Stephen Crane’s Maggie: Girl of the Streets has been both praised and criticized for its unsentimental and nonjudgmental style. As narrator, Crane describes events without commenting on the conduct of his character and without telling readers what they are expected to feel. He wants to give readers “just the facts” of the case and let readers form their own opinions. But now, having read the book, comment on each of the following: 1) Where does responsibility for Maggie’s fate lie? With Maggie herself? With Pete? With Maggie’s mother, father, or brother? Nellie? 2) What role do social and economic conditions play in Maggie’s tragic end? 3) Which of the characters to you feel the most sympathy for? Why?
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In my opinion, the responsibility for Maggie’s fate lies partially with herself and partially with her mother and brother. When Maggie chose to leave home and go live with Pete, she made a choice to cut all ties with her family. Although her family had in a sense “disowned” her for her behaviors, she showed no sign of trying to mend the bond between them and left them for this new life of seeming grandeur with Pete. In this sense, Maggie was responsible for her own fate, as she disconnected herself from her past and left herself no way to return. Similarly, Maggie’s mother and brother cut all ties with her and saw only a girl who had gone to the devil. They gave her no sympathy and no understanding when it became clear that she was in a relationship with Pete, and through this they showed her that she was no longer welcome in their home. This contempt toward Maggie remained present when she attempted to return home, having no place else to go, and her mother kicked her out. That point would’ve been the opportunity for Maggie’s mother to make amends with her daughter and move on but all she saw was her betrayal.
Social and economic conditions played a large role in Maggie’s tragic end, as all she was seeking was a better life. Having grown up in extreme poverty and in a family with many internal issues, Maggie was captivated by Pete’s luxurious lifestyle. His attention on her and the lavish events which he brought her to, gave her a glimpse of a different life, one which she sought for herself. This hope made it easy for her to leave home and pursue a life with Pete, where she hoped to be a respectable member of society. When Pete left Maggie, no longer interested in her after having found someone “better”, she was left with nothing. This ultimately became her downfall as she had given up everything for this dream of wealth and high social status, and depended wholly on Pete for such a life.
I feel the most sympathy for Maggie as she was born into a difficult life. Her family was poverty stricken and her parents were drunks who would beat one another. She was forced to hide in the background to avoid the backlash of her abusive parents, and she was neglected of the love she needed from her family. Despite growing up in such conditions, she was naive and saw the good in the world, which led her to Pete. Maggie trusted Pete wholeheartedly as he claimed that he loved her and she craved that kind of attention. Her downward spiral afterwards was mainly due to the unfortunate cards she had been dealt in life. She could have made adjustments to her own life and tried to turn out differently than her impoverished drunken parents, but she was also in an extremely difficult situation. Her inexperience in the world made it too difficult for her to turn her life around and she ultimately died an insignificant death.
While people are generally responsible for their own actions, I believe that in this case, Maggie’s mother bears most of the responsibility for Maggie’s fate. The instant she learns of Maggie’s relationship with Pete, she curses at her and kicks her out of the house. There was no discussion beforehand between the two women that conveyed Mary’s disapproval of the relationship. So, without any warning or ultimatum, Maggie is disowned. Although Maggie might want to argue and talk about it, her mother was in no shape to have a rational conversation because she was angry and drunk. As a result, Maggie was left with few options for her living arrangements. When Maggie attempted to return home, Mary publicly banished Maggie in the most humiliating way possible. Mary’s actions ensured Maggie ended up on the streets and therefore contributed to her death.
Social and economic conditions play a large role in Maggie’s tragic end. Maggie first becomes intrigued by Pete because he represented a luxury that she had never experienced. His clothing and the entertainment he provided introduced her to a world that she had only fantasized about. Arguably, if her family was not poor, she may not have been attracted to him in the first place. She carved attention from him to make up for the attention she did not have as a child because her parents were drinking away their economic frustration. Obviously, the social idea that women are ruined by having a boyfriend also played a role because it was the reason her family kicked her out. If the social expectation for women at the time were different, her family would not have disowned her.
Of all the characters in the novel, I feel the most sympathy for Tommie. Maggie’s baby brother died young and was buried clutching a stolen flower. While alive, the child was brought up in an environment controlled by drunk violent adults and was often aggressively jerked and dragged along by his sister Maggie. He was never given the chance to grow up and become his own person. His situation completely determined his life and death. Tommie probably would have lived to be much older if he had different guardians who would have taken better care of him and not have lived in a tenement (where disease spreads rapidly).
