Describe the character of Lorna in Muriel Sparks short story You should have seen the mess

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Describe the character of Lorna in Muriel Spark’s short story

“You should have seen the mess”

What would you say are her main characteristics?

Lorna is a materialistic, critical, obsessive clean freak, who passes judgement on her acquaintances and their surroundings within minutes of meeting them.

Lorna focuses mainly on hygiene and image concerns such as “Dust on the window ledges, which were chipped.” when describing the grammar school she did not get into. She also refers back to her 'secondary modern school' as being new and more hygienic, making a statement that it was "light and airy, and the walls were painted with a bright washable gloss". I get the impression that she would rather sacrifice the better education in favour of a nice, clean school with all the mod cons, I learn later on that this is largely due to her upbringing.

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Moving to a later time in Lorna's life, you learn that her priorities do not change; you see this during her first encounter as a worker. She exclaims, "You should have seen the mess!!" Going on to comment about the dust and the untidiness of the workplace. This being so important, that it changes her initial positive approach to the new job, boasting that it was "a first class start" that both her parents were pleased about. In the end, Lorna manipulatively leaks to her parents that the cups were cracked and the facilities were unclean, so that some of ...

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