Miss Brill

Park are peaceful places associated with joy and laughter on a bright sunny day out with the whole family. This is not necessarily the case in Katherine Mansfield’s short story, “Miss Brill.” Miss Brill is an elderly woman who enjoys the buzz and bustle of the park she visits every Sunday. It had become a ritual for her to sit on the bench and listen in on others’ conversations and making up stories about them in her head for her own amusement. Then one day she realizes that living in a fantasy is not always what it is cracked up to be. The theme of the story is that, eventually, everyone must face harsh and cruel reality. As humans, we continually grow and learn as we experience the world, regardless of age. Miss Mill is an older yet whimsical character, who believes everyone in the park on those Sundays, including herself, are actors, performing on stage as they go about their day. She listens in and gives them roles and comments on dramatic
Miss Mill meant no harm in what she was doing. It was just her way of passing this time and hanging onto that creativity. When she first leaves her house with her fur neck piece she is excited. She has taken the animal out of its old box and spiffed it up just for this day, and was proud to wear the nice piece once again. But after the encounter with the young couple, she goes home, passing by the bakery without her usual Sunday treat. When she was putting the fur back in its box, the story states, “She unclasped the necklet quickly; quickly, without looking, laid it inside. But when she put the lid on she thought she heard something crying.” In the end it was poor Miss Mill who was crying. The old fur is a representation of her. She is no longer young. She has become as old and dingy as the fur she put away without being able to look at it. Cruel reality has changed her, making her sad and stealing her whimsy from