Plot Develops The Meaning Of The Title In The Stone Angel

Plot Develops The Meaning Of The Title In The Stone Angel

In The Stone Angel, Margaret Lawrence portrays a woman attempting to

understanding herself and her life. Hagar is the narrator of the book.

She is ninety, and is trying to avoid an old aged home where her son

Marvin, and Marvin’s wife Doris want to put her. During this her attempt

to move to Shadow Point and live alone, Hagar remembers the many parts

of her life and her life story is revealed to the reader in that

fashion. Hagar grew up in Manawaka, in the prairies. Hagar’s mother died

while giving birth to her, and her father Jason Currie had a great stone

angel brought from Italy at a great expense for Mrs. Currie’s grave.

Hagar had two brothers, Matt and Daniel. Daniel was a lazy boy, and was

very delicate physically. Daniel died at eighteen of pneumonia. Matt

intended to go to university, but Hagar was sent by her father. Matt

married, but never had children, and died of disease without putting up

a fight in his death bed. Hagar eventually goes to university and

returns to marry Brampton Shiptley, against her fathers’ will. At that

point she loses contact with her father. Hagar eventually regrets

marrying Bram, who often embarrasses her. Hagar and Bram have two boys,

Marvin and John. Hagar never really loves Marvin, and when he moves out,

she moves out with John. She loves him, and does everything for him.

They eventually return to Manawaka when Brampton is dying. At that

point John is in love with Arlene, something Hagar does not understand

nor approve of. John tragically dies while performing a stunt while

drunk. Hagar moves to the coast, buys a house, and ends up living her

last days with Marvin and his wife Doris. Shortly before her death Hagar

realizes many things about herself. First of all that her heart is made

of stone, secondly that she has a lot of pride like her father, and

thirdly that she is blind, or in other words she can only see things

from one perspective, her own. These characteristics and those of the

stone angel, which was made of stone, was erected out of pride, and has