Structure

The short story “ Mrs Vadnie Marlene Sevlon ” by Jackie Kay is structured around the main character, a middle-aged woman who likes to pretend she is married and has three daughters. The narrative follows her after she has been fired from a home for the elderly, as she reflects on her life.

The story does not follow a traditional plot structure; instead, it is constructed using flashbacks (presenting past events) and stream of consciousness (the character’s unedited thought flow).

Title

The title, “Mrs Vadnie Marlene Sevlon”, announces who the story is going to be about. The use of the title ‘Mrs’ indicates a married person. However, we find out that the character is not in fact married, but imagines that she is:

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Beginning

The story begins with a short explanation of the context and an introduction to the main character. The narrative hook is constructed by letting readers know that the woman no longer works at a home for the elderly, without telling them why: “On the way home from a long and final day in Sunnyside Home for the Elderly, Mrs Vadnie Marlene Sevlon was relieved to notice a little breeze.” (ll. 1-2)

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Middle

The middle of the short story continues to present the thoughts of the main character and offers readers flashbacks from her past.

We find out Vadnie likes to contemplate her death, and that she began pretending she is married when she was 30 years old: For instance, once, years ago, on the telephone, a man who was going to be coming to fix her electric sockets said, “ Is you Miss or Mrs?” And Vadnie answered Mrs. That was twenty years ago...” (ll. 50-52)

This event led to Vadnie constructing a whole imaginary life, with a husband and three children: “He was the kind of man that is a father to daughters rather than sons, a gentle kind man, intense and protective. And of course their daughters, Ladyblossom, Marsha and Grace...” (ll. 77-79)

Then, Vadnie’s thoughts jump to her job and her employers. We find out she has been working for Sunnyside Home for the Elderly for 20 years and that she dislikes her employers: “She didn’t much like the two women who ran Sunnyside, and they didn’t get any better over time. For a start they had no sense of humour…” (ll. 86-87)

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Ending

The ending of the short story brings readers back to the present moment, as Vadnie walks home and enters a DIY store. Because she will no longer be able to tell Margaret her stories about her imaginary husband and daughters, ...

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