ipl-logo

Miss Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

753 Words4 Pages

“The Possibility of Evil” written by Shirley Jackson and published in 1965 is a story filled with deception and trickery. Presenting the reader with sweet Miss Strangeworth, an older lady who is dedicated to helping her town. As the story continues readers quickly see that Miss Strangeworth is multifaceted but still has good intentions. This can be proven through what Miss Strangeworth does, what the narrator states about her, and how the other characters interact with her. Miss Strangeworth’s thoughts and actions showcase her multifaceted personality and good intentions. While talking with Helen Crane about Mrs. Crane’s child Miss Strangeworth says, “Nonsense. All babies are different. Some of them develop more quickly than others (3).” Though …show more content…

An example to how people would treat Miss Strangeworth’s evil side, can be shown through Don Crane’s actions at the end of the short story. “Her hand did not shake as she opened the envelope… she read the words: Look out at what used to be your roses (6)”. This implies that Don Crane destroys Miss Strangeworth’s most prized possession which reveals to readers that almost anyone in the town that would find out about Miss Strangeworth’s secret letters would go to the extreme to have revenge. However when compared to how people treat her nice side, “When she came into the grocery, half a dozen people turned away from the shelves and counters to wave to her or call out good morning (2)” The townspeople's actions are now completely different towards her than before. Readers are able to see a direct comparison between the other characters actions towards Miss Strangeworth’s two different personalities. The interaction between Miss Strangeworth and a character that shows her good intentions would be, “as long as evil existed unchecked in the world, it was Miss Strangeworth's duty to keep her town alert to it.” This shows that by sending her anonymous letters to everyone in town Miss Strangeworth believes that she is helping them stay alert to all of the evil that is in the world. In reality though the other characters in the story truly don’t agree with Miss Strangeworth’s

Show More
Related

  • Character Analysis Of Adela Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

    141 Words  | 1 Pages

    Old, lonely ladies like Adela Strangeworth could suffer from boredom. One would also think that she would probably like to work in her yard. And one could even think of her living in a small town, where she would probably also know all of the people. If one visualizes all these clichés when an old lady was mentioned, one now has a pretty good picture of Miss Adela Strangeworth, the protagonist of the short story, “The Possibility of Evil’’ by Shirley Jackson. Miss Strangeworth is 71 years old and lives in a small town.

    Read More

  • Does Mrs. Hopewell's Use Of Christian Policies In The Red Scare

    962 Words  | 4 Pages

    His manipulation changes her perspective and she believes he could not commit a bad act. On the contrary, she believes her atheist daughter Joy could commit a bad act. Pointer takes Mrs. Hopewell's innocent belief between good and evil to ironically manipulate her to believe he holds good intentions. Communists hold the capability to use this illustration of irony to hide their intentions similar to Manley

    Read More

  • Pleasantville Possibility Of Evil Analysis

    836 Words  | 4 Pages

    Miss Strangeworth “Never concerned herself with facts” and normally would spread rumors instead of actually informing others about ligament problems in the town (Possibility of Evil 252). Miss Strangeworth’s flaws are not just a difference, they stem from something inside of her that chooses to do harm. She could choose to be kind but instead she continues to hurt others with her letters. The concept of imperfection is illustrated in these stories in different way. The flaws could be out of the character’s control like in Pleasantville or a deliberate choice to hurt others like in Possibility of Evil.

    Read More

  • A Good Man Is Hard To Find By Flannery O Connor

    1051 Words  | 5 Pages

    She was an old lady who always had to have it her way or she was not happy, and everyone knew it, quick to judge, and was not the most forgiving person on Earth. Her character's outlook changed when she knew her death was imminent while talking to The Misfit. In return, The Misfit at the end says "She would have been a good woman," "if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life." (O'Connor, 133) Which gives the reader more to think on as they go about life maybe they are one who judges way too quickly before getting to know

    Read More

  • Margaret Atwood's Evil Women Analysis

    777 Words  | 4 Pages

    Once her family moves to Toronto after the war to settle down, she was approximately eight years old. At that time, circumstances changes for Elaine who feels unhappy, helpless and yearns for female friends as she has no female friends yet (Vijay Singh Mehta 179). As Pavla Chudějová (34) has suggested in “Exploring the women’s experience”, Elaine become conscious of the society’s gender restrictions for the first time when she starts going to school. At school, Elaine follows the rules where she has to wear skirts to school and “the girls hold hands; the boys don’t” (CE 50-51), as well as to enter the building through the “grandiose entranceways with carvings around them and ornate insets above the doors, inscribed in curvy, solemn lettering: GIRLS and BOYS.” (CE 51) which confuses her and

    Read More

  • Symbolism In The Possibility Of Evil

    900 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Miss Strangeworth is a familiar fixture in a small town where everyone knows everyone else. Little do the townsfolk suspect, though, that the dignified old woman leads another, secret life…”. A secret life can be evil or good, in Miss Strangeworth’s case it is suitable, but do others appreciate this secret life. In The Possibility of Evil Shirley Jackson illustrates inner thinking, revealing action, and symbolism to show how Miss Strangeworth tends the people like her roses, but truly state's them evil.

