Please read (and take notes on) the short story “Bliss.” You can go to this website to read it: http://www.katherinemansfieldsociety.org/assets/KM-Stories/BLISS1918.pdf
OR
Click on this link to download a PDF copy: BLISS by Katherine Mansfield
Pay special attention to symbolism and look out for satire.
Answer all eight of these questions and bring them with you to class.
Questionson Katherine Mansfield’s “Bliss”
1. Think of the denotations and connotations of the word “bliss”. Why does Bertha admonish herself for “getting hysterical”? Is her bliss the same as the “zest for life” that she ascribes to her husband?
2. How would you describe Bertha’s relationship with her baby? Her husband? Her baby’s nurse? What do these relationships reveal about Bertha’s role within her family circle?
3. How would you describe Bertha’s relationship with her baby? Her husband? Her baby’s nurse? What do these relationships reveal about Bertha’s role within her family circle?
4. Think about the account of the dinner party. What conclusions can you draw about these people and the society that they represent?
5. How does the character of Pearl Fulton evolve? Does Mansfield depict her negatively? What qualities does Bertha note initially? When did you begin to suspect that she and Harry were having an affair? Were there clues throughout the story?
6. The pear tree is a big symbol throughout the story. It is introduced in a simple description but eventually becomes important; what does it symbolize? Can you identify other symbols and/or motifs?
7. Do Bertha and Harry love each other? Consider the nature of their relationship, particularly her realization that she wants more intimacy.
8. At the end of the story, Bertha cries, “Oh, what is going to happen now?” What do you think is going to happen? How does the final sentence – “But the pear tree was as lovely as ever and full of flower and as still” – point the way to an answer to what happens next? What effect does this ending have on you as a reader?
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