The Beggar Maid by Alice Munro
"The Beggar Maid," a work by Canadian author Alice Munro, explores the complex dynamics of relationships and social class through the life of its protagonist, Rose. Growing up in the small town of Hanratty, Ontario, Rose's journey begins when she earns a scholarship to a prestigious university. There, she finds herself navigating a new environment, including a budding romance with Patrick, a fellow student who aspires to be a history professor. Their relationship is marked by contrasts, particularly in their differing backgrounds—Rose hails from a working-class family, while Patrick comes from a wealthy lineage.
As their engagement progresses, the couple experiences cultural dissonance, particularly during visits to each other's families, which raises questions about identity and belonging. Despite marrying and having children, their relationship is tumultuous, characterized by cycles of separation and reconciliation. Ultimately, they divorce, but their paths cross again years later, prompting reflections on their shared history. Through Rose's story, Munro delves into themes of love, ambition, and the impact of social class, offering a nuanced portrayal of the complexities of human connections as they evolve over time.
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The Beggar Maid by Alice Munro
First published: 1977
Type of plot: Domestic realism
Time of work: The early 1950's
Locale: Ontario, Canada
Principal Characters:
Rose , a university freshmanFlo , her stepmotherDr. Henshawe , her landladyPatrick Blatchford , a graduate student who is heir to a department store fortune
The Story
After growing up in the little town of Hanratty, Ontario, Rose wins a scholarship to a prestigious Canadian university. During her first semester there, she finds a comfortable place to live, a part-time job, and a male admirer. She meets Patrick at the campus library when she is working a weekend shift, reshelving books, and he is one of the few people studying there. When she asks him if he has seen a man who has just grabbed her in the almost deserted building, he rushes to her defense. Rose can tell at once that he is both high-minded and high-strung—a nervous man who wants to become a history professor. She also soon sees that he is infatuated with her. She does not know, however, that he is the heir to a family business. She dates Patrick partly to spite her landlady, a spinster former English professor who encourages her "scholars" to stay away from "boys." To Rose's surprise, the landlady likes Patrick and tells her that he is one of the most eligible bachelors on campus.
During the Christmas holidays, Patrick takes Rose to visit his family's luxurious home in British Columbia. Rose feels completely out of place among Patrick's parents and sisters, but so does Patrick. After returning to the university, they become engaged, and Rose takes Patrick to meet her family in Hanratty, where Patrick is taken aback by the working-class culture and the country accents. Rose increasingly wonders what Patrick sees in her or wants from her. Nevertheless, she finds herself saying all the right things to people who ask to see her engagement ring and ask about her wedding plans. As year-end exams approach, she breaks off her relationship with Patrick but relents when she meets him to return his ring.
They marry and have children but continue their pattern of separation and reconciliation, with subtle variations, for a decade. Eventually, they divorce. Another decade later, when Rose is a successful television interviewer and Patrick is a successful professor, they see each other in an airport. Rose smiles, realizing that she could throw herself at Patrick again but knowing better. He makes an ugly face. What remains of their relationship is this story, which she tells to many friends and lovers in the new age of honesty.
Bibliography
Franzen, Jonathan. "Alice's Wonderland." The New York Times Book Review, November 14, 2004, 1, 14-16.
Howells, Coral Ann. Alice Munro. Manchester, England: Manchester University Press, 1998.
McCulloch, Jeanne, and Mona Simpson. "The Art of Fiction CXXXVII." Paris Review 131 (Summer, 1994): 226-264.
Moore, Lorrie. "Leave Them and Love Them." The Atlantic Monthly 294, no. 5 (December, 2004): 125.
Munro, Sheila. Lives of Mothers and Daughters: Growing Up with Alice Munro. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 2001.
Ross, Catherine Sheldrick. Alice Munro: A Double Life. Toronto: ECW Press, 1992.
Simpson, Mona. "A Quiet Genius." The Atlantic Monthly 288, no. 5 (December, 2001): 126.