    Read More

  • Miss Strangeworth's 'The Possibility Of Evil'

    781 Words  | 4 Pages

    This quote also gives you an idea of how Miss Strangeworth enjoyed gossip or talking about someone behind their back. Miss Strangeworth was writing letters to “The town where she lived had to be kept clean and sweet” it's ironic how she could say this when in reality she was doing all the evil of the town. The way Miss

    Read More

  • Analysis Of John Berendt's Midnight In The Garden Of Good And Evil

    750 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the nonfiction novel, “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” American author, John Berendt, gives his account of a 1981 murder case that took place in Savannah, Georgia. Even though during the 1980s, United States as a whole is heading towards prosperity as the Cold War ends in 1981, he repeatedly touches back on the undercurrent southern racism. Berendt draws a vivid picture of Southern Gothic weirdness to convey, using real life occurrences and characters, the idea of what kind of people exist in the community to readers of all places. The writer uses rhetorical devices such as description, foreshadowing, and dysphemism to successfully depict the occurrences in suspenseful yet humorous tone.

    Read More

  • Book Thief Innocence

    433 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though she is living during World War II, where there is a lot of hate towards certain groups of people, she is able to see the kindness in people such as her foster parents and the mayor's wife. Her being so innocent allows her to believe that people are all inherently good, and her believing this helps her deal with reality and how harsh it is. This is proven when she says "I think everyone's still alive in there" (P. 505). Her innocence and positive outlook on life lets her find hope where no one else

    Read More

  • Miss Strangeworth Character Analysis

    610 Words  | 3 Pages

    By all appearances, Miss Strangeworth is a sweet, old lady, living in a perfect, shiny, happy town. But appearances are not everything, especially in the case of Miss Adela Strangeworth of Pleasant Street. Miss Adela Strangeworth, a character in the short story “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, is a 71-year-old spinster living in a small town in the 1940’s. At the beginning, she seems like any normal old lady, but it is quickly realized that this is not the case and that she has a dark side. Of the many traits that Miss Strangeworth possesses, the most prominent are her deceptiveness, perfectionism, and the god complex that has developed.

    Read More

  • Miss Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil

    114 Words  | 1 Pages

    The character Miss Strangeworth in the literature “The Possibility of Evil” in inconsiderate and a perfectionist. She is inconsiderate because of her thoughts and actions. For example, Miss Strangeworth thinks this “Miss Strangeworth noticed that Miss Chandler had not taken much trouble with her hair that morning, and sighed” (Jackson 112-114). This reveals how inconsiderate she is to others solely picking out their imperfections. Miss Strangeworth is also a perfectionist who disdains imperfection or sloppiness.

    Read More

  • Miss Adela Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

    691 Words  | 3 Pages

    For most people, the words evil and harsh are not the typical traits used to describe an elderly woman. However, in the short story “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, the 71 year old character Miss Adela Strangeworth, has a dark predatory nature hiding behind her highly respectable and sweet exterior. She preys upon her peers by misleading them into thinking everything is fine, only to subsequently tear them down. She accomplishes this by concealing her cruel, deceitful and perfectionist personality by maintaining an honourable reputation within her town. Miss Strangeworth shows no mercy when she anonymously reveals secrets about the family and lives of people in her community.

    Read More

  • Ms. Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

    726 Words  | 3 Pages

    Is Ms. Strangeworth a victim OR villain In the short story “The Possibility of Evil” written by Shirley Jackson, the protagonist Ms. Strangeworth is a villain because she isn’t what everyone’s aspect of her is, she is very deceptive, and the letters she sends are the very cause of the evil she’s trying to stop. Ms. Strangeworth is a seventy-one-year-old lady who lives in a little town, which she thinks is her own. She always feels the need to know everything, about everyone. Even though, no one knows who she really is.

    Read More

  • Evil In The Book Night By Ellie Wiesel

    274 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the book Night by Ellie Wiesel there are many words that can describe the horrible events that went on during the Holocaust. There was a tremendous amount of evil that the Germans displayed during this time period. One of the most soul opening quotes from Ellie was, “Yes, I did see this, with my own eyes … children thrown into the flames" (Wiesel 51). The people in this book that committed these crimes were always so corrupt. It is extremely wrong to kill any person, but it is especially wrong to kill babies that still have so much more of their life to live.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Miss Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil

    430 Words  | 2 Pages

    Miss Strangeworth, a character in the short story “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, who is a complex character that is fond of taking care of her roses and helping people in the to wn. Because Miss Strangeworth is a deceptive, narrow minded lady with a God complex, her style of help is very strange.

    Read More

More about Miss Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

Open Document