The Singing Lesson

by

Katherine Mansfield

Miss Wyatt Character Analysis

Miss Wyatt is the headmistress at the school where Miss Meadows teaches. She is likely an older woman, as she wears glasses and often has difficulty getting them untangled from the lace of her clothing. When Basil sends Miss Meadows a telegram at work to renew their engagement, Miss Meadows goes to Miss Wyatt to collect the telegram. Mansfield describes Miss Wyatt as being very kind with Miss Meadows at first, seeming to expect that the telegram will contain bad news. Once she discovers that the telegram contains good news, Miss Wyatt is annoyed and tells Miss Meadows that she can only receive telegrams at work in an emergency. Mansfield subtly suggests that Miss Wyatt might have relished Miss Meadows receiving bad news, and her reprimand of Miss Meadows might come from a place of bitterness, since Miss Meadows emphasized the note was from her fiancé. In this era, it was rare for women to keep a teaching job after marriage, so the fact that Miss Wyatt has been promoted to headmistress of the school and still goes by “Miss” suggests that she is likely older than Miss Meadows, and still unmarried, the very condition that Miss Meadows fears. As Mary Beazley echoes a younger version of Miss Meadows, Miss Wyatt appears to show a possible future for Miss Meadows if she stays in her job and does not marry. Miss Wyatt may have a higher-ranking job within the school, but she is a bitter person that is only shown taking joy in the possibility of other people’s pain.

Miss Wyatt Quotes in The Singing Lesson

The The Singing Lesson quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Wyatt or refer to Miss Wyatt. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Despair and Cruelty Theme Icon
).
The Singing Lesson Quotes

The head mistress sat at her desk. For a moment she did not look up. She was as usual disentangling her eye-glasses, which had got caught in her lace tie. “Sit down, Miss Meadows,” she said very kindly.

Related Characters: Miss Wyatt (speaker), Miss Meadows
Page Number: 271
Explanation and Analysis:

“Oh, no, thank you, Miss Wyatt,” blushed Miss Meadows. “It’s nothing bad at all. It’s”—and she gave an apologetic little laugh—“it’s from my fiancé saying that . . . saying that—” There was a pause. “I see,” said Miss Wyatt. And another pause. Then—“You've fifteen minutes more of your class, Miss Meadows, haven’t you?”

Related Characters: Miss Meadows (speaker), Miss Wyatt (speaker), Basil
Page Number: 271
Explanation and Analysis:
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Miss Wyatt Quotes in The Singing Lesson

The The Singing Lesson quotes below are all either spoken by Miss Wyatt or refer to Miss Wyatt. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Despair and Cruelty Theme Icon
).
The Singing Lesson Quotes

The head mistress sat at her desk. For a moment she did not look up. She was as usual disentangling her eye-glasses, which had got caught in her lace tie. “Sit down, Miss Meadows,” she said very kindly.

Related Characters: Miss Wyatt (speaker), Miss Meadows
Page Number: 271
Explanation and Analysis:

“Oh, no, thank you, Miss Wyatt,” blushed Miss Meadows. “It’s nothing bad at all. It’s”—and she gave an apologetic little laugh—“it’s from my fiancé saying that . . . saying that—” There was a pause. “I see,” said Miss Wyatt. And another pause. Then—“You've fifteen minutes more of your class, Miss Meadows, haven’t you?”

Related Characters: Miss Meadows (speaker), Miss Wyatt (speaker), Basil
Page Number: 271
Explanation and Analysis: