Julie's Essay

Julie Philippe
Mr. H. Salsich
English 9
November 4th, 2008

A Second Look: An Essay on the Advantages of Re-reading
- an essay about Katherine Mansfield’ “Garden Party”

We often think as rereading a story as an unnecessary waste of time. In reality, rereading the story gave me the opportunity to find new words and details about the Sheridans’ lives. It made the story more appealing, only by adding more value to Ms. Mansfield’s writing. Rereading, not only filled my head with different feelings and opinions, but gave me a chance to think out every detail carefully.

TS Sympathy is not one of the most important words in Mrs. Sheridans’ dictionary. SD Back in the days, it seemed like the wealthy and the poor were very different people and everything mattered, even “the very smoke coming out of [the] chimneys was poverty stricken” (Mansfield, 9). CM The rich seemed more judgmental towards the less fortunate people that lived across the street. CM “Little rags and sheds of smoke, so unlike the great silvery plumes that uncurled from the Sheridans’ chimney (Mansfield, 9); what we might think as disrespectful to say in our world today. SD When Laura Sheridan learns that Mr. Scott has died, she wonders if the party should still take place. CM Her instincts tell her it would be wrong to have a party “with a man dead just outside [their] door” (Mansfield, 9). CM When she tries to talk her ignorant mother out of having the party, her mother simply changes the conversation about how pretty Laura was with her new hat. SD After the party ended, Laura went to visit the poor widow and it seemed to her that “kisses, voices, tinkling spoons, laughter, the smell of crushed grass were somehow insider her” (Mansfield, 14). CM Laura wondered if she had done the right thing by coming to Mrs. Scott’s house and all those feelings were bundled up inside her. CM She did not know what to feel, or what to say, when she saw the widow’s face “puffed up, red, with swollen eyes, and swollen lips”. CS “isn’t life-”, “but what life is [we] can’t explain”.

At first, this story was just an ordinary story, maybe even a little boring. Laura seems like an ordinary person, that laughs, cries, and feels bad when something bad happens to others. (ACTION) Mrs. Sheridan seems just an ordinary mother that cooks, cleans, and organizes big parties. After rereading the story, the once sweet and caring mother becomes nothing, but an egocentric, coldhearted person that only cares about her world. Being rich shouldn’t make a difference from being poor, the only thing that matters is our kindness and our warm hearts towards others.