Maggie: A Girl Surrounded by Research Paper

When Pete betrayed her by leaving her for Nellie, that was when Maggie could no longer continue to tell herself (and believe herself) that things were going to get better. Her judgmental, hypocritical family would not take her back in after she left Pete's home and she basically had no choice but to feel completely abandoned and alone.

Crane uses a great deal of imagery to portray the mood he is trying to set, and to foreshadow coming events. For example, when describing Pete's bar he mentions that "Upon its shelves rested pyramids of shimmering glasses that were never disturbed. Mirrors set in the face of the sideboard multiplied them" (p. 87). The fragile nature of glass represents Maggie and Pete's fragile relationship and the mirrors represent the reflection of all that she longs for. The fact that Crane mentions that the glasses and mirrors are undisturbed gives the reader a hint that this will likely change in the near future.Therefore, he foreshadows the upcoming events in which "The pyramid of shimmering glasses, that had never been disturbed, changed to cascades as heavy bottles were flung into them. Mirrors splintered to nothing" (p. 97). The shattering of the glass and the mirrors symbolizes Maggie's broken heart and broken dreams.

Maggie's enduring hardships eventually take a toll on her previously sunny disposition, and Crane uses the imagery of fading colors to portray this transformation. While this is a dismal and depressing story, it does not seem as if the purpose of it was to make the reader feel sad, but instead to make the reader feel angry that people can be so cruel,….....