Book Review The Stone Angel (c) 1964 by Margaret Laurence Published by McLellan and Stewart Inc. The Stone Angel is an enjoyable but tragic look into old age and the loss of independence. Margaret Laurence starts off by introducing us to Hagar Shipley, a seemingly cold a stubborn widow living as a dependant with her son and his wife. Hagar can not do much on her own, and her degeneration causes a constant burden for John and Doris.
Frustrating the reader, Hagar’s stubborn nature makes her unable to be outwardly thankful. She is child-like and illogical, and her clarity frequently wavers from lucid to hazy. Laurence reveals Hagar’s past by interchanging a series of flashbacks with reality. Hagar struggles with an increasing form of dementia, and her refusal to give in leads the reader to feel both admiration and pity. John and Doris’s efforts to lead Hagar into old age gracefully are futile, as she is set in believing that they only want to put her away in a retirement home and take possession of her house. Hagar’s past hardships and her reaction to them give us a good understanding of her character.
Sharp-tongued and strong-willed, Hagar survives her controlling father, a husband to be ashamed of, and the deaths of her youngest brother and son. Though Hagar’s memories, we experience her abrupt and detrimental marriage to Bram. An educated woman who married below herself, her pride traps her into becoming servant to her husband and children. Eventually Bram’s harsh nature and poor parental guidance leads her to leave him, an act which would require a tremendous amount of strength for her time. On a separate note, one can not help but see the parallel between Laurence’s Hagar and the Hagar from the Bible. Although an exact comparison can not be established, the similarities are interchangeable and deliberate.
The Essay on Stone Angel Hagar Laurence Life
... - as though I were a crop, a cash crop) " (Laurence 6) Hagar's stubbornness leads her further away from her family and closer to ... myself upon keeping my pride intact, like some maidenhead" (Laurence, 81) Hagar speaks of self-pride being similar to possessing your ... breed entirely, petty angels, cherubim with pouting stone mouths" (Laurence 4) Hagar's pride can be easily associated with her lack of ...
Aside from having the same name, both Hagar experience a wilderness of sorts, suffer from entrapment, and exhibit strong pride that leads to their downfall. This correlation makes The Stone Angel a more playful and enjoyable read that could other wise be noted as borderline depressing, as her unnamed disease leads to a abrupt death and ending to the novel. Laurence’s writing style is not overly complicated, and perhaps would make an excellent screenplay. Readers of all ages can relate to this novel, although it may hit close to home for some elderly women. “The Stone Angel” is a realistic view of losing the battle of old age, and isn’t sugarcoated with a fairy-tale like ending. As readers we are left with a better understanding of old age, something that may not have been fully explored before by younger readers before experiencing Hagar Shipley.
We are left to ponder our own mortality, and have a better appreciation for the struggles of our fore mothers.
