The Deranged Woman on the Bench

In Miss Brill by Katherine Mansfield, we learn about the protagonist through indirect characterization. She listens in on the conversations of others around her, without knowing that most other people seem to ignore her. It isn't until the phrase, "went into the little dark room--her room like a cupboard," (Mansfield, 186) that we understand who she really is. That phrase was repeated earlier in the text and it referenced how there were other people always on the benches. They seemed funny and odd. They were silent and nearly all old. She seems to be describing herself. She is that person that is funny and odd and always seems to be on the bench. Furthermore, she is mentally insane. At one point in the story, she talks to herself about being an actress. She places her feelings and characteristics onto others. At the end, she believes that that she hears crying. From logical reasoning, we know that Miss Brill is actually crying. Miss Brill is a deranged, old woman who is alienated from society.