Maggie’s fate was the result of her own hopelessness, for it was hopelessness that caused her to become a prostitute leading to her death. The hopelessness, and ultimately Maggie’s fate, can be attributed to Maggie’s mother, Mary. Mothers, especially during the time period, were viewed as the caretakers of the household. In charge of raising the children, the mother must set a positive example for their children to follow. Mary incessantly drank, beat, and yelled at the family. Growing up in such a household, Maggie felt she was destined for such a miserable life if she did not escape. The hope for a savior caused Maggie to instantly fall in love with Pete. Maggie would have never needed to be emotionally dependent on Pete if she felt loved at home by her mother. After Pete dumps Maggie, she decides to return home. Instead of embracing her heart broken daughter, Mary is scolds and sneers at her daughter. By forcing Maggie out of the house, Mary left Maggie truly hopeless. Abandoned by the very people supposed to love and accept you, Maggie was forced to turn to prostitution to support herself leading to her death. In essence, Mary’s failure to provide a positive environment and acceptance for her daughter caused the deep feeling of misery underlining Maggie’s death.
Maggie’s hopelessness, as mentioned before, could also be contributed to the socioeconomic factors surrounding her life. The lack of wealth and poor social status partly drove Maggie’s obsession with Pete’s materialistic features. Buying Maggie drinks and wearing better clothes, Pete gave Maggie a perception of wealth. Maggie undoubtingly loved Pete in part for his wealth. It is possible Maggie loved Pete, for she viewed him as a ticket out of the lower class. Once Pete abandoned Maggie, she was left to believe the low socioeconomic status was what she would forever experience. This fact depressed Maggie, and it contributed to her future occupation and death.
My sympathy lies mostly with Tommie. Being only a babe, Tommie had zero chances to experience life. Being completely innocent of any crime, he has no justification to render his death more acceptable. For the short years little Tommie did live, he had to experience the violent, drunken likes of his family members.
First, I find Crane’s “unsentimental style” rather effective and appropriate for difficult topics like poverty, vagrancy, and prostitution. He isn’t writing a chick flick.
That being said, the fault for Maggie’s fate was undoubtedly her family. So Maggie didn’t come home one night and instead of giving her some space, they publicly denounced her. She couldn’t return home even if she wanted to. Jimmie and the mother created a self-fulfilling prophecy. And of course, when she didn’t come home, they had the pleasure of being right. But the most disgraceful thing that the family did was refuse to take Maggie back. They threw her in the streets thereby killing her. Crane seems to say “too little too late” when the mother finally forgives her daughter in the final scene of the novella.
A few socioeconomic conditions that contributed to Maggie’s death are the few job prospects for women, the patriarchy, and drunkenness.
There was very little work for women. Early on in the novel we see that Maggie was employed in a garment factory but those jobs are scarce and difficult to come by. Prostitution was one of the few dependable jobs available for women in the late 19th century.
The patriarchy also contributed to her death. Maggie was the “ideal” woman of that time—obedient, out of sight, and subservient. In the novella, Maggie was timid and always let her brother Jimmie and Pete take advantage of her. Later on, all men took advantage of her. But it’s important to note that Maggie couldn’t assert herself because this society ostracized strong women.
Drunks are a common theme in this novella. Jimmie, Pete, Maggie’s mother and father are all chronic drunks. Alcohol made her parents abusive and Jimmie followed suit. Drunk Jimmie fought Pete, which was one of the reasons why Pete threw out Maggie. Her life was ruined by the socially acceptable chronic drunkenness of the time.
Clearly, I feel the most sympathy for Maggie. She did nothing wrong. All she did was to have the bad luck to have an awful family, date a drunk, and be screwed by her society. I feel no sympathy for Maggie’s mom and Pete, though I’m a little sad for Jimmie because he had to become the man he was. He was born in the tenements and grew up under a drunk father and an abusive mother. It was either man up or be dominated.
1. I think that the responsibility for Maggie’s fate lies within a little bit of all the characters. They all contributed to Maggie’s demise and death. To start, her family was not very stable and her parents did not have the best interest. Her brother, Jimmie, and her violent father and Mary was always in rage. Maggie decides to take her fate in her own hands and leaves her home to pursue her love life with Pete. However, Nellie interferes with her love. Majority of the characters seem to influence Maggie to some extent. Each of them push her towards leaving, or making love, or living on the streets.
2. Social and economic conditions do play a big role in Maggie’s tragic death. After leaving home and losing her love, Maggie turned to the option of prostitution. Abandoned and alone, she probably had no other option. Prostitution is common among young girls with no employment, family support, or shelter.
3. Although it is very minimal, I feel the most sympathy for Maggie. From the very start, Maggie did not have a supportive family that she would’ve needed to live a happier life. Her brother was aggressive, her father a drunkard, and her mother a temper. However, Maggie was too naïve and optimistic about her love life with Pete. She trusted him with her life and wellbeing. I think given the opportunity, Maggie could have lived longer and a more successful life.
1. Maggie’s mother and brother, Jimmie, lie at fault for her unfortunate fate. Both family members valued alcohol above their family life, causing Maggie to seek her initial escape. When she begins dating Pete as a way of getting away from her dysfunctional household, her mother and brother reject her, claiming she has been ruined. They never once consider their own actions or how they may be effecting Maggie. Instead, she becomes the reason for all of their problems, as they believe she has disgraced the family. Even after Maggie’s relationship with Pete falls apart, they refuse to accept her. Heartbroken and alienated by her own family, Maggie has no choice but to fend for herself in the only way she can: as a prostitute. This dangerous, immoral job leads up to her early death. Had her family given her support while she was alive, she could have avoided falling into this career, possibly saving her life. Instead, her family chose to pride themselves in what little morals they had, treating Maggie as an outcast.
