Marilla Cuthbert is Surprised PDF

## Marilla Cuthbert is Surprised **Warm-Up** A. Do you think boys and girls are different from each other? Or are they similar in most things? Are there any specific qualities that belong to their gender and sex uniquely? Discuss. B. With the help of your class teacher, discuss the difference bet...

## Marilla Cuthbert is Surprised **Warm-Up** A. Do you think boys and girls are different from each other? Or are they similar in most things? Are there any specific qualities that belong to their gender and sex uniquely? Discuss. B. With the help of your class teacher, discuss the difference between the words 'sex' and 'gender'. How would it feel to know that one is unwanted? Little Anne suddenly realizes that she is unwanted in Green Gables and they were expecting a little boy instead. Let us find out more about her misadventure. They both hoped for the orphan boy, but they both got a general gist. Why boy? Because they both expected to help him in the home. Marilla came briskly forward as Matthew opened the door. But when her eyes fell on the odd little figure in the stiff, ugly dress, with the long braids of red hair and the eager, luminous eyes, she stopped short in amazement. She was surprised to see a girl. 'Matthew Cuthbert, who's that?' she ejaculated. 'Where is the boy?' 'There wasn't any boy,' said Matthew wretchedly. 'There was only her. He nodded at the child, remembering that he had never even asked her name. 'No boy! But there must have been a boy,' insisted Marilla. 'We sent word to Mrs Spencer to bring a boy.' 'Well, she didn't. She brought her. I asked the stationmaster. And I had to bring her home. She couldn't be left there, no matter where the mistake had come in. 'Well, this is a pretty piece of business!' ejaculated Marilla. During this dialogue the child had remained silent, her eyes roving from one to the other, all the animation fading out of her face. Suddenly she seemed to grasp the full meaning of what had been said. Dropping her precious carpet bag, she sprang forward a step and clasped her hands. You don't want me!' she cried. 'You don't want me because I'm not a boy! I might have expected it. Nobody ever did want me. Oh, what shall I do? I'm going to burst into tears!' Burst into tears she did. Sitting down on a chair by the table, flinging her arms out upon it, and burying her face in them, she proceeded to cry stormily. Marilla and Matthew looked at each other across the stove. Neither of them knew what to say or do. Finally Marilla stepped towards this girl. 'Well, well, there's no need to cry so about it.' 'Yes, there is need!' The child raised her head quickly, revealing a tear-stained face and trembling lips. 'You would cry too, if you were an orphan and had come to a place you thought was going to be home and found that they didn't want you because you weren't a boy!' A reluctant smile mellowed Marilla's grim expression. 'Well, don't cry any more. We're not going to turn you out of doors tonight. You'll have to stay here until we investigate this affair. What's your name?' The child hesitated for a moment. 'Will you please call me Cordelia?' she said eagerly. 'Call you Cordelia? Is that your name?' 'No-o-o, it's not exactly my name, but I would love to be called Cordelia. It's such a perfectly elegant name.' 'I don't know what on earth you mean. If Cordelia isn't your name, what is?' 'Anne Shirley; but, oh, please do call me Cordelia. Anne is such an unromantic name.' 'Unromantic fiddlesticks!' said the unsympathetic Marilla. 'Anne is a real good plain sensible name. You've no need to be ashamed of it.' 'Oh, I'm not ashamed of it,' explained Anne, 'only I like Cordelia better. I've always imagined that my name was Cordelia at least, I always have of late years. When I was young I used to imagine it was Geraldine, but I like Cordelia better now. But if you call me Anne, please call me Anne spelled with an E.' 'Very well, then, Anne spelled with an E, can you tell us how this mistake came to be made? We sent word to Mrs Spencer to bring us a boy. Were there no boys at the asylum?' 'Oh, yes, there was an abundance of them. But Mrs Spencer said distinctly that you want a girl about eleven-years-old. And the matron said she thought I would do. You don't know how delighted I was. I couldn't sleep all last night for joy. Oh, she added reproachfully, turning to Matthew, 'why didn't you tell me at the station that you didn't want me and leave me there?' 'I'm going out to put the mare in, Marilla. Have tea ready when I come back,' said Matthew hastily. 'Did Mrs Spencer bring anybody over besides you?' continued Marilla when Matthew had gone out. 'She brought Lily Jones for herself. Lily is only five-years-old and she is very beautiful and had nut-brown hair. If I was very beautiful and had nut-brown hair would you keep me?' 'No. We want a boy to help Matthew on the farm. A girl would be of no use to us. Take off your hat. I'll lay it and your bag on the hall table.' Anne took off her hat meekly. When Matthew came back presently and they sat down to supper. Anne could not eat. In vain she nibbled at the bread and butter and pecked at the crab apple preserve. 'You're not eating anything,' said Marilla sharply. Anne sighed, 'I can't. I'm in the depths of despair. Can you eat when you are in the depths of despair?' 'I've never been in the depths of despair, so I can't say,' responded Marilla. 'Well, did you ever try to imagine you were in the depths of despair?' 'No, I didn't.' 'It's a very uncomfortable feeling indeed. When you try to eat a lump comes right up in your throat and you can't swallow anything, not even if it was a chocolate caramel. I do hope you won't be offended because I can't eat.' 'I guess she's tired,' said Matthew, 'best put her to bed, Marilla.' Marilla had been wondering where Anne should be put to bed. The spare room was out of the question for such a stray waif, so there remained only the east gable room. Maula lighted a candle and told Anne to follow her, which Anne spiritlessly did, taking her hat and carpet bag from the hall table as she passed. Marilla set the candle on a three-legged, three-cornered table and turned down the bedclothes. 'I suppose you have a nightgown?' she questioned. Anne nodded. 'Yes, I have two. The matron of the asylum made them for me. They're fearfully skimpy.' 'Well, undress as quick as you can and go to bed. I'll come back in a few minutes for the candle. I daren't trust you to put it out yourself. You'd likely set the place on fire." When Marilla had gone Anne looked around her wistfully. The whitewashed walls were so painfully bare. The floor was bare, too, except for a round braided mat in the middle such as Anne had never seen before. She looked around the room the observed that there was nothing in one corner was the bed, a high, old-fashioned one. In the other corner was the aforesaid three-corner table. Above it hung a little six-by-eight mirror. Midway between table and bed was the window, with an icy white muslin frill over it, and opposite was the washstand. The whole apartment sent a shiver to the very marrow of Anne's bones. With a sob she hastily discarded her garments, put on the skimpy nightgown, and sprang into bed; there she burrowed face downward into the pillow and pulled the clothes over her head. Marilla came up for the light, taking up the candle, she went over to the bed. 'Good night,' she said, a little awkwardly, but not unkindly. Anne's white face and big eyes appeared over the bedclothes with a startling suddenness. 'How can you call it a good night when you know it must be the very worst night I've ever had?' she said reproachfully. Then she dived down into invisibility again. She covered herself and then sett slept Marilla went slowly down to the kitchen and proceeded to wash the supper dishes. She said wrathfully to Mathew, 'This is what comes of sending word instead of going ourselves. Richard Spencer's folks have twisted that message somehow. One of us will have to drive over and see Mrs Spencer tomorrow. This girl will have to be sent back to the asylum.