The Stone Angel Essay Questions

Compare and contrast the characters of Hagar's two major antagonists: Jason Currie and Bram Shipley.

Jason and Bram are both men who have grown up in Manawaka. They are each stubborn in their own ways, and neither of them can be easily pressured into changing his mind. Both love Hagar a great deal, yet they have trouble showing it. Hagar is estranged from both of them: disowned by her father and separated from Bram after moving to the coast. Both men have dealt with the loss of a wife and are somewhat estranged from their own nurturing qualities, finding it difficult to show affection.

The differences between the two men are more prominent. Jason Currie is a successful, self-made merchant with a strong work ethic. He is critical of his children and insists on the best for them, especially for Hagar. He has high standards and can often be punitive when they are not met. Bram, on the other hand, is rather apathetic towards his children, having very low standards for himself, others, and even the way his house is kept. He does not educate himself or attempt to speak well or indulge in social niceties. He works only enough to take care of his own needs and, unlike Jason, does not much consider the future of his family.

Although Hagar chose her husband as a rebellion against her father's controlling ways, she discovers that life with the coarse Bram is far from ideal either. Both men end up showing Hagar how lasting families cannot be formed if there is not some sort of genuine connection where people can hold the other in respect and love.

Is Hagar a reliable narrator? Use examples from the book to support your argument.

Hagar is a rather unreliable narrator. She jumps to conclusions about other people's reasoning and motives that are skewed by her own victim mentality, such as when she misconstrues her father's desire to groom her as his successor as a desire to manipulate and control her. Her thoughts and opinions of others, such as Doris, are uniformly negative instead of presenting a rounded version of the facts that takes into account Doris's ongoing commitment to taking care of her.

Hagar makes decisions that the reader knows objectively are wrong and short-sighted. She marries Bram Shipley—a man who has many good qualities, yet whose flaws Hagar cannot tolerate and does not have the wherewithal to change. She fails to see that her attempts to control her younger son, John, drive him away from her. She also fails to understand that the way other people treat her is in part a consequence of her constant verbal undermining and arrogant attitude. Even the way she does not recognize her own face in the mirror is demonstrative of how out-of-touch she is with reality.

The narrative style—in which Hagar alternates between the present and the past in a spontaneous fashion—also can suggest a certain confusion in distinguishing the past from present. In her weaker moments, she even believes certain deceased relatives to be alive, such as when she thinks Murray is her son John.

What literary technique does Margaret Laurence use to flesh out Hagar's character? Why does it work?

Margaret Laurance uses an episodic structure featuring frequent flashbacks into Hagar's memory. Instead of using the past tense to describe Hagar's childhood, she uses the present tense for scenes like the one in which Jason teaches Hagar her liquid measures. This gives an immediacy to the scene and allows extremely vivid, multi-sensory descriptions.

The entire novel is written in the first-person singular point of view. For this reason, all that can be presented is what Hagar knows or experiences. Allowing Hagar to relive past life experiences in the present tense lets the author contrast the woman Hagar is now with the woman she was early in her marriage or in middle age. This provides the objectivity and necessary perspective to allow the reader to understand and deduce things without relying solely on the explanation offered by Hagar's narrative voice.

Explain the narrative significance of eyes and vision in this novel.

The stone angel introduced at the beginning of the book is a large but crude carving with which Hagar identifies. The statue does not have eyes, and their absence is a metaphor for Hagar's lack of self-knowledge or clear perception. Near the end of the novel, Hagar's literal eyesight is fading, but as she loses her ability to see things physically, she becomes, like the Gloucester character in Shakespeare's King Lear, more aware of the truth.

Hagar is also very concerned with appearances. Even as a young child, she recalls walking about dressed expensively and cleanly. She fancies herself better than other girls in the town because her father's wealth allows her to dress better. As an elderly woman, she still wears corsets and garments to present herself in the best possible way. She resents the fact that the medical personnel examining her can see her aged, vein-lined body and her pubic hair. Yet she seldom looks at herself in the mirror. After Lottie's daughter refers to her as "the egg-woman," Hagar is moved to look at her own reflection and is shocked by what she perceives as ugliness.

Hagar's pride is what gives her such a strong self-image and belief in her own superiority. But it is this same pride makes her look at herself objectively.

Does Hagar change at all throughout the novel? If so, how? If not, why might that be the case?

Hagar's consistent and tragic pride is the centerpiece of the novel, imparting the lesson of how life becomes stagnant when one refuses to change their negative behaviors. We see how Hagar's condescending attitude throughout her life has only brought her loneliness. In the present day of the novel, Hagar's belittling behavior towards her daughter-in-law, Doris, as well as the medical staff demonstrates that she has not entirely relinquished her sense of superiority in her old age.

Yet in the last couple of chapters of the novel, the reader does begin to see a slight internal shift in this anti-heroine. After Hagar is found in the cannery and taken to the hospital, it is as if she has agreed to surrender the imaginary control she has exerted throughout her life. Realizing she is sick and close to death, there is no reason to wear the same old mask of pride. Finally, she acknowledges her own vulnerability, and in this humbled state, she is finally able to form a couple of genuine, albeit brief connections, with fellow patients in the hospital, such as Elva and Sandra. Through these relationships, Hagar is able to see how harshly judging others only makes one more alone.