2. Through dialect and description, Crane implies that the Johnson family is Irish. Due to her ethnicity and gender, Maggie is unable to pull herself out of poverty. Few employers will hire Irish workers, and even those who do pay very little. In addition, few jobs are available for women. At one point, she works in a shirt factory. However, history has taught us that factory jobs force people to work for long hours in deplorable conditions for low wages. Being paid only cents per day, Maggie would not have been able to get by. All she has to make a decent profit from is her striking figure, thus, she becomes a prostitute. Even though this job helps her to survive a little longer, it further isolates her from society, lowering her on the social ladder even more. She lacks protection from illness and other people, leading to her untimely demise. Overall, Maggie is unable to prosper due to social and economic conditions, which oppose her gender and ethnicity, two things she cannot change about herself.
3. Out of all the characters in this story, I feel the most sympathy for Maggie. Firstly, she is born into a bad situation. Both of her parents are abusive alcoholics, causing her home life to be very turbulent. Even at a young age, her parents and brother speak to her in a cruel manner. Additionally, she witnesses the death of her baby brother, Jimmie, when she herself is a child. At one point, she sews an intricate lambrequin in an attempt to beautify and unite her household. Her hard work, however, is destroyed by her mother in a drunken fit of rage. Shortly afterwards, she starts dating Pete. Her relationship with Pete begins as an escape, but soon becomes another tragedy to befall her. Pete takes an instant attraction to Maggie’s figure and he begins taking her to shows. Maggie’s family rejects this relationship, causing her to become dependent on Pete. She’s hopeful for a better future, but one night, at a bar, this dream collapses. Pete meets a former love interest, Nellie, and abandons Maggie to pursue her. Without Pete to provide for her, Maggie has to beg her family for support. When they decline, her ultimate downward spiral begins. She is pushed into a worse neighborhood and onto the perilous, lowly career path of prostitution. Finally, she faces the ultimate tragedy: death. She loses her life, which was all she had left at this point. Maggie lives a short life, yet she is constantly suffering. She never gets to live a stable life or have steady relationships. Whenever she thinks she has a fighting chance in the world, she is knocked back onto her knees. Thus, I have great sympathy for her. She only gets to find peace in her untimely death.
Stephen Crane’s novella Maggie: Girl of the Streets, is easily a classic that depicts life in New York City from the perspective of a lower class working family. With Crane’s unique narration of this story, readers are left to determine for themselves, how to respond to this story.
Of course, the major focus of this story lies entirely on the demise of Maggie and how both her, and her environment played a role in her tragic end. I believe that thats responsibility lies entirely with Maggie’s family. The root of her fate stems all the way in the beginning in her childhood. With both parents always intoxicated and aggressive, Maggie’s childhood was experienced entirely in a state of fear. She had no support and no adult figure to look up to and to seek guidance from. Always in a state of constant fear, Maggie sought comfort and security from her older brother. As the siblings grew older, Jimmie had become intolerable and unsupportive for his sister. As a young girl to have to depend on negligent parents and an unsupportive brother, Maggie was doomed to her tragic fate from the beginning.
Not only were the people around Maggie responsible for her demise, the social and economic conditions they were forced into also played a large role. Maggie grew up in a poor neighborhood with money always being tight in the household. If anyone in the family needed money, they had to go out and earn it themselves. The lack of education and funds for higher education forced Jimmie and Maggie to take on dead end labor jobs that brought them nowhere in life. Because Mary Johnson was in no shape to bring in money for the family, Jimmie the main breadwinner had to support the family of three in his low income truck job. This constant pressure to provide for the family caused Jimmie to become bitter towards Maggie. So when Maggie is kicked out of the house by her mother, she did not have the funds to go anywhere else. Desperate for money and shelter, this caused Maggie to resort to prostitution. In a family that depended on low education labor jobs and was unsupportive of each other, Maggie’s life was stuck at a dead end.
Easily, I would feel the most sympathy for Maggie. Maggie was always in need of a lifeline and a figure to lean on. Maggie’s tragic end was caused solely on the lack of help she desperately needed. All the other characters in the story ruined themselves because of their own ignorance and self pride. All the other characters were independent enough and capable of leading a good life for themselves. Maggie was not, and did not receive any of the help she needed.
1) Where does responsibility for Maggie’s fate lie? With Maggie herself? With Pete? With Maggie’s mother, father, or brother? Nellie?
