The Stone Angel

Stone Angel Collage

The Stone Angel tells the story of Hagar , a 90 year-old woman who lived a sad and joyless life . Though bold and brave , Hagar displays excessive pride throughout the novel . Struggling against life in her old age Hagar recounts the events in her life that has made her what she is - bitter , stubborn , and proud

The collage is an amalgamation of the things that embody Hagar 's life as a whole . Through these objects , we see a bigger picture and a better understanding of her life . Through objects

Hagar encountered in her life 's journey , we are able to look past the superficial and see the deeper and underlying meanings the author is trying to express

Stone Angel - This occupies the central part of and is the most prominent object in the collage . It embodies the qualities of Hagar - the qualities the statue posses parallel her own . Just like Hagar , the stone angel is obstinate , unfeeling , detached , and emotionless . Just as its existence was brought about by her family 's pride , the stone angel symbolizes Hagar 's pride

The other objects revolving around the figure of the stone angel represent Hagar 's memories , which she relives throughout the novel . Her pride and ignorance made her lonely bitter , and this is shown in events involving the following objects

Shawl - Even on his brother 's deathbed , Hagar could not bring herself to don the shawl and pretend to be their mother . This shows how Hagar thinks poorly of their mother and considers their mother weak . She does not want to pretend to play the role of someone who is like their mother

Water - water is a predominant motif in the story . It symbolizes life - Hagar 's life - and Hagar 's need to be nourished

Flower - The flower imagery parallels Hagar 's distaste for anything wild and out of control

Horse - When Bram 's horse died , Hagar had a hard time trying consoling him because she always felt that there is a wall between them . This division , however , only exists because she does not allow herself to love and take joy in their marriage

Bed - Hagar 's refuses to let her husband know that that she enjoys making love with him . Hagar feels pride in her self-restraint and dispassion

Eggs - Hagar was greatly humbled in one instance where Lottie 's daughter call 's her the egg woman . She considers this humiliating since she has always considered Lottie to be of a lesser stature than her

Money - Money , or rather , the lack of it has been one of Hagar 's greatest struggles in life . Even in destitution , she still takes pride in her upbringing and looks down on other poor people as if she will always be better than them

Chicks - When Hagar and Lottie are talking about breaking up their children 's relationship , Hagar suddenly remembers the time when they were young , where Lottie killed the crippled chicks . The act of depriving the chicks of life mirrors their current goals that is , to deprive Arlene and John of their life ' and desires

Gull - In the scene with the wounded gull in the cannery , she feels that she would rather kill the bird than hear its annoying cries . This shows how she always detaches her emotions that instead of focusing and empathizing with the gull 's feelings , she only thinks of her own

Train - The train has been witness to many of Hagar 's losses , including the time when she was sent off to college and the instance where John was killed in a train accident

Truck - John , Hagar 's favorite son , was in his truck when fright train hit it . When John died , Hagar refused to cry in front of strangers

Books - Before she was sent to college , Hagar wanted to tell her brother she feels he should be the one going instead of her . She didn 't however . Her pride prevents her from doing what her heart desires ...