The Dolls House

The Doll's House by Katherine Mansfield

Exposition

Rising Action

Aunt Beryl

Plot and Character Analysis

Elsa Kelvey

Climax

Kezia Burnell

Falling Action

Resolution

Kezia Burnell

Character traits:

• Empathetic: Kezia invites the Kelvey sisters to see the doll's house, showing compassion for their social exclusion.
• Curious: She is fascinated by the doll's house details, especially the lamp.
• Independent-minded: Kezia questions social norms and acts against them.

Evidence:

• "It doesn't matter. You can come and see our doll's house all the same. Come on. Nobody's looking" (Mansfield _).
• "The lamp's best of all" (Mansfield _).

Character type: Dynamic and Round

• Kezia develops throughout the story, challenging social norms and showing complexity in her thoughts and actions.

Falling Action

• Aunt Beryl interrupts Kezia's plan, angrily shooing away the Kelvey sisters
• The Kelvey sisters run away without protest

Exposition

The main characters are:

• The Burnell sisters: Isabel (oldest), Lottie (middle), and Kezia (youngest).
• The Kelvey sisters: Lil (older) and Else (younger).
• Aunt Beryl

The setting is New Zealand in the early 1920s2.

• The Burnells receive a beautiful doll's house as a gift.

Climax

• Kezia boldly invites the Kelvey sisters into the courtyard to see the doll's house, defying social norms and her mother's instructions
• This is the most intense moment because it challenges the established social order and represents a moment of potential change

Aunt Beryl

Character traits:

• Classist: She harshly enforces social boundaries.
• Hypocritical: Aunt Beryl criticizes the Kelveys while hiding her own socially unacceptable relationship.
• Short-tempered: She reacts angrily to Kezia's kindness towards the Kelveys.

Evidence:

• "Aunt Beryl ran forward and shooed them out as if they were chickens" (Mansfield _).
• "She couldn't bear to think of the Kelveys standing at the entrance" (Mansfield _).

Character type: Static and Flat

• Aunt Beryl maintains her prejudiced views throughout the story and is primarily defined by her classist attitudes.

Rising Action

• The Burnell girls, except Kezia, boast about the doll's house at school and invite select friends to see it
• Other children cruelly taunt and exclude the Kelvey sisters
• Kezia wants to invite the Kelvey sisters to see the doll's house, unlike her family and peers

Resolution

• Else Kelvey says, "I seen the lamp" (Mansfield 3).
• The Kelvey sisters feel content as they rest by the drain, happy to have glimpsed the doll's house
• The lamp might symbolize hope, equality, or the potential for social change. It represents a small but significant moment of shared experience across class boundaries

Elsa Kelvey

Character traits:

• Observant: Else notices and remembers details about the doll's house.
• Shy: She rarely speaks and often hides behind her sister.
• Resilient: Else finds joy in small moments despite social rejection.

Evidence:

• "I seen the lamp" (Mansfield).
• "Else was always close behind her, holding on to her skirt" (Mansfield).

Character type: Dynamic and Round

• Else shows subtle changes in her behavior and reveals depth in her quiet observations and reactions.

Exposition

The main characters are:

• The Burnell sisters: Isabel (oldest), Lottie (middle), and Kezia (youngest). Kezia is dynamic, while Isabel and Lottie are static and flat.
• The Kelvey sisters: Lil (older) and Else (younger). Else is dynamic, while Lil is static.
• Aunt Beryl: Static and flat.

The setting is New Zealand in the early 1920s2.

• The Burnells receive a beautiful doll's house as a gift..