Maggie, who early on in the novella seemed as the only glimmer of hope in the dysfunctional and alcoholic permeated family, woefully dies by either murder or suicide, a detail intentionally made hazy by the author Stephen Crane in order for the reader to create his/her own opinion about Maggie’s tragic fate. Undoubtedly, Maggie’s fate is extremely heartbreaking and responsibility lies primarily on the environment that all the characters jointly live in that, in synergy, causes Maggie’s downfall. Maggie’s whole family does not know life any other way other than drinking, cursing at one another, and working menial jobs. Thus, it is no surprise that Maggie, who has hope for a greater way of living, to latch onto Pete and assume that he can provide the rich way of life that she desperately desires. Pete, who eventually will leave Maggie as he is enamored for a former lover, Nellie, can be the character in the novella who is the easiest to point fingers at leading to Maggie’s fall. However, Maggie’s downfall was inevitable due to the environment she had lived in and Pete’s interaction with her was only a mere catalyst for her untimely death.
2) What role do social and economic conditions play in Maggie’s tragic end?
In my opinion, social and economic conditions play the largest and most formidable role in Maggie’s tragic end. If Maggie were to grow up in a middle-class or affluent family, instead of one that lived in impecunious manner, the conditions she had to live through would not be present and she would have probably lived a normal life in which she works, marries, has kids etc. However, due to state of her social conditions, such as both parents being alcoholics, brother and father dying early in her life, and the mere fact of growing up in a tenement surrounded by little hope for the future, it is seemingly inevitable that Maggie turns for prostitution in order to survive and prematurely dies by either murder or suicide. Had Maggie’s family had been financially stable, Maggie would not rely on prostitution for money, and thus her economic conditions largely impact her tragic end. Additionally, her social conditions also played an important aspect to her fall. Living in family in which her mother is frequently referred as the devil, her brother is an alcoholic who shows little care for her, and her father figure is both deplorable and lacking due to his early death, it is no shock that Maggie’s fate is bounded for one with not much to hope for.
3) Which of the characters to you feel the most sympathy for? Why?
Out of all the character in the novella, I feel the most sympathy for Tommie. All the characters in the novella have a chance to live in their conditions to see if they could make the most out of their lives, but ultimately all of them fail. However, Tommie, who prematurely dies as a baby, lacks even the chance to grow up and live life. Tommie doesn’t even get the chance to experience life because of the conditions he is brought up into the world are so harsh that they restrict him to even live. Had he been brought up in a family that could provide for him, Tommie may have been able to actually live through the beautiful gift of life.
1. I think there’s more than one character that is responsible for Maggie’s fate. In a sense, it was Maggie’s fault because she chose to leave her house and go with Pete. She must have known that disowning her family would have consequences. However, her mom and brother have a huge role in her fate as well. Her mother was not loving or caring in any way towards her daughter when she was living at home. After Maggie disowned them, her brother turned against her too. Both Mary and Jimmie did not sympathize for Maggie and did not show her the love she needed at her darkest moments, resulting her to leave again and meet her ill fate.
2. Social and economic roles play an important part near the tragic ending. Her desire to leave her world of poverty caused her to go with Pete in the first place. When that did not work out, and she came back home, she was shamed in front of society by her own family. She was held to the lowest standard and as a woman of poverty, the only job she could hold in the end was that of a prostitute. Society did not allow her to rebuild herself, she didn’t get a second chance.
3. I definitely feel the most sympathetic to Maggie because all she has known her whole life is poverty and when she dreams to get out of that hell, she is thrown into a whole other hell of a world. After being seduced by Pete, she is abandoned by him, her mom and her brother, and then even a man with a face of benevolence shudders and turns away from her. She is cast aside by everyone and is loved by none. On top of that, society does not give her any options to create a new life. The only job she can hold is that of a prostitute and as one can infer, that leads her to an ill-fated death. I sympathize with her because she is cast away by not only her family, but also by society and its rules.
In a sense, all characters are responsible for Maggie’s fate. Each contributed in a different way that lead Maggie different to circumstances where she ultimately made her own decisions leading to her fate. In another philosophical sense, one can only blame himself/herself for their own outcome. This is the ideology I choose accept for my everyday life. Though it is true that there are some things that one simply can’t control, it is also true that there is a lot that one can control. Maggie made a conscious decision to leave home and live with Pete. She knew the consequences that her actions would bring her. I also don’t believe that Maggie’s situation dictated that she become a prostitute. Though it might have been an easier decision because of her unfortunate circumstances, she still had the choice. If she had decided to earn wealth a different way, her fate may have been different.
Money may not buy happiness, but the lack of it definitely contributes to Maggie’s death. There are many moments throughout the short novel that I can’t imagine would be a problem if wealth is not an issue. For example, right when the novel starts, Jimmie is in a street fight in an impoverished Bowery neighborhood. He would not be in this situation if the family was wealthy and lived in a quiet neighborhood. Much of the aggression shown by the rest of the family is also contributed to their social class. One can imagine the bad temper that comes from coming home from a long day of physical labor. Maggie’s decision to leave her family for Pete is in large part because she wanted to escape poverty in hopes of promises of wealth.
Because the story is mainly focused on Maggie, I can only feel most sympathetic to Maggie. She is born into bad circumstances and finds it impossible to move up in the social hierarchy. These circumstances lead to bad decisions on her part. However I’m sure if the story elaborate more on the other characters and their struggles, I would feel more sympathetic towards them as well.
