The Possibility Of Evil Analysis

Words: 884
Pages: 4

In the olden days, people communicated to each other through letters because they did not have the technology society has today. Nowadays, people do not receive letters as often as they used to. In “The Possibility or Evil” by Shirley Jackson, the main character, Miss Strangeworth, uses letters to communicate to people in her town anonymously. Jackson’s use of situation, dramatic, and verbal irony all add up to the development of the story and create suspense. In “The Possibility of Evil”, situation irony plays a role in the development of the story. “There were so many wicked people in the world and only one Strangeworth left in town. Besides, Miss Strangeworth liked writing her letters” (Jackson 4). Miss Strangeworth enjoys writing the letters to her town because she …show more content…
Miss Strangeworth thinks her letters are informing her neighbors about things they are unaware of. Not only does Miss Strangeworth enjoy writing letters, she enjoys the feeling when they are opened. “Miss Strangeworth awakened the next morning with a feeling of intense happiness and, for a minute, wondered why, and then remembered that this morning three people would open her letters” (Jackson 6). Miss Strangeworth thinks that the people who receive her letters are going to be happy to get knowledgeable about things they didn’t already know. Miss Strangeworth gets a satisfying feeling when her letters are delivered and opened because she believes each letter is helping the town in a positive way. The same morning her letters were delivered, she also received a letter. “Her hand did not shake as she opened the envelope and unfolded the sheet of green paper inside. She began to cry silently for the wickedness of the world when she read the words: Look out at what used to be your flowers” (Jackson 6).