The Little Girl (Katherine Mansfield) & The Selfish Giant (Oscar Wilde)
Part 1 — The Little Girl
About the Author
Katherine Mansfield (1888–1923) was a New Zealand short story writer, master of the subtle, psychological story.
The Story
Kezia and Her Father: Little KEZIA is TERRIFIED of her father. He is BIG. He has a LOUD VOICE. Every morning, he leaves for work after giving her a 'hasty kiss' — and she feels RELIEVED when he's gone.
The Fear:
- He scolds her for stuttering
- He criticises her for tearing his newspaper
- In his presence, she feels SMALL and STUPID
The Incident — The Birthday Gift: For her father's birthday, Kezia's grandmother tells her to make a PIN-CUSHION as a gift. Kezia works hard — stitching the cloth, filling it. But she needs something to FILL it with. She finds some 'small pieces of paper' and tears them up... not realising that they are her father's IMPORTANT SPEECH.
The Punishment: Her father is FURIOUS. He sends her to her room. Kezia cries into her pillow. She doesn't understand why he's so cruel.
The Turning Point — The Nightmare: One night, Kezia has a TERRIBLE NIGHTMARE. She screams. Her father comes to her room. He carries her to his own bed. She snuggles against him. She feels his HEART BEAT. She realises: 'He's not so big, after all. He's just a man. And he has a heart — just like mine.'
The Morning: She wakes up. Her father is asleep. She sees him differently now — not as a giant, scary figure, but as a TIRED, HUMAN person who works hard.
Themes
- Misunderstanding Between Parents and Children: Fear can make us MISUNDERSTAND the people who love us.
- Empathy and Connection: When we SEE the other person as HUMAN — afraid, tired, vulnerable — love grows.
- A Father's Unspoken Love: The father is not cruel. He just doesn't know how to SHOW his love.
Part 2 — The Selfish Giant
About the Author
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) was an Irish poet and playwright, famous for his wit and for beautiful, moral fairy tales.
The Story
The Garden: Every afternoon, children played in the GIANT'S beautiful garden. It had soft green grass, flowers like stars, and peach trees that blossomed in spring.
The Giant Returns: The giant had been away for SEVEN YEARS visiting his friend, the Cornish ogre. He returns and sees the children in HIS garden. 'What are you doing here?' he ROARS. He builds a HIGH WALL around the garden. 'TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED.'
The Consequence — Eternal Winter: Spring came — to the WHOLE COUNTRY — but NOT to the giant's garden. 'The birds did not sing in it, the trees forgot to blossom.' Only WINTER, FROST, SNOW, and the NORTH WIND lived there. 'Spring has forgotten this garden,' they said.
The Change — The Hole in the Wall: One morning, the giant hears a BIRD SINGING. He looks out. The children have crept BACK in through a HOLE in the wall. In EVERY TREE sits a child. And where the children sit, the trees are in FULL BLOOM.
In ONE CORNER: A tiny boy cannot reach the branches. The tree still has snow and frost. The giant's heart MELTS. 'I am very selfish,' he says. He goes out, lifts the tiny boy into the tree. The tree immediately BLOSSOMS.
The Giant's Transformation: 'It is your garden now, little children,' he says. He KNOCKS DOWN THE WALL. The children play in the garden every day. But the tiny boy — the one the giant lifted — NEVER RETURNS.
The Ending: Years pass. The giant is OLD and FEEBLE. One winter morning, he sees the garden in BLOSSOM — impossibly. In the farthest corner, under the tree in FULL FLOWER: the TINY BOY. The boy has wounds on his hands and feet. 'Who hath dared to wound thee?' the giant cries. 'These are the wounds of Love,' says the child. 'You let me play once in your garden. Today you shall come with me to MY garden — which is Paradise.'
The children find the giant DEAD — lying peacefully under the tree, covered in white blossoms.
Themes
- Selfishness Isolates. Love Connects. The wall = selfishness. It keeps out the children — and keeps out SPRING.
- Redemption Through Kindness: The giant CHANGES. He knocks down the wall. He becomes LOVED.
- The Christ-Child: The tiny boy with wounds = Jesus. 'The wounds of Love.' The story is a religious allegory about charity, redemption, and paradise.