1. The responsibility of Maggie’s fate lies with her mother, however, the events that unfolded in the book could be the cause of the actions of many characters. Primarily, I would say it is the mother’s fault. Alcoholism to an extent is uncontrollable at a point, but the consumption of alcohol in such great volume which ultimately leads to alcoholism and the depression and rage involved with it are controllable, and should have been handled more responsibly by Maggie’s mother. She should not have let herself get to the point of alcoholism, which then resulted in her beating her children. Maggie did indeed make the decision to be with Pete, however, this decision is not grounds for the mother’s kicking Maggie out. It’s not even like there was a legitimate reason why Maggie was kicked out. It was the social tension and the anger against Pete which caused Maggie’s mother to throw her out. So, if she was never thrown out, Maggie would not have eventually turned to the streets. Furthermore, the book concludes with a poignant scene with the mother. This end to the novella is further indication the ultimate responsibility was the mother’s. As I mentioned before, the responsibility technically could rest on multiple characters because there were various events that had to take place for Maggie to eventually turn to the streets. If Jimmie hadn’t attacked Pete, Pete and Maggie’s relationship likely would have lasted longer, and Maggie would not have been without a guardian of sorts.
2. Socioeconomic conditions absolutely played a crucial role in how everything played out. Even today in many areas of New York City we see events like this occur; the lack of financial and parental security is often a reason why many youths today are leading unpredictable and dangerous lives, and this novella is just one example of this unfortunate reality. Her social situation with her mother and father, and her lack of economic stability caused her to leave home and be with Pete and enjoy the seemingly luxurious things he provided for her. Then, because she had no home to turn to later, she turned to prostitution, which led to her being in a dangerous situation which caused her to be killed.
3. I feel the most sympathy for Maggie because of the very fact that she put herself into various situations in order to escape her reality. She entered a relationship with Pete, she had to deal with an alcoholic mother, poverty, and an environment that did not breed a proper upbringing. All of these things led to her fate. So, Maggie has my sympathy.
1) Where does responsibility for Maggie’s fate lie? With Maggie herself? With Pete? With Maggie’s mother, father, or brother? Nellie?
I believe Maggie’s tragic fate is caused by her own actions when she decided to leave her family with Pete and never returned. It’s understandable why Maggie would want to escape her family after growing up in such a violent and unloving environment but I believe Maggie should have realized why she was so timid and so different in comparison to her family members. Maggie has always been the core of the family that kept her siblings and her parents together under the same roof night after night despite their conflicts. Crane first shows us the childhood reality for both Jimmie and Maggie. Jimmie always got into fights and Maggie would always stick with Jimmie for protection whenever their parents viciously fought. As time grew on, we see that nothing has changed except for the absence of their father and their little brother, Tommie, who both died. Maggie was still the one who took care of the family, not only physically but mentally and emotionally as well. Mary is still an alcoholic and is clearly not the ideal mother but neither is Jimmie, the brother who constantly found trouble wherever he goes. Maggie kept these two in line, despite their terrible habits. When Maggie left, the bomb went off in the Johnson family and Maggie was no longer there to contain it or to fix it. As Maggie tried to return to her family, she couldn’t reverse the damage that has been done and thus her fate was finalized after a realization of her mistakes.
2) What role do social and economic conditions play in Maggie’s tragic end?
The social and economic conditions play a great role in fostering Maggie to make her wrong decisions. Growing up in an alcoholic and violence stricken household made Maggie long for peace and security. Thus when she met Pete and found him to be a gentleman like she had never met before, despite the obviousnesses that Pete has no intentions to stay with her forever, she decided this was a chance to escape the harsh reality of her dysfunctional family. Thought Maggie never really stressed the importance of living a lavish and luxurious life, after being with Pete and witnessing how beautifully sophisticated a woman can be if she was able to afford it changed Maggie’s original humble views on herself. She was a pretty face already but she wanted to dress beautifully as well. By having Pete appear in her life as her prince charming to escape from her poverty and abusive family, Maggie romanticizes a perfect and comfortable life that she has always longed for to escape reality and thus is her ultimate and inevitable downfall when we learn about her mysterious and unknown death.
3) Which of the characters to you feel the most sympathy for? Why?
I sympathize Mary and Tommie the most because they are two of the most neglected Johnson family members. Mary, the amazonian matriarch, is not really as strong as she seems. We know from early on that the Johnson father was not much of helping hand around the house and caused Mary and her family a lot a fighting and unhappiness. When the Johnson father eventually dies and Mary is left with her remaining daughter and son, she takes it into account to drink even more than she did in the past and continue to bicker with her children. When Maggie decided to leave home with Pete, Mary may seem as if she brushed it off by wishing Maggie nothing but the worst and to damn her to hell. Yet, that is not the case. As any mother would, Mary constantly talks about Maggie leaving her family. Though she might call Maggie a disgrace, the fact that Jimmie doesn’t say a word about his mother’s complaints shows that even he understands that Mary is trying to cope with a difficult loss. Crane even ends the novella with Mary’s ironic words, saying that she’ll forgive Maggie even if she comes home because in the end Maggie is still her own flesh and blood and she is still a mother. Sadly that is not the case and ironically only Mary and Jimmie remorse Maggie’s death despite their family conflicts.
