Katherine Mansfield's use of the third person, limited omniscient point of view

in "Miss Brill" has the effect of letting the reader see the contrast between Miss

Brill's idea of her role in life and the reality of the small part she truly plays in

world around her. In one short Sunday afternoon, the main character's view of

herself changes dramatically different changes. Until the end, the reader does not

realize the view is like a mirror at a carnival, clear on the outside edges and

distorted in the center. Mansfield's use of the story's point of view causes her

readers to look inside themselves to see if they also view life as Miss Brill does:

as they wish it to be, not as it is. In the beginning, Miss Brill sees herself as an

observer of life, somehow separate, but yet an integral part of life. From the

first sentence, "Although it was so brilliantly fine--the blue sky powdered with

gold and great spots of light like white wine splashed over the Jardins

Publiques"(49), the reader is made aware of her wonderfully vivid imagination.

She seems to notice everything.

was a part of the performance after all."(51) This sentence begins the transition

end there?" " Why does she come here at all-who wants her? Why doesn't she

herself going "into the little dark room-her room like a cupboard"(52) and this

one has to have a great deal of sympathy and maybe even some empathy for Miss

enough to motivate her to change or is it to late? The questions come to the

begin to wonder about her grasp on reality. She believes that she is an "actress",

world and not apart from it, so we see her view shift to include herself. Now we

gardens. The catalyst for this transition comes from the overheard conversation

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1011
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)