“The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson is a short story about an old woman that lives in a small town but has a big secret. Miss Strangeworth has stunning roses in her yard that have been passed down to her from generations; everyone in town comes to admire her roses. Even though Miss Strangeworth knows everyone and is nice to everyone, she anonymously sends letters to people. These letters contain things such as cheating, “accidental” deaths, and telling parents they aren’t fit to have children. I believe that Miss Strangeworth deserved what she got.…
letter that tells her to be aware of what used to be her roses. Throughout the story, there are…
She is portrayed as an old lady who has too much pride and wants to be in the know of every tiny piece of gossip in town. In the beginning of the story, it gives the readers the impression that she was a sweet old lady who takes much pride in her rose bush and enjoys the town gossip too much. Ms. Strangeworth comes off as prideful, intrusive and blunt. Ms. Strangeworth was portrayed as prideful throughout the story when she took so much pride in her rose bush which had been passed down to her by her family. She explained to everyone, including tourists who just pass through the town about how she inherited this magnificent rose bush and the first house ever built on Pleasant Street by her grandfather. She believed that she deserved much appreciation, honor and gratitude from the people of the small town because of her grandfather. Her when the town decided to put up a statue of Ethan Allen instead of her grandfather, she was disappointed and muttered “ but it should have been a statue of my grandfather. There wouldn’t be a town here at all if it hadn’t been for my grandfather and the lumber mill.” This shows the readers that she believed that the town was her’s and no one else’s. In the text, it claims that Ms. Strangeworth would not give out or share her flowers with anyone else because she believed that the roses belonged within her household. “.. it bothered Ms. Strangeworth to think of people wanting to carry them away, to take them into strange towns, and down strange streets.” Even when people requested for her beautiful roses for the town’s church, she would refuse. “When the new minister came, and the ladies were gathering flowers to decorate the church, Miss Strangeworth sent over a great basket of gladioli.” This tells us that she is very protective of her roses and would not even spare a…
People aren’t all they appear to be. Shirley Jackson’s story, “The Possibility of Evil,” is told from the perspective of a 71-year old lady named Adela Strangeworth. Miss Strangeworth is an old woman who has lived in this town all her life. Miss Strangeworth’s character can be analyzed by considering what she does, what the narrator says about her, and how other characters interact with her.…
“It would have been shameful for their parents to prevent their children to mock Miss Strangeworth of Pleasant Street.” (pg. 7) The last two quotes show that Miss Strangeworth has the respects from everyone in the community. But Miss Strangeworth is also self central, and she is full of self righteousness. She believed that it is her duty to keep the town peaceful and safe. “She sometimes found herself thinking that the town belongs to her.” (pg. 1) Miss Strangeworth thinks she owns the town because her grandfather built the first house on Pleasant street. She feels that she owns the town, and it is hers to keep. She admitted to herself, “There wouldn’t be a town here if it hadn’t been for my grandfather.” (pg. 1) Her family history had influenced her, and she thinks that she is the cheif and the “best”. “There…
In “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, Mrs. Strangeworth is showing the attempt of secretism. when Mrs. strangeworth is writing her anonymous letters to the people in her town, she address them with no sign that that was her writing these letters. Another thing is that writes with a little stub of pencil, to make it look as if a child had wrote the letters. I can conclude from reading the article and summing up ideas that shows Mrs. Strangeworth shows secretism by not addressing, and trying to act as if a different…
"And I guess a man's importance in the world can be measured by the quality and number of his glories. It is a lonely thing but it relates us to the world. It is the mother of all creativeness, and it sets each man separate from all other men." (130)…
Shirley Jackson tells us about a very interesting character in the short story titled “The Possibility of Evil.” In the story Miss Strangeworth is an old lady who takes it as her duty too inform the town of evil, but one day one of her evil informing letters gets in the wrong hands and her favorite roses are cut. In this essay the character of Miss Strangeworth is described through her physical description, family, lifestyle and her hobbies.…
John Hick defined evil as “physical pain, mental suffering and moral wickedness” For Hick, the consequence of evil is suffering…
Good vs. evil is a classic theme often found in literature. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by O’Connor and “Young Goodman Brown” by Hawthorne, the authors focus on this theme to unravel their plots. O’Connor uses the grandmother and a thief, The Misfit, to compare and contrast the good and evil in people. On the other hand, Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown,” uses the main character, Young Goodman Brown, and his journey from being a respected man to being summoned by the devil. Both authors use their main characters as a comparison of what being good means, however the evil of the story is presented differently.…
“The Possibility of Evil” is a story of Miss Strangeworth’s of Pleasant Street daily routine; though, most of her day to day actions are quite simple Miss Strangeworth does take part in an atypical evening task of writing hateful letters that “dealt with the more negotiable stuff of suspicion” (Jackson 194) of her fellow neighbors. It is unveiled ,through the actions of Dave Harris, when the loose letter is delivered to the addressee ,Done Crane, Mrs. Strangeworth becomes no longer anonymous amongst her fellow neighbors. The disenfranchised neighbors of Mrs. Strangeworth exhibit their feelings of her execrable letters by destroying something that she loves the most, her prized roses. By showing their revulsion toward Mrs. Strangeworth in such an extreme shows the severe effect the letters had on the townspeople, the hate they have towards to her ,and demonstrates that the disenfranchised that they will no longer accommodates Mrs. Strangeworth by believing her accusations. Jackson shows the disenfranchised taking it upon themselves to end their disenfranchisement along with the consequences of disenfranchising…
Making bad decisions is a part of life. No one should ever choose to let bad choices rule their life because this can change an individual from good to evil. Various factors can influence an individual’s personality from good to evil. In the short story “Twins” by Eric Wright and “The Road out of Eden” by Randall Grace, the characters go from good to evil because of their actions and way of thinking. This is why people should think before they act, and the consequences of their actions.…
Macbeth, friend, don’t be lured by the siren’s call. Be neither quick nor slow to believe their words of forbidden fruit. Don’t be tricked by them so easily. Be the man you know you are, and don’t be manipulated by these witches of misery. Surely, that is all to follow if you do. Misery. Misery and the revocation of you ever being a man.…
Health care workers are notorious for not taking care of their physical and nutritional needs. To maintain health, plenty of rest, proper nutrition, and daily exercise are basic needs for a healthful balance. When any of these needs are compromised over a period of time, the personnel will not only physically, but mentally suffer also. The body requires at least 8-10 hours of sleep per night and eventually physical exhaustion will set in. The most common symptoms include insomnia (not being able to fall asleep…
Stress is people’s response to events that challenge or threaten them. Whether it is exam deadline, murders, family problems, all these events are stressors. They cause problems to our well-being. There are many ways to relieve stress naturally such as massages; it has been around for thousands of years, commonly used by the Chinese. Another stress reliever is exercise, be it running, yoga, they release endorphins into the brain which will increase your mood.…