Tommie is also a character I pity not only because of his early death but because what he experienced in his short life. As Crane describes, “He went away in a white, insignificant coffin, his small waxen hand clutching a flower that the girl, Maggie, had stolen from an Italian…The inexperienced fibres of the boy’s eyes were hardened at an early age”. Tommie viewed nothing but the Johnson family violence and was never considered to be a human as well. We only know he was dragged around by Maggie through the streets and he couldn’t comprehend what was going on in his household. What should have been his safe haven, his family hardened little Tommie’s heart and eyes and drove him to death.
1. Maggie’s mother, Mary, is to blame for Maggie’s tragic demise. From birth, Maggie was raised in a toxic and violent environment. Her parents, both alcoholics, were far more concerned with drinking themselves into unconsciousness than they were with caring for their children. While Maggie’s father was hardly home because he did his drinking at bars, Mary drank at home and wreaked terrifying abuse on her children in the process. Maggie’s vicious mother was widowed early in the novella, and thus she became head of the household. I cannot blame Maggie for seeking a better life for herself. All she had ever known was neglect and formidable torment. Maggie fantasizes a life of splendor with Pete, and her desperate hope becomes a form of escapism. Maggie, having never experienced love or affection, was easily seduced by Pete. When Pete leaves Maggie and she is forced to return home only to face the rejection of her mother and brother, a life as a prostitute becomes her way of surviving. I cannot blame Jimmie, Maggie’s brother who also becomes an alcoholic, for rejecting Maggie. Jimmie was raised in the same conditions Maggie was; however, he did not practice escapism the way Maggie did. Instead he was ultimately swayed by the corrupt influence of his mother. Therefore, I believe that the responsibility for Maggie’s death lies fully with Mary.
2. Social and economic conditions play a major role in Maggie’s tragic end. Maggie grew up in poverty, and so she dreamed of living an ostentatious lifestyle of grandeur. Maggie’s motives are not difficult to understand. Acting out of desperation is a common and unfortunate mistake that even today’s impoverished youth tend to make. After Maggie was rejected by her family, she resulted to a demeaning life as a hooker. Ironically, her ultimate lifestyle was a far stretch from the one that she dreamt of. This leads me to assume that the social conditions in place at the time prevented Maggie from working a legal job that would allow her to make ends meet. Due to social conditions, Maggie decided that her only chance of surviving was through prostitution.
3. I feel the most sympathy for Maggie. A part of me feels sympathetic towards Tommie; however, I also see Tommy as the only character in the novella that was able to find peace. Mary’s children had two options: to either stay with her or to leave the house. As seen with Jimmie, the first option would have undoubtedly resulted in corrupting trauma. Whereas the latter option, as seen with Maggie, would have resulted in having to face seemingly unbeatable social and economic conditions. It appears that the children were doomed from the beginning. I am happy that Tommie never became an alcoholic, and that he didn’t have to make the decision between the two aforementioned options. Maggie, however, did what she could to escape. Her efforts were ultimately unsuccessful, and thus my sympathy lies with her.
1) I believe the responsibility for Maggie’s fate lies with her entire family but mostly with her mother. Her parents were horrible role models always fighting and hitting each other. Her brother was no better as he was always fighting in the streets. I find ironic that in the first scenes of the book the parents are mad at Jimmie for fighting but they also clearly fight all the time; so much so that their neighbor, the old lady asks which parent is beating which this time. As the father puts it when explaining why he’s always at the bar, the house is a “regular living hell” What he fails to acknowledge is that he too has a part in creating this horrible atmosphere. Just as he sought an escape from the constant fighting so too did Maggie. As a young girl she had no way of escaping so when Pete comes along offering to take her out to all these entertaining shows and places it’s no wonder she jumps on the offer to escape her gloomy existence.
I believe her mother is particularly at fault because when Maggie does come home realizing that Pete hadn’t really loved her mother refuses to let her in. Her mother has the audacity to act personally affronted by her daughter’s choice to leave home. She ironically repeats how well she raised Maggie and questioning how she could do such a thing when she was brought up so well by such a good mother. I think she let her pride in her reputation which was already in shambles blind her from the blessing that her daughter had come home. I think she only realized the error in her ways when she hears of Maggie’s passing.
2) As a working class woman the only time she spent out of the house was at work. She couldn’t afford on her own the delights that Pete offered her. Her work place was as dreary as her home. She described as gloomy and she was without friends because the factory was no place for gossip but for work. This is evident in the narrator’s repetition of the phrase the factory owner liked to use to reprimand the women for getting to chatty. Even with the work she did she could not afford the lifestyle she craved. Pete’s interest in her seemed the only way for her to become more than her parents had amounted too and so she took his offer.
