What Is The Theme Of A Visit Of Charity By Eudora Welty

Decent Essays
In Eudora Welty’s short story, “A Visit of Charity”, an important lesson is taught. Fear can change people’s perception of life. Marian is a campfire girl that is visiting an elderly home on the outskirts of town, however, despite what Marian views it as, her visit is not a visit of charity, it is a visit of selfishness. A home for the elderly is known for being a warm and caring place, however Marian’s fear distorts her view of the lovely home and causes her to loathe every minute inside of it. Old ladies are known to be sweet and harmless, however due to Marian’s fear, the old ladies that she encounters seem to be far from that and causes Marian to grow impatient and leave as soon as possible. Marian is revealed to have many bad characteristics …show more content…
She believed that the red coat on her back was enough to prove her kindness, and did not blink twice when hiding an apple behind a shrub so that she would not need to share it with anyone else. Because of how she viewed the women in the home, she felt as though she did enough on her end to call her visit a charitable act, even after attempting to leave as soon as possible, “‘ I can’t stay but a minute - really I can’t’” (Welty 218). Although Marian believes that she is being a kind and generous campfire girl, her fear causes her to behave in a selfish manner and reveals her impudent …show more content…
The first old lady attempts her best at making a decent impression and is only showing Marian kindness, on the other hand, the second old lady is not paying much attention to the company. Even though Marian is being treated fairly and both old ladies have not shown any signs of potential harm, Marian’s uncertainty of her surrounding causes her to be on high alert and view the two old ladies in a bad light. “She had a bunchy white forehead and read eyes like a sheep” (Welty 217). Marian constantly compares the old women to animals, showing how she truly view the two. She even goes as far as to compare the two women to robbers, simply because she was afraid of the room that she was in. Marian’s fear caused her to have a bias against the two old women, who had done nothing but welcome her into their

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