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Ms. Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil By Shirley Jackson

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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. The author of this short story- Shirley Jackson begins the story by introducing Miss Adela Strangeworth as a sweet old lady “Miss Adela Strangeworth came daintily along Main Street on her way to the grocery.” And she pathetic fallacy to mimic nice mood “The sun was shining, the air was fresh and clear after the night’s heavy rain, and everything in Miss Strangeworth’s little town looked washed and bright. Shirley Jackson clearly wants the reader’s perspective on Miss Strangeworth to be pleasant, …show more content…

Unfortunately, her malicious words stir up even more trouble than there already is. This is because whoever reads the letter rethinks their situation and eventually that is the only thought on their mind, causing them to act out. Specifically continue with the same behaviour but, exaggerating it. An example of this in the Short Story “The Possibility of evil” is when Miss Strangeworth sent a letter in the past to the parents of a young girl in the town named Linda Stewart about possible nefarious behaviour hidden in the area “Linda Stewart’s parents would never have been aware of possible evil lurking nearby if Miss Strangeworth had not sent them a letter”. Due to this letter Linda Stewart has been crying constantly! And in account of that her Father won’t let another character who seems very close to her named Dave -the Harris

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