What similarities exist between "The Poor Relation's Story" by Charles Dickens and "The Life of Ma Parker" by Katherine Mansfield? What conclusions can be drawn from these similarities about the literature of social reform?

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J.Hart

What similarities exist between "The Poor Relation's Story" by Charles Dickens and "The Life of Ma Parker" by Katherine Mansfield? What conclusions can be drawn from these similarities about the literature of social reform?

The literature of social reform is a very different to other areas of literature in that it concentrates on one particular message ignoring all others, whilst other literature is generally aimed at providing a topic which can be interpreted in many ways. The message dispensed by the literature of social reform is one of social improvement. Its aim is to make people stop and think about the bigger picture for a change instead of their own personal affairs. Once that has been achieved, perhaps they will be motivated enough to take action and so raise society's moral level. This idea of public motivation is achieved by a number of methods.

Both of the stories are told using a narrative platform of just a few hours. It is no coincidence that the same technique has been deployed in both stories. Both Katherine Mansfield and Charles Dickens are trying to make a point. If someone can tell you of their routine day in, day