Fantasy Worlds in The Garden Party and Her First Ball by Katherine Mans

In the short stories The Garden Party and Her archetypical lout, both written by the well-known New Zealand author Katherine Mansfield, the importance of item lies in several fields. As Mansfield herself states, there is an indefinite value and disport in detail and this is shown constantly as she uses it much effectively to portray themes, provide us with a contrast between the two different settings and as well as paint us a clear picture of the protagonists fantasy worlds.Mansfield shows and doesnt tell. In both the short stories, she plunges you straight into the imaginative and personified worlds of the protagonists and then the plot follows. The detail description of the perfect day for a garden-party depicts Lauras imaginations and excitement for this whole wonderful occasion. Every little detail such as the green bushes arched down as though they had been visited by the archangels and the fact that the roses understood they are the only flowers that impress people at g arden-parties adds to the angelic aura that Laura seems to have frame up forward so that we as the readers understand better her excitement and great anticipation. She is untainted by the worldly matters such as class distinctions at this decimal point as she is still in her own imaginative world of archangels.Similarly for Leila in Her First Ball, everything is so magical, exactly the way it is in a fairyland. Everything or so her is so strikingly new and enthralling. It is Leilas first ball, and her first exposition to society. Mansfield describes the young girls emotions and excitement in so much detail that it incarcerates us in the quaint fantasy world of Leila. Just like Laura, we also sense Leilas innocence, because her first real partner was th... ...escribed in colors of youth, innocence and purity pink and silver programmes, pink and white flags, pink velvet cloak, pink pencils and pink chairs. Then the contrast sets in with unforgiving dispelling this girlish innoce nce and the carefree atmosphere the black velvet cloaks of the mother, the fat mans black suit and the black night, which is threatening. We are held up in the joy and anticipation of Leilas first ball and with this detail, Mansfield crushes us. This contrast forces us to conclude that nothing can be held, nothing lasts forever. Whatever era we live in, the impermanence of life is what affects every living thing on this planet. All in all, every minute detail in The Garden Party and Her First Ball is very much significant in that detail is the medium through which Mansfield speaks to our minds. Not by telling us, but showing us.