tiger or the Lady” ? 2. Fresh, innovative plotline

Instead of striving for neat, well-made plots, Mansfield is concerned with MOOD, and the revelation of characters. 1

Unit 4-5: Supplementary Reading

Ask questions to draw students’ attention to the innovative plot line: Is it easy for you to work out what has happened in the story? What’s the SETTING of the story? Time: on Sunday afternoon, late Autumn clues :chill air, leaf came drifting, moth powder) Place: a public garden in France (Jardin’s Publiques)  When does the episode start? Where is Miss Brill? (In her room? Walking in the park? Sitting on the bench?) 

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How much do we know about Miss Brill? . - How old is she? - Is she married? Has she got a family? (old spinster, live alone) - Where is she from? (English? French? ) How do we know? - What does she do as a living? (career woman? House wife?…) (a paid companion – working 4 afternoon a week, reading to an old invalid gentleman

COMPARE: with traditional plot line, neat, well-built organization: The information about the character scatters here and there instead of neatly built pattern: Such as Miss Brill is an old spinster. She is British but has come to France. She hasn’t got regular jobs, only working as a paid companion to an old gentleman…. Every Sunday, Miss Brill goes to the park. One Sunday after in late Autumn, she went as usual to the Jardins garden……. This will lose all the appeal of the story. 3. Impressionistic /symbolic techniques to convey powerful atmosphere IMPRESSIONISM  The name comes from Monet’s painting “impression”, to refer to a school of French painters who held their first exhibition in 1874. Their aim was to render the effects of light on objects rather than objects themselves. They painted out of doors, using a high key and bright colours.  Impressionists are concerned with transitory effects of light, depicting the fleeting impression from a subjective point of view, not interested in precise representation.

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Unit 4-5: Supplementary Reading

 In literature, the term has also been used to describe the novelist’s technique

of concentrating on the inner life of the main character rather than the external reality. Abundant examples of this technique are to be found in James Joyce, Virginia Woolf. In stories like “Miss Brill”, a single episode illustrates the entire life of a character 4. Powerful characterization (the way an author presents a character in a short story) 1) Methods of characterization: (direct Vs. Indirect/dramatic) A. The author tells you directly what a character is like. (Traditional)  The king is semi-barbaric  The Princess is blooming, and has a fervent and imperious soul.She is lonely/pretty/ urgly etc. B (Modern)More often, the author would let you draw you own conclusions about a character from information in the story  from what the character says/does/thinks (dramatic treatment)  from what other characters think about him/her (indirect) 2) Characterization of Mill Brill Mansfield uses several methods of characterization to reveal what Miss Brill is like. A. Details of physical appearance: Mansfield chooses to focus on one item of Miss Brill’s clothing—her neckpiece, the fox fur.  Is the neckpiece a precious thing to Miss Brill? How do we know this? Miss Brill keeps the fox fur carefully wrapped in its box and touches it lovingly when she takes it out.  How does the neckpiece look like in others’ eyes? To other eyes, however, the fur piece is quite worn and unattractive. At the end of the story, it is compared to a “fried” whiting” (炸鳕鱼)

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Unit 4-5: Supplementary Reading

 What conclusion about Miss Brill can you draw from this detail? (rather poor, old-fashioned ) B. What the character thinks: Most of this story lets you know what’s going on in Miss Miss’s mind. During her visit to the park, she speaks to no one, she does nothing. Her imagination, however, is active, and she identifies with what is going on all around her.  What conclusion about Miss Brill can you draw from this?  How would you describe Miss Brill’s life? (rich, meaningful, empty?)  How do her reactions to what she sees reveal the emptiness of her life? C. What other character thinks: The story takes a sharp turn when the young couple came to sit down beside Miss Brill. Before they came, Miss Brill has been having imaginations, imagining her as an important part of the park scene, as an “actress” in the performance. When she overhears the conversation between the boy and the girl, (the insulting comments), she finds out what others think of her.  How does this scene convey the nature of Miss Brill’s life? (She is no longer wanted by the society. With no youth, no beauty, no charm, no dignity, she is a no-body, a burden in other people’s eyes. ) D. How the character behaves:  What does Miss Brill do after she overhears the young couple’s conversation? At the end of the story, Miss Brill bypasses the honeycake, her Sunday treat, and returns to her “cupboard” of a room. It is clearly that she is crying as she puts away her fur.  What does this action reveal about Miss Brill?  Do you think something has changed for her? 5. Sensitive descriptions: Analyzing the story: 1. The Season: For some fashionable resorts, there is a period of the year when it is fashionable to visit. This period is known as “the Season”, with a capital S. It is the time when hotels and restaurants open up, bands play, concerts are put on etc. 4

Unit 4-5: Supplementary Reading

This story is set at the beginning of the century when such Seasons in resorts were common. One should not call them “tourist seasons”, as the visitors did not come as tourists. 2. out of season it was never the same: When it was not the time of the year for a lot of visitors and great social activity, the band did not play as well. 4. Draw students attention to some vivid descriptions in the story, such as p 53-54) THEME (MIXED MESSAGE)  reveal the ideal of human fraternity (life –play –part in it—sense of belonging –contribution) Different interpretation possible:  Eternal conflict between the youth and the old  Idealism Vs. Reality

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