Carol Shields-The Stone Diaries

Through the writings of Carol Shields, "one is not only reminded of why literature matters, but also why individual lives, and forces which make up those lives, matter a great deal"(Jacobs). Carol Shields, a woman born and educated in Oak Park, Illinois in 1935, and immigrated to Canada in 1957, has marked herself in history through her award winning novel, The Stone Diaries. Through her style of writing, use of characterization, and use of theme and symbolism, Carol Shields has earned herself the recognition as "the master of the perfect sentence"(Rabinowitz 1996).

One cannot read The Stone Diaries without being struck by the various styles in which it is written. From an autobiographical point of view, Shields has created a character named Daisy Goodwill, who narrates her life story by flipping back and forth between first and third person: "Her gentle diction, her matter-of-fact delivery and almost emotionless tone are reflective of Daisy's life. The presentation style skillfully mirrors the tone and feeling of the text"(AA.B). Through this form of narration, the reader is kept in between the internal and external life of the character. Shields use of narration is amplified by her u

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As an example, Shields creates The Stone Diaries into a novel that seems merely to be an autobiography of an "unremarkable Manitoba woman"(Penfield 1998), but the novel is really about the lives of people that are absorbed and disappear into the lives of the world around them. Through her various styles of writing, Shields leaves her trademark in all that she writes. Shields does not try to create the stereotypical heroine; she makes her characters become heroes of their own existence by giving them the importance of individuality. Carol Shields, a woman "who began as a miniaturist, has come full bloom with this latest exploration of domestic plentitude and paucity; she's entered a m!

ature, luminous period, devising a style that develops an earlier whimsical fabulism into the hard-edged lyricism perfect for the ambitious bicultural exploration she undertakes"(Kirkus 1993).

Carol Shields is not only recognized for her style of writing, but as well for her use of characterization. Through this use of indifference, it allows the reader to be able to relate to the character on a more personal basis. Like a flower, Daisy's life was depicted from birth to maturity, and then to motherhood; it was in her flowers where she found inner peace and happiness.

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**Bibliography**

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Approximate Word count = 1105
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

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