Seeing double or nah?
In both The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (The Prime) and Loitering with Intent (Loitering) there are strong female leads. In The Prime there are two main protagonists, Miss Jean Brodie and one of her pupils named Sandy. Jean Brodie was a very commandeering character who always tried to instill her beliefs in her pupils, which she did. Brodie does not fit into the conventional standard of what woman should be doing, especially in 1945 right at the end of World War II. In fact, she was outcast by her female co-workers for her teaching methods and lascivious actions with a male teacher. The Prime could easily be commended for its feministic views and empowerment. Miss Brodie exists independently of the characters surrounding her; she does what she finds pleasurable, much like Fleur in Loitering. But despite all of Jean Brodie’s strong will it is Sandy who is the true protagonist of the story. Most of the novel talks about how Brodie’s actions affect Sandy and in the end it is Sandy who sees past all of Miss Brodie’s banalities and gets her fired for her incessant praise of fascism. Sandy is a very cunning and at times guileful character. She is always looking for a new thought to consumer her mind or a scheme to plan and obsess over. In a way both Miss Jean Brodie and Sandy are similar to Fleur. Brodie and Fleur both have a mind filled with worldly thoughts and they constantly go against what tradition would dictate: Miss Brodie’s teaching, Fleur’s indifference to marriage, both of their dedication to their vocation, and both of their affairs with married men. Sand and Fleur share a bond with stories and their potential to become brilliant stories. All the interaction that Fleur has with people is always described as an observational time for her to pick up mannerisms or phrases or ideas that could contribute to her next piece of writing. Sandy is constantly fantasizing in her head about possible scenarios and writing about them. Sandy and one of her classmates even wrote a series of love letters on top of a mini novel all about Miss Brodie’s love life. Muriel Spark has a very clearly defined type of lead character: a free-spirited woman who thinks deeply and has little to no regard of what those around her may say. This is seen in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Loitering with Intent through the heroines.
In both The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (The Prime) and Loitering with Intent (Loitering) there are strong female leads. In The Prime there are two main protagonists, Miss Jean Brodie and one of her pupils named Sandy. Jean Brodie was a very commandeering character who always tried to instill her beliefs in her pupils, which she did. Brodie does not fit into the conventional standard of what woman should be doing, especially in 1945 right at the end of World War II. In fact, she was outcast by her female co-workers for her teaching methods and lascivious actions with a male teacher. The Prime could easily be commended for its feministic views and empowerment. Miss Brodie exists independently of the characters surrounding her; she does what she finds pleasurable, much like Fleur in Loitering. But despite all of Jean Brodie’s strong will it is Sandy who is the true protagonist of the story. Most of the novel talks about how Brodie’s actions affect Sandy and in the end it is Sandy who sees past all of Miss Brodie’s banalities and gets her fired for her incessant praise of fascism. Sandy is a very cunning and at times guileful character. She is always looking for a new thought to consumer her mind or a scheme to plan and obsess over. In a way both Miss Jean Brodie and Sandy are similar to Fleur. Brodie and Fleur both have a mind filled with worldly thoughts and they constantly go against what tradition would dictate: Miss Brodie’s teaching, Fleur’s indifference to marriage, both of their dedication to their vocation, and both of their affairs with married men. Sand and Fleur share a bond with stories and their potential to become brilliant stories. All the interaction that Fleur has with people is always described as an observational time for her to pick up mannerisms or phrases or ideas that could contribute to her next piece of writing. Sandy is constantly fantasizing in her head about possible scenarios and writing about them. Sandy and one of her classmates even wrote a series of love letters on top of a mini novel all about Miss Brodie’s love life. Muriel Spark has a very clearly defined type of lead character: a free-spirited woman who thinks deeply and has little to no regard of what those around her may say. This is seen in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Loitering with Intent through the heroines.