“The Stone Angel”
Introduction The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence appears to be required reading for most students in Canada but it shouldn‟t be considered simply a Canadian novel, because the themes are universal. This paper considers what Hagar wanted, what she got out of life, and whether she achieved anything of value or accomplished anything worthwhile. Discussion Hagar Shipley is the narrator and protagonist of the novel, which presents readers with a problem from the beginning: how much of what she says can we trust? We have no independent verification that would allow us to judge her veracity. However, her story as she tells it is so bleak and uncompromising that it‟s reasonable to assume that it‟s close to the truth. It‟s hard to believe anyone would make up anything this unflattering about themselves. Critics have found Hagar both inspiring and depressing, and many have labeled her disturbing, because her life has not been a happy one. Now, at the age of 90 and dying, she looks back on what might be considered a life that was completely wasted. Her besetting sin, the thing that keeps her from truly living, is her stiff-necked pride, pride she got from her father. He is every bit as hard as she is, and tells her and her brothers repeatedly about being a self-made man. He also makes it clear that the children will never measure up to