The Address

Summary:

The Address is a narrative taking place in times succeeding World War II in which the main character speaks about the childhood possessions her mother had given to a friend shortly after World War II began. In the instance at which the quoted extract was taken, the main character had finally been reunited with the numerous lost possessions of her upbringing. To begin with, the most obvious conclusion that can be drawn from the opening sentence of the passage is that the first emotions experienced by the main character are fear and apprehension. As she walked into the living room, she was reunited with all of the belongings with which she had grown up and hadn’t seen since before the war, which had ended a number of years beforehand. This fear is quite understandable, for earlier on in the story the author indicates that the narrator is the sole member of her family that hadn’t perished during the hostilities. For this reason, being exposed to these quaint possessions would bring back a flood of memories, memories that associate themselves with bonds that had long since melted away and with experiences related to people she had held dear before they had fallen victim to the cruelties of war. So, in this particular moment, the main character’s past belongings became the source of great discomfort and uneasiness. When the narrator proceeds to say that she found herself in a room that she both knew and didn’t, she elaborate a bit more on the feeling of apprehension mounting within her. Earlier on in the account, she recalls a conversation she had had with her mother when she first realized that she had been spiriting away most of their belongings to an “old friend”. The main character’s mother then told her the address to which their possessions were being smuggled and that she would do well to remember it. So, when the narrator finally arrived to ascertain the location of her lost belongings, she was met instead with a myriad of recollections of past times spent with others, before the war. She knew all of the material objects that could be found in the room; however, she could no longer recognize the sentimental and historical backgrounds that had once related to them. Finally, evidence can be found in the last sentence of the passage that the element the main character had most likely found the most disturbing was the alienation of all her possessions. Here, in this new home, surrounded by a completely different family, the narrator’s past belongings had become a big part of the lives of other people. They had become a repository of memories and experiences for not only her but for this other family. As a consequence, in the mind of the narrator, her belongings had been transformed because they no longer fit the roles that she had attributed to them growing up. In this new house, they were used in different ways by different people, completely severing the tie that the narrator had had with them.

1.      Who is Mrs. Dorling? Do you justify her behaviour in the story?

Ans. Mrs. Dorling is an acquaintance of Mrs. S, the narrator’s mother.

In the story Mrs Dorling exploits Mrs S’s fears and insecurity during the war. She insists Mrs S and took away all her valuable things after giving assurance that she would keep them safe until the war was over. In fact, Mrs Dorling had no intentions of returning the valuables as she was sure that Mrs S and her family would not survive the war. So when the narrator, Mrs S’s daughter, went to Mrs Dorling’s house to claim those articles to which her mother’s precious memories were associated, she even pretended not to recognize her. Instead of returning those articles to the narrator, she shamelessly used them which actually belonged to the narrator’s mother and also behaved rudely to the narrator. So, in the context of the above Mrs Dorling’s behaviour cannot be justified.        

2.       "Of all the things I had to forget, that would be the easiest." What does the speaker mean by ‘that’? What is its significance in the story?

Ans. The word "that" in the above mentioned line stands for ‘The Address’ of Mrs Dorling, number 46 Marconi Street. The story moves around the address which is also the title of the story. It is significant because, the address was very important for the narrator in the beginning of the story although, at the end she resolves to forget it as she wants to break off with the painful past and move on with the present into the future.

3.       "I was in a room I knew and did not know", says the narrator in the story 'The Address'. What prompted her to make this observation?

Ans. The narrator found her in the midst of things she was familiar with and which she did not want to see again. However, she found these things in a strange atmosphere where everything was lying in a tasteless manner. The ugly furniture and the muggy smell created the feeling as if; she did not know the room.

4.       Why did the narrator go to Number 46, Marconi Street?

Ans. This was the address of Mrs. Dorling, the woman who had carried the valuable items from the narrator’s mother to her home giving assurance to keep them in her safe custody during war time. Before dying narrator’s mother gave this address to the narrator. So the narrator went there to claim the belongings of her mother.

5.       Justify the title of the short story “The Address”.

Ans.  Marga Minco very aptly titled the story 'The Address'. The narrator and her mother were victims of war. They had to flee from their house leaving all their nice belongings with Mrs Dorling after getting an assurance from her for the safe custody of those things during the war. The narrator’s mother had told the address of Mrs Dorling 46, Marconi Street to her daughter before she died during the war. When the war was over the narrator came back and went to Mrs Dorling’s address in search of those 'nice things' with which the fond memories of her mother were associated. But when the narrator reached there, she found all those things were lying in a very tasteless manner. Mrs Dorling even pretends not to recognize her nor did she show any intention of returning those articles which she was using shamelessly.

Sadly then the narrator feels this address has no meaning at all as the precious memories of the true owner were no longer cherished at their new address. The narrator in the end resolves to forget 46, Marconi Street forever. Hence, the title The Address is quite appropriate and bears a definite meaning for the story.

6.       How did narrator come to know at last she was right that it was Dorling’s house?

Ans. The narrator came to know this because from the moment Mrs Dorling opened her door, the narrator saw that she was wearing her mother's old cardigan. When she came to check on the house later, Mrs Dorling’s daughter opened the door and from the hallway to the sitting room everything that once belonged to her mother was kept either as a decor piece or was used. Even their slightly burned tablecloth was used. That is how she came to know that she was at the right place.