Childhood is supposed to shape a child’s life into something fantastic, but this isn’t always the case. In “The Doll’s House,” the Kelvey sisters, Lil and Else and the Burnell sisters, Isabel, Lottie, and Kezia are juxtaposed to show their conflicting positions in the social rankings. The Burnells, due to their higher rank, brag to the schoolgirls about the beautiful doll house they had received as a gift. While in their boastful conversation, they leave out the Kelveys, a low class pair of sisters. Although forbidden to make contact with them, Kezia invites the sisters to view the magnificent doll house, thus breaking down the social barrier between them. Katherine Mansfield’s “The Doll’s House” portrays a vivid symbolic approach to the lamp
…show more content…
Kezia has not conformed to the ideals of her class conscious family. This is apparent in her dialogue with her …show more content…
Due to the fact that the Kelveys were of lower class, “they [the schoolgirls] walk past the Kelveys with their heads in the air as they set the fashion in all matters of behaviours… even teachers has a special voice for them” (Mansfield 3). Mansfield 's tone of disgust is apparent when people are treated differently due to their lack of wealth. The literary critic, George Hubbell, comments that “those who have fallen into the habit of looking upon the child’s world as a mistake, to be corrected by experience and education, need to lean how many solid values of life we adults are missing” (Hubbell 2). Mansfield wants us to view this story through a naïve child’s point of view to show the lack of bias in the child about class distinction. Also, the author uses the relationship between parents and children to convey the bigger theme. Mansfield shows this when children learn bias from their parents; Emmie whispers to her friends that Lil Kelvey is going to be a servant to degrade Lil. Then, “[she] swallowed in a very meaning way and nodded to Isabel as she’d seen her mother do on occasion” (Mansfield 5). All throughout this short story Mansfield uses cumulative purposes to convey her message that class distinctions need to be
Kezia has not conformed to the ideals of her class conscious family. This is apparent in her dialogue with her …show more content…
Due to the fact that the Kelveys were of lower class, “they [the schoolgirls] walk past the Kelveys with their heads in the air as they set the fashion in all matters of behaviours… even teachers has a special voice for them” (Mansfield 3). Mansfield 's tone of disgust is apparent when people are treated differently due to their lack of wealth. The literary critic, George Hubbell, comments that “those who have fallen into the habit of looking upon the child’s world as a mistake, to be corrected by experience and education, need to lean how many solid values of life we adults are missing” (Hubbell 2). Mansfield wants us to view this story through a naïve child’s point of view to show the lack of bias in the child about class distinction. Also, the author uses the relationship between parents and children to convey the bigger theme. Mansfield shows this when children learn bias from their parents; Emmie whispers to her friends that Lil Kelvey is going to be a servant to degrade Lil. Then, “[she] swallowed in a very meaning way and nodded to Isabel as she’d seen her mother do on occasion” (Mansfield 5). All throughout this short story Mansfield uses cumulative purposes to convey her message that class distinctions need to be