The Fly (short story)
Encyclopedia
"The Fly" is a 1922
short story
written by Katherine Mansfield
. The text was first published in The Nation & Athenaeum on 18 March 1922 and it later appeared in The Dove's Nest and Other Stories.
. After drinking, his memory is refreshed and Woodifield talks about a recent visit that "the girls" (his two daughters) made to their sons' graves. We now come to know that their son had died in the war
. After Woodifield leaves, the boss sits down at his table, calls the clerk, and tells him that he does not want to be disturbed. He is extremely perturbed at the sudden reference to his dead son, and expects to weep but is surprised to find that he can't. He looks at his son's photo, and thinks it bears little resemblance to his son. He then notices a fly
struggling to get out of the inkpot on his desk. The boss helps it out of the inkpot and observes how it dries itself, with some admiration. Just when the fly is dry and safe, the boss has an idea and starts playing with the fly by dropping ink
on it. When it dies, he throws the blotting paper
with it into the wastepaper basket, and asks his clerk for more blotting paper. The boss sits down and finds himself suddenly feeling bereft, but he has no recollection of what he was thinking about before the fly.
The Other Major Theme:
Time is a great healer, vanquisher of all the griefs and sorrows of man; six years have passed since the death of the boss's son, and he has now lost his acute emotions and memories.
1922 in literature
The year 1922 in literature involved some significant events and new books.Under the current U.S. copyright law, all works published before January 1, 1923 with a proper copyright notice entered the public domain no later than 75 years from the date of the copyright...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
written by Katherine Mansfield
Katherine Mansfield
Kathleen Mansfield Beauchamp Murry was a prominent modernist writer of short fiction who was born and brought up in colonial New Zealand and wrote under the pen name of Katherine Mansfield. Mansfield left for Great Britain in 1908 where she encountered Modernist writers such as D.H. Lawrence and...
. The text was first published in The Nation & Athenaeum on 18 March 1922 and it later appeared in The Dove's Nest and Other Stories.
Plot summary
Woodifield, an old and rather infirm gentleman, is talking to his "the boss", a friend, who is five years older than he is and 'still going strong'. The latter apparently enjoys showing off his redecorated office to Woodifield, with new furniture and electric heating (yet with an old picture of a young man, whom we learn is his deceased son). Woodifield wants to tell the boss something, but is struggling to remember what it was, when the boss offers him some fine whiskyWhisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
. After drinking, his memory is refreshed and Woodifield talks about a recent visit that "the girls" (his two daughters) made to their sons' graves. We now come to know that their son had died in the war
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. After Woodifield leaves, the boss sits down at his table, calls the clerk, and tells him that he does not want to be disturbed. He is extremely perturbed at the sudden reference to his dead son, and expects to weep but is surprised to find that he can't. He looks at his son's photo, and thinks it bears little resemblance to his son. He then notices a fly
Fly
True flies are insects of the order Diptera . They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax...
struggling to get out of the inkpot on his desk. The boss helps it out of the inkpot and observes how it dries itself, with some admiration. Just when the fly is dry and safe, the boss has an idea and starts playing with the fly by dropping ink
Ink
Ink is a liquid or paste that contains pigments and/or dyes and is used to color a surface to produce an image, text, or design. Ink is used for drawing and/or writing with a pen, brush, or quill...
on it. When it dies, he throws the blotting paper
Blotting paper
Blotting paper is a highly absorbent type of paper or other material. It is used to absorb an excess of liquid substances from the surface of writing paper or objects. It is also commonly used as a beauty tool to absorb excess oil from the skin.-Manufacture:Blotting paper is made from different...
with it into the wastepaper basket, and asks his clerk for more blotting paper. The boss sits down and finds himself suddenly feeling bereft, but he has no recollection of what he was thinking about before the fly.
Characters in "The Fly"
- Mr. Woodifield, an old and infirm man, who has lost a son in World War I and is only allowed to leave his house on Tuesdays. He lives with his wife and daughters.
- The boss, a well-off friend of his, who has also lost a son to World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. - Macey, the office clerk.
- The fly the symbol of the story
- Gertrude, Mr. Woodifield's daughter
Major themes
The inevitability of death and man's unwillingness to accept this truth. The story can also be read as an indictment of the brutal horror of World War I. Much attention has been paid to the central character of the boss.Many of the critics think that the fly actually symbolizes the Boss who is fighting with his life. He has been seen as a symbol of malignant forces that are base and motiveless, a representative of the generation that sent its sons to their slaughter in a cruel war.The Other Major Theme:
Time is a great healer, vanquisher of all the griefs and sorrows of man; six years have passed since the death of the boss's son, and he has now lost his acute emotions and memories.