Characters

One of the main characters of Catherine Smith’s short story “Jellyfish” is Kirsty. The story follows her as she packs Emily’s belongings from their formerly shared flat after they suddenly broke up. Kirsty obsesses over the thought of Emily’s life with her new partner, which breeds bitterness that she never properly expresses. 

Another important character in the story is Emily. Emily has suddenly broken up with Kirsty after confessing she has been having an affair with a woman named Dana for the past five months. Emily’s personality contrasts with Kirsty’s in many ways. While Kirsty is rational and rarely expresses her emotions, Emily is imaginative and spiritual and shows her emotions openly. Her meeting with Kirsty when she comes to pick up her belongings shows Emily has moved on from her relationship with Kirsty. 

Kirsty

Kirsty is the main character of the short story “Jellyfish” by Catherine Smith. The story explores her emotional journey after her ex-girlfriend Emily has unexpectedly broken up with her. 

One of Kirsty’s defining characteristics is her extremely rational way of thinking. This is shown in the way she explains the “defence mechanism” of onions or in how she focuses on the science behind lava lamps when Emily tries to find images in the shapes the lava lamp creates. This rationality is probably partly due to the fac...