Katherine Mansfields The Garden Party - Essay Example

? Katherine Mansfield’s The Garden Party focuses on the reflections and attitudes of the main character, Laura, in relation to her family and neighbors. At the start of the story, the character of Laura Sheridan is introduced. Laura, a wealthy teenage girl, grows up in a comfortable and abundant life. In fact, they organize parties just to socialize and meet other people, who are of the same social status as they are. However, although Laura is rich, she shows concern for other people, as well, especially to the workmen who designed their garden for the party. Although Laura tries to maintain an authoritative attitude over the workmen, the happy and positive disposition of the workmen draws Laura to them. As a result, Laura considered the idea of having the workmen as friends because she realized that their attitudes are more natural than those men she had met in parties. Primarily, Laura’s social status in life, her attitudes, and the attitudes of her parents make her different from other people especially from her mother, Mrs. Sheridan, and her sister, Jose. For instance, Laura’s social status separates her from the rest of the world in the sense that she was not able, or was not allowed, to mingle with the poor people in their neighborhood. With the high standards of her family, Laura was not able take pleasure in enjoying the friendship of simple people. With her situation, Laura feels that she is confined within the gates of her home and the limits of her elite society. Laura’s feeling of isolation also affects her attitudes toward other people especially the workmen. For instance, although she wants to maintain a demanding tone in making the workmen do their job, the positive attitudes of the workmen make her realize that they are actually nice people to have around. With this idea, it can be said that Laura’s isolation affects her attitudes toward people. With her excitement to meet other people, she was able to open herself and understand the lives of the workmen. In fact, after the conversation she had with the workmen, she munched his sandwich like a workman do because she realized how carefree life is when one is not concerned about the opinions of other people especially her elite society. In the context of openness, Laura is different from her sister, Jose, and her mother, Mrs. Sheridan. For instance, when Laura heard the news of the carter’s death, she instantly feels empathy and concern that she proposed to cancel their party. She feels that having a party while one of their neighbors is mourning is not proper. In addition, Laura feels that she and her family need to pay some respect to the mourning family. Laura thinks that by cancelling the party, they would be able to be one with the neighborhood. She thinks that in this way, she can overcome the barriers of social status. Contrastingly, Mrs. Sheridan and Jose think that the idea is foolish because it would mean that the money they spent for the party would be wasted. It would also be a humiliation to the family if they cancel the party because of their neighbor’s death, who is not their relative, in the first place. In addition, Mrs. Sheridan and Jose think that the death of the Carter is not their business, so they have the right to pursue their party without feeling guilty. In Mrs. Sheridan’s and Jose’s view, the attitudes of Laura signify childhood innocence and ignorance. With these attitudes, Mrs. Sheridan and Jose think that Laura still needs her family to support her in her decision. In this context, it can be said that Laura is still seen as dependent; therefore, cannot have the freedom of choice. Although Laura is projected as a positive character in the story, her childhood innocence creates the irony in her character. For instance, although she seems very concerned with the Scott family at first, her sympathy faded by the time “Mrs. Sheridan gives her a beautiful hat.” In the story, the beautiful hat signifies the alluring beauty of the elite life, the life of luxury. Considering this situation, it can be said that Laura’s openness closes off her family’s concern for other people. Laura’s exaggerated concern for Scott’s family makes Jose and Mrs. Sheridan think that she, really, is still a kid who does not understand the world and life, in general. This idea is shown in the last part of the story wherein Laura looked at the corpse of the carter and realized that death is really different from life, and she could not understand still what life really is. Conclusively, the last sentence of the story supports the idea that although Laura is considered as the protagonist in the story, her experiences and knowledge about life are still not enough to be considered as sign of her transition to adulthood. Sandra Cisneros presents a story of growing up in One Holy Night. Cisneros’ first person point-of-view narration makes the story subjective in the sense that it focuses only on the experiences of the main character. In the story, the main character, Ixchel, symbolizes an archetype of a victimized woman who struggle against the culture of her society as well as against the bitter results of her decisions. The characters of Chaq and Ixchel represent the contrasting perceptions and beliefs of males and females regarding relationships and love. At the start of the story, Ixchel, the narrator, tells her relationship with Chaq. Ixchel narrates that Chaq’s description of himself does not fit his real appearance. For instance, although Chaq described himself as a descendant of the Mayan kings, he appears to be a ragged boy who wanders and sleeps in the street. With the descriptions, it can be said that Cisneros also introduced the concepts of innocence and deceit, which are represented in the characters of Ixchel and Chaq. In addition, Cisneros’ also implies that love can blind a person to see the real value of things and people. As Ixchel thought that she loves Chaq, she accepted Chaq regardless of his appearance. Aside from this, the way Cisneros presents the characters of Ixchel and Chaq also gives rise to the idea of the male and female sexuality. As the story focuses on Ixchel’s affairs with Chaq, it can be said that the main theme of the story is female and male sexuality in the context of Mexican American culture. In the story, the concepts of male and female sexuality are personified in the characters of Chaq and Ixchel while the character of Abuelita represents the prejudicial Mexican American society. For instance, by the time Ixchel realized that she means nothing to Chaq, she also realized that being male and female is not merely a description of one’s physique; rather, the concepts of masculinity and femininity separate boys and girls into two different worlds. After her relationship with Chaq, Ixchel understood why boys and girls should not share a common room. As Ixchel reflected on the results of her relationship with Chaq, she wondered whether her mother and aunt had undergone the same situation in their life. As Ixchel thought that Abuelita had her own story about relationships, she expected that Abuelita would understand her; instead, Abuelita, sent her to Mexico so that she cannot bring humiliation to their family. In this context, Abuelita’s character signifies the prejudicial culture of Mexican Americans. Although Abuelita is aware that many Mexican American girls experience the situation of Ixchel, she still blames Ixchel for her childish decisions without even considering the fact that she also has a moral obligation to Ixchel. Aside from the theme, the most significant ideas in the story are represented through symbols. Specifically, the symbols in the story signify Ixchel’s readiness for a romantic relationship. For instance, her neglect of the pushcart symbolizes her disregard for her family. By the time Ixchel met Chaq, she had been unable to do her responsibilities anymore. For instance, she just left the pushcart and went inside the garage with Chaq. This decision affects her entire life because this event led her to realize that her sexuality does not matter at all for Chaq, although she loves him. On the other hand, Chaq’s guns, another symbol in the story, signify his bad qualities. However, although Ixchel knows that Chaq is a bad person, she still accepts him. This situation represents Ixchel childlike decisions with regard to relationship. In addition, Ixchel is also enchanted by the stories of Chaq; his language fascinates her and made her believe that he is truly a descendant of kings. As Ixchel was blinded by his love for Chaq, she was not able see clearly whether her decisions are good for her, or not. In this context, it can also be said that Cisneros emphasises the necessity of differentiating truth and lies as those have play an important role in relationships, especially for women. In conclusion, the story presents the circumstances of Mexican American women in the context of their possibility toward teenage pregnancy. In the story, Cisneros presents the painful realities of getting pregnant at an early age. In the context of Mexican American culture, teenage pregnancy means humiliation, which, in turn, means that teenage mothers have to confront social prejudice. Considering this situation, it can be said that the story is a portrayal of the lives of Mexican American teenagers, who are already mothers. Read More