Structure

The short story “On Pale Green Walls” by Clare Wigfall is structured around a girl’s obsession with the image of Virgin Mary, whom she considers a real person. Highly symbolical, the story targets the conflict between adults and children due to lack of communication and mutual understanding. Structurally, the story respects most of the elements of a traditional plot.

Title

The title of the short story is intriguing and symbolical. After we read the story, we find out the title refers to the photograph the narrator sees inside the church depicting tribesmen and priests:

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Beginning

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Middle

The middle of the short story develops the little girl’s obsession with the image of the mysterious woman: “You know how it is when you learn a new word and then you begin to hear it all the time? It was like that with her. I started to see her everywhere we went.” (ll. 36-37)

The rising action is created through tension points. The first tension point is introduced when Violet sees an image of the Virgin Mary holding a child (baby Jesus) and becomes envious. This results in the girl drawing blood and a dagger over the baby in the picture, which in turn leads to her parents scolding her:

I pressed my shoulders up against my ears to muffle their voices, but I could tell my mother was upset. She swooped down to me. “Why did you do it, Violet?” she asked, pulling my head from my arms. (ll. 68-71)

Another tense scene takes place the following day when Violet and her mother are going to church again. On the way, the mother constantly scolds Violet, for what she sees as misbehaviour: “I was holding her hand, and after a while I began to lean out from her and swing. ‘Violet!’ she scowled.” (ll. 79-80). “…my mother tugged me back to her side with an irritated, ‘Violet!’ ” (ll. 88-89)

However, the girl takes advantage of her mother talking to a woman to grab a tiny bird that has fallen from its nest and put it in her mitten.

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Ending

The ending of the short story is comprised out of a brief falling action, showing Violet looking at the shattered photograph of the tribesman,...

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