Memoirs of a Midget · Question
How does Memoirs of a Midget develop the theme of Performance and Being on Show?
Answer
Memoirs of a Midget by Walter de la Mare develops Performance and Being on Show across the chapters the companion marks for this theme.
The narrator is repeatedly put on display, from Mrs. Monnerie's salon to the circus, and reflects on how all people are 'on show' in society, questioning the line between authentic self and public spectacle.
Characters at Beechwood are constantly performing their social roles, with the narrator observing the theatricality of their lives.
Fanny is described as theatrical, watching herself in mirrors and observing her effects on others, and the narrator notes her 'serene, theatrical' seriousness.
Fanny's mockery of the concert performers and her own performative behavior during the evening.
Evidence in the book
- Beechwood
Characters at Beechwood are constantly performing their social roles, with the narrator observing the theatricality of their lives.
- XIV
Fanny is described as theatrical, watching herself in mirrors and observing her effects on others, and the narrator notes her 'serene, theatrical' seriousness.
- XV
Fanny's mockery of the concert performers and her own performative behavior during the evening.
- XVI
The narrator's public outing turns into a spectacle, with a crowd pursuing her as if she were a curiosity or a criminal.
- XIX
The narrator feels like a spectacle, especially when pressured to recite poetry, and Lady Pollacke enjoys the attention drawn to them.
- XXIV
The narrator is the center of attention, reciting a poem and being scrutinized by the company, highlighting the theme of being on display.
- London
London is depicted as a stage where individuals adopt roles and masks, mirroring the narrator's own sense of performing a part in an unfamiliar environment.
- XXXIV
Miss M. is constantly on display, whether in the garden, at the theatre, or during private views. She is dressed to look like a child, and her responses are treated as curiosities by Mrs. Monnerie.
