What Maisie Knew, Chapter 4 summary

What happens

1. Maisie’s mother collects her without Miss Overmore and places her in Mrs. Wix’s care.
2. Mrs. Wix describes her daughter’s death, and Maisie comes to regard Clara Matilda as a secret sister.
3. Maisie learns that others mock Mrs. Wix’s appearance and that her mother employs her cheaply.
4. Despite Mrs. Wix’s poverty and odd appearance, Maisie feels unusually safe with her and visits Clara Matilda’s grave.
5. Mrs. Wix avoids difficult lessons but delights Maisie with fiction and accounts of her own troubled life.

In this chapter

What to notice

Mrs. Wix gives Maisie a place within her grief. Their imagined family relationship makes their growing attachment both intimate and secret.

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