In “The Possibility of Evil" by Shirley Jackson‚ Ms. Strangeworth stops her town from becoming evil by writing anonymous letters. The overall theme of the story is everything is not what it seems. Jackson utilizes the story to show how a person may not seem like the person you thought they were. Ms. Strangeworth appears to be a sweet old lady‚ but is she really? Throughout the story her true colors begin to reveal. Jackson develops this central idea through the use of irony. Through all three types
Premium Woman Pregnancy Gender
A Possibility of Evil Character Sketch – Adela Strangeworth 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
Premium Rose
Tien Hanh Lai Woodard English 1 7/9/14 "The Possibility of Evil" Three Themes Essay The short story “The Possibility of Evil‚” written by Shirley Jackson‚ is about an old lady named Miss Strangeworth‚ who lives in a small and sweet town in all her long life. Miss Strangeworth seems to be a kind and friendly but also a weird and wicked person who always thinks that everyone is evil and lustful. She gives herself the responsibility to watch and to send people secret letters to point out their unknown mistakes
Premium English-language films Short story Fiction
This is shown through the author’s use of irony‚ symbolism‚ and characterization. Irony was used in the story to show how looks can be deceiving because one’s outside appearance and one’s authentic self can be two very different things. Miss Strangeworth claims that she believes she is doing the right thing‚ when in reality she is creating the evil that she is trying to avoid. She is seen as a harmless‚ old lady but in actuality is the evil. The story mentions Miss Strangeworth’s possessions‚ “with
Premium Jane Austen Short story Woman
Both Ms. Strangeworth from “The Possibility of Evil” and Captain Torres from “Lather and Nothing Else” represent the villain archetype; however‚ Miss Strangeworth better represents it because she enjoys the evil she causes‚ whereas Captain Torres does not. First of all‚ the roles of the characters are shown as villains throughout both of the stories. In the case of Miss Strangeworth‚ it is when she sends her malicious messages to the town without regard for their feelings (Jackson 5). Meanwhile‚
Premium Macbeth Duncan I of Scotland Three Witches
images of evil. Both Emily Grierson and Adela Strangeworth are women who share similar characteristics yet pose completely different motives. Their stories take place in close-knit towns‚ which play essential roles in their motives for evil. Emily Grierson and Adela Strangeworth demonstrate similarities and differences that develop their actions‚ revealing the possibility of evil within them. Both towns that Emily Grierson and Adela Strangeworth exist in are important settings for their actions
Premium William Faulkner
The woman‚ Miss Strangeworth‚ is narrated as she goes through her normal Tuesday routine stopping to chat with the other locals. Upon doing so‚ she notices the solemn looks on some and speculates to herself about why the town has to consume itself with the possibility of evil. In an attempt to clean up the town‚ she writes several horrific letters to those who looked distraught‚ implying that maybe her letters are what upset the townspeople in the first place. After Miss Strangeworth dropped one of
Premium Fiction Character English-language films
In your personal opinion‚ is Adela Strangeworth inherently evil or was evil something that was socially constructed within her as a person? Explain. In the short story “The Possibility of Evil‚” Adela Strangeworth is made out to be a sweet innocent old lady living a perfect life. Everyone in her town seems to think that Adela is just some old lady who is really friendly and who cares for her neighbors. In reality‚ she walks around town acting like she is perfect and then goes home and writes
Premium Expectation Expected value Judge
the respect that Miss Adela Strangeworth gave to the town and her nice as well as caring behavior towards the people in the town. Primarily‚ the setting of the story is calm and peaceful like a decent society. This can be proved by the quotation‚ " Miss Strangeworth’s little town looked washed and bright". This analyzes that in a little town everything seems to be perfect and has fresh as well as clear surrounding with no chance of evil. Secondly‚ Miss Strangeworth shows respect to her town the
Premium Feeling Clear Good and evil
Evil”‚ is about an old woman named Miss Strangeworth. Miss Strangeworth is a sneaky lady with bad intentions. 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. For instance‚ “Miss Strangeworth lives in a little town and has forever.” Everyone in the town knows her. Mostly because she was so friendly and greeted everyone so nicely. In addition Miss Strangeworth would say‚ “And good morning to you
Premium Woman Salem witch trials The Crucible