3) I feel the most sympathy for Maggie because I feel like she doesn’t deserve what happened her. She wasn’t like the rest of her family always picking fights, asking for trouble. She never asked for trouble just for excitement and affection. She was to young and naïve to see that Pete only wanted her for her physical beauty. She believed him when he told her he loved, so easily fooled because no one in her family had never expressed genuine affection for; so how was she to know if Pete meant the sentiment when no one in her life had before. Also never knowing love before Pete made it all the more difficult for her to cope with his leaving her. The only love she ever had suddenly is revealed to be an emotional mirage conjured by her deprived heart. Then not having to turn to for help recovering was the final draw. Once she was turned out from her home there was no way for her to recover.
I think that Maggie’s mother was mainly responsible for Maggie’s fate whether we like it or not. Maggie’s unfortunate and tragic fate lies on the basis of the environment in which she grew up. From the very beginning of the book, we can see how destructive her family life is especially the deleterious effects of the actions of her mother and father. Her mother was always in a drunken rage and was always fighting with her father. Maggie, fearful, would always retreat to her bedroom. Clearly, growing up in an environment as hostile as this, Maggie never felt safe or secure. So when events in her life unfolded and she met Pete who made her feel treated the way she should be treated, she stayed with him which eventually led to her downfall. It wouldn’t be fair to say that responsibility for Maggie’s fate lies on herself because her upbringing was an extremely important factor in how she would end up in life. Ironically, when Maggie left the house and stayed with Pete, her mother said “When a girl is bringed up deh way I bringed up Maggie, how kin she go teh deh devil” (13). The question should be how she wouldn’t go to Pete seeing the way she was brought up.
Both social and economic conditions played a large factor in Maggie’s tragic ending. Socially, her family was always chaotic and destructive. There was never a sense of comfort or joy she derived from being with her family and so when an opportunity to get a taste of happiness comes up, she takes it. But unfortunately, being with Pete and the consequent events following that led to her unfortunate downfall. Nell was also a large determinant of her fate in that she was the one who convinced Pete to leave Maggie. However, Nell can’t take the full blame because seeing how Pete was able to be persuaded by Nell so easily, he would’ve eventually abandoned her on his own accord sooner or later as well. Economically, Maggie immediately began being self-conscious and embarrassed by the dilapidated and poor state of her tenement when Pete visited Jimmie. She also worked at a collar and cuff factory but she felt suffocated by the idea of what working there meant for her future. With these two things combined together, she was blinded by what being with Pete could provide for her. Especially after having glimpsed into a life so lavish and luxurious as Pete’s, she was ravished by living a life like that forever. All of this further encouraged her to be with Pete which subsequently leads to her downfall.
Out of all the characters, I feel the most sympathy for Tommie and Maggie. Tommie was just an innocent baby who was dragged around and badly looked after. He was just an innocent bystander in all the altercations in the beginning of the book and unfortunately, he passes away for an unstated reason. I also felt bad for Maggie because she grew up in such a hostile environment with a mother and father who didn’t bring her up in the way she should’ve been raised. It was not a loving family and she never had a person to rely on. I also didn’t see anything wrong in her being with Pete and I felt like her mother greatly exaggerated the situation by saying that Maggie had gone with the “devil.” It all seemed uncalled for and all she wanted was a better life for herself but all her progress towards that life was interrupted by her mother and her drunken rages. She was never a bad child yet almost everyone in the tenement viewed her as some rebellious girl who ran away with some man. Overall, Tommie and Maggie had the most unfortunate endings.
The responsibility for Maggie’s ultimate fate lies initially with Maggie herself, but then crumbles at the hands of those around her. At the beginning of the story, she shows incredible resilience and perseveres through the incredible adversity that comes on her family. Her admirable qualities form a contrast to her deteriorating surrounding environment. In spite of this, her family turned on her. Her mother, Mary, makes drunk accusations of Maggie turning to the devil, which her brother, Jimmie, supports. One would imagine that this resonated with Maggie – the thought of her family not supporting her. She ran to the only person she had left, her lover Pete, who is able to console her for some time. Until, one night, a mischievous mistress named Nellie encounters both of them at a bar and convinces Pete to leave Maggie, leaving her alone in sorrow. The combined exodus of Maggie’s family and friends leads to her downfall; thus, she becomes Maggie: Girl of the Streets.
Undoubtedly, socioeconomic factors during the middle-late 19th century contributed significantly to Maggie’s unfortunate fate. Industrialization was just beginning, and could not support the mass waves of immigration into New York City. Resources and job opportunities were too scarce to support the amount of low-pay workers that inhabited the city. As a result, many poor families were subjected to awful living conditions and unemployment, Maggie’s being one example. Her parents resorted to alcohol to cope with their struggles, so she lacked role models and leaders in her life to guide her through adversity. Her friends were also poor and likely had their own problems to worry about before they could help Maggie. Overall, Maggie’s friends and family all had to battle social and economic troubles before they could save Maggie from a life in the streets.
