relationship that has developed between Phillip and his wife. The roots of this dysfunctionality lie in the internal conflict of both Phillip and Mrs. Bentley as they try to come to grips with the shattered dreams and goals of their youth and the hypocrisy of their lives as they live with the conscious choices that they have made previously.

As a young man, Phillip had a dream of becoming an artist. That dream was replaced by his becoming a minister. Mrs. Bentley's ambition of becoming a pianist,

was replaced by becoming the wife of a minister. Both of these characters have buried the dreams of their youth in favor of the surety and stability that a regular wage offers.

Mrs. Bentley, as the narrator, chronicles their everyday life in a small town with a touch of cynicism and regret with the realization that she will always be a small town minister's wife.

The hypocrisy and shabby clothes and small town social round -

hopeless kind. These little towns threaten to be the scaf-

She seems to blame herself for the difficulties that they are experiencing in the marriage.

it immune to all other worlds.(23)

As can be seen by the evidence presented above, the Bentleys conscious decisions are the

Phillip himself says that "if a man's the victim of circumstances he deserves to be."

Although Phillip's passion for art remains, he keeps it hidden from public view. In a way his drawing is a reminder of his failure and of the hypocrisy of his life.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Phillip Bentley, Roman Catholic, Paul Kirby, Sinclair Ross's, everyday life, minister's wife, conscious decisions, lack manual dexterity, , phillip's lack manual, lack manual, manual dexterity, phillip wife, events overtake, replaced becoming, hypocrisy lives, life town,
Approximate Word count = 1260
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)