A Visit of Charity

by Eudora Welty

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How are the old ladies characterized in "A Visit of Charity"?

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The old ladies behave bizarrely and in ways Marian can't understand when she comes to visit in "A Visit of Charity." Marian finds them frightening and alienating.

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In this story by Eudora Welty, the young Campfire Girl Marian visits two elderly women who are roommates in a nursing home. They are presented initially as having contrasting personalities and behavior. One is loquacious and outgoing; the other, quiet and taciturn. The situation changes, however, as the quiet woman directs a powerful diatribe against her roommate.

The talkative woman is described as birdlike, and with her hand, which is similarly clawlike, she plucks the girl’s hat from her head. She sits in a rocking chair, where her increasing speed at rocking amazes Marian. One of her themes is reminiscing about being a schoolgirl (like Marian is currently).

Addie observes these events from her bed, which she cannot leave. To Marian, Addie looks like a sheep. Addie is not happy to receive a visit from this perfect stranger. The roommate reveals that it is Addie’s birthday, of which she...

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does not want to be reminded. Addie lashes out at her in a vicious tirade. Not only does she accuse her of lying, she denies her existence, saying she is nothing at all. This seems to exhaust Addie, who refuses even to tell her age and then starts to cry.

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 A young girl must spend time visiting an old ladies home as an act of charity, and is sent to visit the room of two old ladies.

The two are a study in contrast! One is a babbler, who is incapable of letting a moment pass in silence. She is silly and annoying to her roommate-Old Addie. Addie is cranky and bedridden, and seemingly at the mercy of her roommates continual chatter. She is suspicious and resentful of the girl's visit.
While her roommate is playful, snatching the girl's hat off her head.

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How do the old ladies behave with Marian in "A Visit of Charity"?

The old ladies, from Marian's point of view, behave bizarrely when Marian comes to visit. One old lady, Addie, stays in bed, while the other woman sharing the room pulls Marian inside. While Addie is rude and contrary, calling Marian's plant ugly and "stinkweed," the other old woman tries to be polite. She says the plant is "pretty."

Marian is in over her head, as she had not been able to imagine what this visit would be like. The old women are not real people to her: they are just a project she has to get through to earn points as a Campfire Girl.

Their conversation, which is quarrelsome, doesn't make much sense to Marian. For example, the first old woman says that a germ came to visit them the month before. Later, when the first woman, who starts rocking in a rocking chair, says she used to go to school like Marian, Addie insists she never went to school and complains about having to share a room with her. When the first woman says it is Addie's birthday, Addie says that is not true.

Marian is frightened and disconcerted. She can't remember her own name and has a hard time answering questions. However, there is one moment when Marian is able to focus on Addie as a real person. Marian

wondered about her for a moment as though there was nothing else in the world to wonder about. It was the first time such a thing had happened to Marian.

We see Marian attempt reach out to her by asking her her age, but when Addie begins to whimper, Marian flees.

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