Examples Of Miss Strangeworth In The Possibility Of Evil

In the story The Possibility of Evil by Shirley Jackson the main character miss Strangeworth shows her true backstabbing nature when writing anonymous letters to all the people in town. The story eventually reviles her dark secret of writing the letters and hiding behind the paper. Similarly cyber bullies hide behind a keyboard and type out horrible messages meant to make the receiver feel meaningless. The common pattern of indirect manipulation and controlling behaviors are observed in both modern cyber bullies and the character Miss Strangeworth in "The Possibility of Evil".

The narrator in Louise Erdrich’s The Strange People is characterized as a doe, a “lean gray witch” (i, 20) and finally, a “shadowy body.”(i, 25) Her own actions ultimately trigger this transformation, and are further emphasized through three jarring shifts within the poem. Despite portraying the narrator as prey in the beginning, she is not faultless. By placing double meanings on the word “burning,” (i, 6) it allows the self-destructive actions of the narrator to be evident. Also, by juxtaposing the cold and warmth described in the poem, the reasoning behind the doe’s self-destructive actions is explained, and ultimately paints her in a more nuanced light. Even so, her self-destructive actions highlight the consequences resulting from her attempt at self-preservation. She transforms into a “lean gray witch” to save herself, and yet it destroys her self-identity. The poem exposes the bleak yet nuanced consequences of destructive desires and self-preservation, and how even when necessary and justified, leads to the unfortunate loss of one’s identity.

In the short story “Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson used several symbols in the story to explain Ms.Strangeworth. The first symbol would be her name the word strange is in it hinting that she is a strange woman to begin with. Then she gradually shows her strangeness by telling us what she is noticing in people, that no one would ever really notice. Then it was roses that was symbolizing her as person. Roses have soft beautiful petals that distracts people from seeing the thorns that grows with the rose and causes them to put it up to later be stabbed by the thorn. The petals are Miss. Strangeworth’s appearance an old,proper, sweet lady who never think to raise her voice, but her thorns are the letters she writes to everyone anonymously.

Indeed, Miss Strangeworth may be kind when out and about but as soon as she sits down to write, a whole new side of her comes out. She is incredibly deceptive. She writes letters with

As described by the narrator, it is obvious that Miss Strangeworth had a traditional social value system. In the outset, her social value system was influenced by her family tradition.

Strangeworth is just like Vera, in that, they both lie and find it entertaining. In the story Mrs. Strangeworth is in, she writes these letters about possible evil things that others may or may not be doing. She is , in my opinion, a very old lady. She is not married and there is no indication of children. This leads me to believe that she is also very lonely. The story mentions a bridge club, but it does not say she attended, nor does it say she ever had company over. So, I believe she writes these letters for means of entertainment. Since she is not in on the fun, she writes about it and tells others what they may or may not have done wrong. In my opinion, she only wants to entertain

The Possibility Of Evil Analysis . Everyone knows this one person that is so kind and sweet in front of people but then go talk about those people behind their back . There are a lot of those people in this world but one in particular will be talked about in this essay . Miss Adela Strangeworth talks to everyone that she passes in her town , then she writes letters about them and mails them to the person she wants to address ,

Miss Strangeworth’s roses are a symbol of her pride - they have been alive for as long as the source of her pride - the town - has been. Her roses are her “pride and joy”; when they are destroyed, so is her pride. In comparison, in “The Inheritor,” the ewe is an allusion to the Golden Fleece. In the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, the Golden Fleece solves all of their problems back home - the ultimate prize for hard work and near-death experiences. When the Inheritor refuses to leave behind his prize, the one thing he has on that island - he, too, has a “pride and joy” - it shows that it is the only thing he has left. But the difference between these symbols is what happens - one is destroyed, and the other is treasured. Furthermore, both characters “own” their respective worlds at some point. Miss Strangeworth’s house is on Pleasant Street, and it is the oldest one in town. She believes that the town sprung up around it, thereby making her the centre of her universe. This is a reference to how untouchable she believes she is, ruling the town from its

Additionally, she is fairly judgemental to others. Evidence being the following quote: “Miss Strangeworth hated sloppiness.” For reference, Miss Strangeworth was speaking about a clearly distressed woman whose hair was slightly disheveled. Who could judge others so quickly without being conceited?

Miss. Strangeworth’s past. At the end of section 2, Miss Strangeworth is walking down the street; Jackson uses this as an opportunity for suspense. “Miss Chandler seemed absentminded”, “Many people seemed disturbed recently”, and “Linda had run crying down her own front walk and all the way to school” (sec 4). Now it’s not just Mrs. Harper who is off, but the whole town.

In “The Possibility of Evil,” Shirley Jackson gives us a character who seems to be the town's most respected and longest established resident, but who actually has a dark and destructive side. Her pride in the town may be the first foreshadowing clue of what she is truly like. Miss Strangeworth describes how her grandfather built the very first house on pleasant, street, and that she “.... family has lived here for better than a hundred years.”  She even admits to thinking the town …. Belonged to her (Jackson 1). This evidence is important because it shows how Miss Strangeworth feels she is different, perhaps better than other townspeople. From

In the short story, “The Possible of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, Adela Strangeworth’s actions prove that she is an intrusive person. One of the ways Miss Strangeworth shows that she is intrusive is when she asks Billy Moore why he isn’t driving around his dad’s new car. This shows that she wants to know what other people are doing and expects them to act a certain way. When she talks with Miss Chandler she thinks that she is absentminded and has her mind somewhere else, Miss Strangeworth also mentions how she hates sloppiness. This passage makes it seem like she want to have control over other people and for things to be the way she wants them. When she is at the grocer, she observes that Mr. Lewis looked worried and tired and thinks about telling

In short stories the author composes a compelling plot, with an ending that in someway either teaches the main character a lesson, or the reader themselves. Jackson acts as a master of literary devices, as she navigates the reader through intense scenes that evoke an emotional response to the experiences of the main character. In the short stories, “The Possibility of Evil” and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, she used the same three literary devices to grasp the reader’s attention from beginning to end. In “The Possibility of Evil” Miss Adela Strangeworth caused a stir by sending anonymous letters to townspeople, filled with things she suspected other people in her town of doing; she claimed that every letter was sent with the intent of

Miss Strangeworth simply does not understand that her actions

From the immature and shallow perspective of Scout, Mrs Dubose gives us the impression of being a bitter, racist, elderly woman. Although, if we were to closely examine her struggles we would discover she is extremely courageous and in need of our kindness. Mrs