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Adela Strangeworth Character Analysis

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Of Roses and Thorns A rose may look harmless from far away, but no one seems to remember that it has harmful thorns. In Shirley Jackson’s The Possibility of Evil, Adela Strangeworth appears like a normal old lady at first; however, under all her kind words are malevolence. She anonymously writes ghastly letters to the people in her neighborhood, and watches them suffer as entertainment. Furthermore, she believes that she is getting rid of the evil in her neighborhood; yet in reality, she is the one causing it. Undoubtedly, Adela Strangeworth is a vicious, arrogant and manipulative individual who is able to deceive her entire community, so that she can change it into her perfect world. Viciousness is a trait that most villains possess, and …show more content…

Strangeworth’s manipulative ability allows her to deceive others into thinking that she has the most innocent and caring intentions, which allows her to get away with all her foul letter writing. Manipulation is the ability to change the thinking of others. For example, Miss. Strangeworth always “[stops] every minute or so to say good morning to someone or to ask after someone’s health” [Jackson, 161]. She appears like a wonderful lady who cares about everyone’s well being. In reality, it is just a disguise. Indeed, she manipulates people through pretending to care about them, so she can control their thinking to satisfy her idea of a perfect town. Another example of Miss. Strangeworth’s manipulation is when she reassures Helen Crane that her infant daughter is perfectly normal: “Nonsense… All babies are different. Some of them develop much more quickly than others” [Jackson, 163]. Miss. Strangeworth manipulates Helen Crane into believing that she thinks there is nothing wrong with her baby, but Miss. Strangeworth actually thinks Helen’s baby is “AN IDIOT CHILD” [Jackson, 165]. By manipulating her community, Miss. Strangeworth is able to befriend the people as she slowly changes them to fit her standards of

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The sudden change in Kate’s health raises suspicion from Abagail Wescot; leaving her to believe that Kate was simply faking her symptoms. Though Abagail had reason to believe Kate was simply putting on a show she then worries as concern from Daniel Wescot raises attention. Despite the conflictions the Wescots felt into determining whether or not Kate was simply duping them or was genuinely experiencing the bewitchment their daughter had once experienced; both Daniel and Abagail found it suitable to seek any advice or opinions from neighbors determining the issues going on with Kate. When seeking medical advice from the local midwife Goody Bates, she and the wescots were open to believe that Kate’s fits could’ve been caused naturally. As stated “Goody Bates saw no reason to ignore the possibility of a natural explanation” (GodBeer, pg.17).

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If I could choose a character as my friend from the book Bifocal by Deborah Ellis and Eric Walters, it would be Zana Badawa. She is a very strong-minded individual who will do anything for her religion. Moreover, I adore the way Zana stands up for her beliefs and won't let anyone tell her otherwise. Furthermore, one might get annoyed by her going though many changes, but I admire that. Her phrases show that she is confused, which makes her more relatable and easier to connect with.

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Miss Strangeworth “Never concerned herself with facts” and normally would spread rumors instead of actually informing others about ligament problems in the town (Possibility of Evil 252). Miss Strangeworth’s flaws are not just a difference, they stem from something inside of her that chooses to do harm. She could choose to be kind but instead she continues to hurt others with her letters. The concept of imperfection is illustrated in these stories in different way. The flaws could be out of the character’s control like in Pleasantville or a deliberate choice to hurt others like in Possibility of Evil.

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For most people, the words evil and harsh are not the typical traits used to describe an elderly woman. However, in the short story “The Possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, the 71 year old character Miss Adela Strangeworth, has a dark predatory nature hiding behind her highly respectable and sweet exterior. She preys upon her peers by misleading them into thinking everything is fine, only to subsequently tear them down. She accomplishes this by concealing her cruel, deceitful and perfectionist personality by maintaining an honourable reputation within her town. Miss Strangeworth shows no mercy when she anonymously reveals secrets about the family and lives of people in her community.

