"Miss Brill" ~by Katherine Mansfield

(#4)
Miss Brill's observations about the people she encounters reveal a few different things about her. She enjoys spending her days in the park watching other people live their lives and listening to their conversations. This could show that she is lonely; we never learn anything about her family, so it appears that she does not live with anyone or talk to anyone very often. She sees an "ermine toque" who's actions Miss Brill misinterprets and begins to feel sorry for. She thinks of everyone and everything in the park as part of a play. Whenever she sees people pass or hears their conversations she thinks it is all part of a play which she too is a part of. She goes to the park everyday at the same time and just watches her surroundings. In the end, the boy's comment brings her to a realization. Miss Brill overhears him saying, "Buy why? Because of that stupid old thing at the end there? Why does she come here at all - who wants her? Why doesn't she keep her silly old mug at home?" (page 196) The observations made by Miss Brill reveal her naivety. She is naive about the world around her and what actually goes on in everyday life.