The character I sympathize the most with in this story is Maggie. Her fate was largely a product of her surroundings, which she had no say in determining. Moreover, Maggie actually showed great personal qualities of perseverance and resilience through the beginning of the story. She did what she could to stay strong through tough times, she can’t be blamed for her family’s decision to abandon her. Even after that, she sought help from Pete to avoid living on the streets. Maggie continuously tries to prevent her situation from worsening, but fate eventually defeats her will.
1. I think the responsibility for Maggie’s fate can be equally divided between Maggie and her mother. They both made choices that ultimately lead to Maggie’s ultimate demise and without the combination of the choices of these two characters Maggie’s end would not have resulted in such a tragic way. It is partially Maggie’s fault because she chose to give up her life with her family and instead live out her fantasy of wealth and luxury with Pete ,with whom she saw better domestic life in comparison to her own life, despite her Mother’s warning of Pete being a “devil”.
It is partially her mother’s fault because she chose to construct a negative image of Maggie and her future with Pete and she was not willing to let go of this image to even help her own daughter. When Maggie decided to go live with Pete, her mother saw this as a betrayal and basically disowned her even though Maggie’s left her home partially due to her toxic home environment caused by her mother’s drunken episodes and violent outbursts. When Maggie returned after the end of her relationship with Pete, her mother was unable to let go of the image that she had constructed in her mind of Maggie as a girl who betrayed her family by going to live with the Devil and thus she was unable to accept Maggie back into the family. This ultimately led to Maggie choosing a life of prostitution an dying on the streets.
2. Social and economic conditions play a huge role in Maggie’s tragic death because they contribute a lot to her decisions that cause her untimely death. They drew Maggie to Pete who grew up with a contrasting lifestyle to Maggie. He does not live in poverty like Maggie does nor does he suffer the social inhibitions that Maggie suffers from and this draws Maggie to him because she wants his lifestyle. Maggie wants the luxury and entertainments that Pete provides for her and she gives up her whole lifestyle for this new future with Pete not because she loves him but because he has the lifestyle that she desires. When Pete dumps her for another girl all her hopes of achieving this lifestyle are crushed and Maggie is reduced to poverty and prostitution on the streets. Also, society in the early 1900s did not give a lot of opportunities for women to support themselves financially. After being thrown out by Pete, Maggie is forced into prostitution because her society did not allow her to fight for herself as an individual or support herself financially in a respectable manner, so she had to be reduced to serving men as a submissive in order to live.
3. The person that I felt the most sympathy for was Tommie. Tommie was an innocent casualty in this toxic relationship between Maggie and the people around her. He was just a baby and he had no concept of right or wrong and was totally innocent of any crimes. However, he, I believe, gets the worst fate in the story. Unlike Maggie who receives a moment of happiness with Pete, Tommie had to live with his drunken, violent parents until his untimely death. This ,I think, this is the biggest tragedy of all in this story, not Maggie’s death.
Where the responsibility for Maggie’s fate lies is a very interesting question to ponder. Since “Maggie: A Girl of the Streets” is a tragedy, it wouldn’t be farfetched to assume that Stephen Crane wants us to believe that her fate was set in stone the moment she was born. As the title suggests before even flipping to the first page, Maggie was destined to be a “girl of the streets” and no intention or action could have impeded that from occurring. However, if we do not believe simple fate is responsible for her outcome, another clear and equally valid explanation is presented to us. The responsibility does not lie on any one person of the story, but rather in the circumstances in which the family lives. It’s simple to point fingers Maggie’s mother Mary and say she’s at fault, justifying this accusation with the hellish lexicon used to describe her throughout the novel. However, it is important to ask ourselves why she is the way she is, and the answer to that is because of the circumstances of her upbringing. Each member of the whole family was the way they were (drunk, violent, romantic, dead…) because of the poverty and social forces at play. So where does the responsibility lie? I’d say Bowery.
As I just discussed in the previous paragraph, the social and economic conditions play every role in Maggie’s tragic end. They influenced every aspect of her upbringing and shaped her desire to escape to a better life. This desire for a better life is what pushed her to drop everything for Pete, an important step bringing her closer to her fate. If circumstances were different, and Maggie grew up just a little more comfortably with parents who did not need alcohol to escape the misery, then I believe the novel would have ended very differently; Maggie would have not needed to risk everything for the possibility of a better life, and perhaps upwards social mobility would have been possible. Social and economic conditions influence every aspect of human life, especially in cities where those influences are present in every direction at an arm’s reach.
Since this book is a tragedy, it is only right for the reader to feel the most sympathy for Maggie as her tragic end is the focus. She was born into a certain set of circumstances which destined her for a life of misery. Her attempts to stay sentimental, innocent, and hopeful throughout the novel only reinforce the sympathy we have for her. Her desire for a better life and the risk she took leaving with Pete were the most heartbreaking parts of the book because, despite her best intentions, they completely backfired on her. How could you not sympathize with a failed dreamer?