theme of “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson is how someone seems on the outside‚ is not necessarily how they are on the inside. 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
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Amir Shaukat Mr. Haruschuk ENG 2D1-07 April 27‚ 2012 Retribution in The Possibility of Evil In society today‚ justice is served in order to attain fairness and moral equality. In Shirley Jacksons The Possibility of Evil‚ justice is served by seeking revenge‚ the main character got a taste of their own medicine and suffered for her actions. The first demonstration of justice was when Bob Crane retaliated by sending a letter to Mrs. Strangeworth stating‚ “Look out at what used to be your
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The theme of “The Landlady” and “The Possibility of Evil‚” are things are not what they seem. In “The Landlady‚” the owner of a little bed and breakfast is an old lady‚ but she’s hiding the true purpose of her bed and breakfast. She somehow knows when the person she selects is in town and she summons them into her bed and breakfast. Where she then acts all innocent and drinks tea with them. Soon readers realize that something’s not right‚ and start to notice the signs. This short story ends up with
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Must contradictory personalities get the best of us? “The Possibility of Evil”‚ a short story by Shirley Jackson focused on the odd behavior of Miss Strangeworth. Though Miss Strangeworth do not change throughout the story‚ people just don’t know how awful she is. Miss Strangeworth has written small anonyms notes filled with cruel comments about toward her towns folks throughout the story. Miss Strangeworth enjoyed writing harsh letters to her neighbors‚ showing her jealous personality towards
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Everybody has evil in them. No matter how nice‚ pleasant‚ or sweet that person is; everyone carries evil inside. Whether they show it or psychology know they are evil‚ is up to them. In the “possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson‚ Miss Strangeworth has that evil in her and it is expressed through her age‚ education‚ and personal ambition. First‚ in the physiology section the reader can learn that Miss Strangeworth acts the way she does because of her old age. In the short story‚ Miss Strangeworth
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The stories “The Lottery” and “The Possibility of Evil‚” both written by Shirley Jackson‚ can be depicted as similar as they collectively use the literary devices imagery‚ symbolism‚ and foreshadowing. Jackson is able to utilise the literary tool of imagery in both “The Lottery” and “The Possibility of Evil” to elaborate and expand on the many different aspects of her stories. At the beginning of “The Lottery‚” Shirley Jackson utilises imagery to create a clear‚ concise setting of the story. “The
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Is everyone capable of evil? Evil is described as all of the wrong doings in society‚ as well as the urge to do wrong (Romig). It is said that everyone has the ability to act in evil ways but don’t necessarily act upon it. Everyone has the capacity to commit evil acts‚ but the severity of the act and the darkness of their intent is dependent on their morals and the society they reside in. Ordinary people have the capacity to commit extraordinarily evil acts. When people are outside of their comfort
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In Shirley Jackson’s "The Possibility of Evil"‚ the title is not appropriate because of the pleasant setting of the story. This can be proved by 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
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Possibility of Evil Envy‚ greed‚ lust - all examples of "evil" things done by us all; nevertheless‚ what is evil? Can we stop it‚ and if so‚ are we obligated to? Before we speak about the obligation of the normal person to stop evil‚ we have to understand what evil is. Evil is what a person accepts it as true; this can be seen in the story inside Miss Strangeworth. She does not believe her letters create problems rather than solve them. And that in another person’s eyes‚ she can be perceived as
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Chayce Riley Kenis 1:30-2:50 David Lydic The Possibility of Evil (REVISION) Paper 2 1-19-14 English II Shirley Jackson’s “The Possibility of Evil” is a short story about a seemingly sweet little old woman‚ living in a small town with a house and prized bed of roses outside that has been in her family for three generations. The woman‚ Miss Strangeworth‚ is narrated as she goes through her normal Tuesday routine stopping to chat with the other locals. Upon
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