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Monica Albertson on Welty’s “A Visit of Charity”
I’m not sure which character I should be sympathizing
with in Welty’s story. Right away I disliked the girl
because she wasn’t really interested in seeing the old
women. I don’t know why the story is called “A Visit of
Charity,” since she just wanted to get more points. And
yet I have to admit that when I was younger I was sort of
like her. I remember one time that my church youth group
had to sing Christmas carols at an old folks’ home, and I
was uneasy about having to meet all these ancient men and
women I didn’t know, some of whom could barely walk or
talk. It’s funny, because I was always comfortable around
my grandparents, but I have to confess that being around
all those old people at once spooked me a little. I
smiled a lot at them and joined in the singing and helped
hand out candy canes afterward. But I couldn’t wait to
leave. Once I did, I felt proud of myself for going
there, but I guess I also felt a little guilty because I
didn’t really want to be there at all. So, maybe I’m
being hypocritical when I criticize the girl in Welty’s
story for insensitivity. Anyway, I expected that Welty
would present in a good light any old women that Marian
encountered, just to emphasize that Marian was being
unkind and that it’s really sad for people to have to
live in a retirement home (or senior citizens center or
whatever they’re calling such places nowadays). And yet
the two old women she meets are cranky and unpleasant.
SOURCE: John Schilb and John Clifford, Making Arguments about
Literature: A Compact Guide and Anthology
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Even the receptionist doesn’t come off all that good. If
I were Marian, I probably would have left even sooner
than she did! Maybe Welty didn’t want us to sympathize
with anyone in the story, and maybe that’s OK. I tend to
want a story to make at least some of the characters sympathetic, but maybe it’s unfair of me to demand that.
Still, I’m wondering if I’m not appreciating Welty’s
characters enough. When the two old women argue, should
we side with one of them, or are we supposed to be bothered by them both? Are we supposed to think any better of
the girl by the time she leaves? The apple she eats immediately made me think of the Adam and Eve story, but I
don’t know what I’m supposed to do with that parallel.
SOURCE: John Schilb and John Clifford, Making Arguments about
Literature: A Compact Guide and Anthology