Category: The Garden Party

Back in 1957, Warren S. Walker’s study has already provoked a discussion about whether “The Garden Party” is a united and complete story. He claimed that “‘The Garden Party’ often leaves readers with a feeling of dissatisfaction, a vague sense that the story somehow does not realize its potential”. He then pointed out that “the difficulty” is that “the conflict has a dual nature, only part of which is resolved effectively”, and as to the class question raised in the story, “no hint of any answer… is to be found in the conclusion”. Walker’s view was against Robert Murray Davis who turned to “examine the symbols and images of the story and their place in the basic pattern”. By this means, Davis claimed that readers “can place the conflict within Laura alone” and “restore

Laura to her proper place as a character with whom the reader sympathizes” (ibid), thus he can perceive the diversity and unity in this story. These two studies confirm the debatable nature and the diversity in the themes of this story and the most obvious theme in this story is the class issue and Laura’s change. Laura the main character is a young lady from an upper-middle class family, who, at a garden party, faces directly the reality of the social class through the death of the poor carter. Text’s unclear attitude towards class issues leads researchers to doubt whether a conclusive solution can be found in the narration of this story.

Studies have different attitudes towards this question. Wang Ye analyzes the situation in which Laura is suffering the marginalization and split of subjects, and confirms that the possible way to an ideal world is to throw away the middle-class prejudice and show love to surpass the differences between the classes. However, this opinion is not supported by William Atkinson, who mentions “Laura’s middle-class tendency to aestheticize the unfamiliar and thereby neutralize it”, and thus he argues that “Laura and the readers are thrust back into a fallen world characterized by hierarchy and apprehended in terms of formal order” Sebnem Kaya also shows a pessimistic attitude toward Laura’s future by scrutinizing Sheridan family’s “conventional but false education” on Laura, which Laura cannot get rid of and keeps Laura from seeing the truth in the outside world.

What’s worse, the unprepared touch with social reality may cause Laura to change into “an uncertain, inconsistent and vulnerable adult”.

Back to 1957, Warren S. Walker’s study has already provoked a dialogue about whether or not or no longer or now not “The Garden Party” is a united and whole story. He claimed that “‘The Garden Party’ typically leaves readers with a feeling of dissatisfaction, a vague experience that the story by using some potential does now no longer apprehend its potential”.

He then pointed out that “the difficulty” is that “the combat has a twin nature, completely part of which is resolved effectively” , and as to the type query raised in the story, “no hint of any answer… is to be decided in the conclusion”. Walker’s view used to be in the route of by using way of ability of Robert Murray Davis who grew to emerge to “examine the symbols and pics of the story and their vicinity in the easy pattern”.

By this means, Davis claimed that readers “can neighborhood the battle inside Laura alone” and “restore Laura to her appropriate neighborhood as a persona with whom the reader sympathizes” (ibid), as the end result he can pick out the vary and team spirit in this story. These two searches for verify the debatable nature and they vary in the things of this story and the most obvious theme in this story is the category bother and Laura’s change. Laura the important personality is a young woman from an upper-middle kind family, who, in a backyard party, faces straight away the reality of the social classification by way of the dying of the lousy carter.

Text’s dubious mindset toward category troubles leads researchers to doubt whether or not or now not a conclusive reply can be decided in the narration of this story. Studies have high-quality attitudes in the course of this question. Wang Ye analyzes the state of affairs in which Laura is suffering the marginalization and spoil up of the subject, and confirms that the doable way to a best world is to throw away the middle-class prejudice and exhibit love to surpass the editions between the classes. However, this opinion is no longer supported by William Atkinson, who mentions “Laura’s middle-class tendency to aestheticize the unfamiliar and thereby neutralize it”, and for that purpose, he argues that “Laura and the readers are thrust again into a fallen world characterized by way of the use of hierarchy and apprehended in phrases of formal order” Sebnem Kaya also suggests a pessimistic mind-set toward Laura’s future with the aid of the use of the capability of scrutinizing Sheridan family’s “conventional then again false education” on Laura, which Laura cannot get rid of and continues Laura from seeing the actuality in the outside world. What’s worse, the unprepared contact with the social fact would maybe also reason Laura to alternate into “an uncertain, inconsistent and susceptible adult” .

Authors choose different narrative perspectives when they are creating stories, and different perspectives lead to different effect. After analysis, it is found that Katherine Mansfield uses focalization and covert progression in her story “The Garden Party”. These two perspectives work on different levels of this story but they are strongly correlative.

When talking about the ways of focalization, we want to know whether the narrator knows more than the character. The narrator can give all the information in a story, and he can also tell only what a single character has known. In this way, the narrator controls what readers can see and feel to let readers pay attention to some unique manners or habits of a character. When we analyze covert progression, we

will find it is a perspective hiding behind the normal plot development, attracting people’s attention by connecting the traits that the narrator has focalized, and having a hidden power of extending or overturning the plot development. Consequently, the two kinds of perspectives are related as dots and lines, and they both work effectively in “The Garden Party”. Nonfocalization and Internal Focalization in the Story

Nonfocalization is a narrative perspective in which the narrator knows everything in the story and does not use certain character’s perspective when in narration. In this sense, the narrator is as if holding a camera, catching every meaningful scene and every action of every character, and projecting them out. Meanwhile, the audiences (readers) catch the outside images that the narrator conveys, and try to figure

out what is the meaning of these images. By using nonfocalization, Mansfield offers “The Garden Party” with an equal observation and a detailed description to all the things and characters in this story. As a result, we can find the story is supported by clear environment and culture background, and vitalized by authentic actions and mental activities which successfully reveal the personalities of the characters.

The very beginning of this story is a typical example of using nonfocalization to show us the environmental background.

Windless, warm, the sky without a cloud. Only the blue was veiled with a haze of light gold, as it is sometimes in early summer. The gardener had been up since dawn, mowing the lawns and sweeping them, until the grass and the dark flat rosettes where the daisy plants had been seemed to shine. As for the roses, you could not help feeling they understood that roses are the only flowers that impress people at garden-parties; the only flowers that everybody is certain of knowing (Mansfield, 2018, p. 216).

This is the ambient condition where an upper-middle class garden party is going to be held. The narrator’s eyes are staring at the overall scene of the garden. Sky, gardener, haze, rosettes and roses are all contributing to the peaceful atmosphere in this garden, as if God has chosen this day to be the exact day of holding a garden party. All the descriptions in this part become the best annotations for the word “ideal”, revealing the environment background of this garden party.

Another example is a scene of the block where the lower classes live. “The lane began, smoky and dark”(Mansfield, 2018, p. 230). This sentence sets the tone of this whole place: unpleasant and depressed. The narrator gives the sketches of women, men and children in this place with precise descriptions, for example, women “hurried by”, men “hung over” and children “played in the doorway”