Mary’s Ayah Character Analysis in The Secret Garden

Mary's Indian nursemaid. Mary thinks little of Ayah when she's in the woman’s care and often slaps her when she's upset or angry. However, as Mary begins to grow and develop at Misselthwaite, she gains some degree of empathy for Ayah and even sings some of the woman’s lullabies to Colin. Ayah is the first to die of cholera when it sweeps through Mary's parents' household.

Mary’s Ayah Character Timeline in The Secret Garden

The timeline below shows where the character Mary’s Ayah appears in The Secret Garden. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...going to parties, and never wanted a baby. Mary's mother gave newborn Mary to an Ayah, and for the next ten years, Mary is kept out of the way of the... (full context)

...and is angry when she sees that the servant waiting to help her isn't her Ayah. The woman looks frightened and only tells Mary that her Ayah can't come. Throughout the... (full context)

Mary soon learns that cholera broke out, and the wailing meant that her Ayah died. Servants start dying one after the other, and those that don't die flee. On... (full context)

...people will take care of her and let her have her way, just as her Ayah did. First, she goes to an English clergyman's house. He has five children who are... (full context)

...India never spoke to her as though she were an equal. Mary often slapped her Ayah, but she wonders if Martha might slap back. Mary tells her she's a strange servant. (full context)

...if Mary can't dress herself. When Mary learns what Martha asked, she explains that her Ayah dressed her. (full context)

...what happens next is the work of Magic, which she first heard about in her Ayah's stories. A gust of wind blows the ivy where the robin is sitting, and as... (full context)

...visit. Mary asks if she should leave now and offers to sing one of her Ayah's songs for Colin. She takes his hand, pats it, and sings a song in Hindustani.... (full context)

...tea, and then tells Mary to go to sleep. Mary offers to sing Colin her Ayah's song and sends the nurse to bed. (full context)