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This quote also gives you an idea of how Miss Strangeworth enjoyed gossip or talking about someone behind their back. Miss Strangeworth was writing letters to “The town where she lived had to be kept clean and sweet” it's ironic how she could say this when in reality she was doing all the evil of the town. The way Miss

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781 Words | 4 Pages

She’s judgmental and got exactly what she had coming for her; She’s the POV character from Shirley Jackson’s “The Possibility of Evil”. Third-person single vision is displayed through a narrator who is not a part of the story, and the main character, or the POV character, is the only view the reader can see; therefore, the character becomes more developed and the reader becomes more interested. Jackson chose third-person single vision POV for “The Possibility of Evil” because being in the head of only one character causes readers to have a closer connection with the character, all while maintaining suspense. When an author writes in third-person single vision, the reader gets an intimate look into the mind of the POV character, which works especially well when the POV character has a unique and different view than most. As some people believe, switching to omniscient is the ideal POV because the view of others needs to display how Miss Strangeworth’s letter fell out of the mailbox; however, since the author only switches once, third-person single vision is still the better option as it is implemented more throughout the story.

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Another way the author shows contrast between good and evil within Miss Strangeworth is portraying her as someone who is meticulous when the author writes “Miss Strangeworth’s usual stationary was heavy and cream-coloured with “Strangeworth House” engraved across the

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Even though the above diagnostic criteria is for the twenty-first century we can see clearly that Susanna Kayson, even based on today’s standards, still meets the criteria. Under Criteria 1 – Susana feels abandoned by her parents, she was used as an attraction at her father’s birthday party but not cared for. She was dropped at a family friend’s house who was a former psychiatrist and had her belongings dropped off by her mother who wouldn’t so much as speak to her before she was sent off to a mental institute. The parent’s admit during the session at the hospital that they showed very little concern for her by dragging her across the country strapped to a board because they didn’t want to miss out on a vacation. In the movie Susanna and Lisa become great friends, when Lisa does not return to the ward after the meeting with

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These letters were not necessarily true, but they were assumptions of possible evil. 4.Is Miss Strangeworth evil? In a sense I do feel like Miss Strangeworth is evil, although that was not her intent with the letters.

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To give one example of manipulation, Flannery O'Connor, Georgia State author of "A Good Man Is Hard to Find", writes that "You wouldn't shoot a lady, would you?"(421). The grandmother is trying to make the misfit vulnerable, even though he has already killed everyone but her. She's begging the misfit for her life. Every one of those people would still be alive if it was not for the grandmother. She did not have much hope left anyways for her life because she annoyed the misfit with her ugly and selfish ways.

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The best understanding of the short story “A Possibility of Evil” comes from trusting the characteristics of the literary movement of Southern Gothicism. Southern Gothicism focuses on the american south as a result of the civil war. It is believed that Southern Gothicism exposes the problems of society through complex characters who are often damaged or even delusional. This theme of exposing society through a complex character is very consistent with that of Miss Strangeworth, the old lady who writes anonymous letters to other citizens of her small town. The letters she writes often hint to the problems in her town, Line 138 on Page 4 states that “...evil existed unchecked in the world, it was Miss Strangeworth’s duty to keep her town alert to it”

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“Miss Strangeworth is a familiar fixture in a small town where everyone knows everyone else. Little do the townsfolk suspect, though, that the dignified old woman leads another, secret life…”. A secret life can be evil or good, in Miss Strangeworth’s case it is suitable, but do others appreciate this secret life. In The Possibility of Evil Shirley Jackson illustrates inner thinking, revealing action, and symbolism to show how Miss Strangeworth tends the people like her roses, but truly state's them evil.

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645 Words | 3 Pages

“ How old is her highness now?”” (Jackson, 21) Miss Strangeworth is giving off a hint of rudeness while talking to Helen Crane. Later in the story Miss Strangeworth writes a letter to Helen saying that she had an “idiot child”. Miss Strangeworth carefully watched what she said in person, but behind the letters she says

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Her attitude also wasn’t desirable in parties, in which she spoke very loudy, and kept on laughing. She also made many compliments about Mr.Bingley’s furniture, rather than being worried about her sick daughter. She also thought that that her daughter

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Society Through the Characters in Evelina Evelina is a novel written by Fanny Burney. The novel, written in the epistolary format, tells the story of Evelina, a young girl, being thrust into London society after living in a very small town with Mr. Villars, who took her in. When Evelina is thrust into this foreign society she immediately makes multiple faux pas that form as a background for much of the novel’s plot. In fact, societal views as a whole are a major theme of this novel. This novel looks at not only society as a whole, but the way different people act in this society, whether that be in a negatively or positively.

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