The children are motivated to bother Miss Lottie because they cannot understand her seemingly purposeless act of tending to marigolds, which stand out as the only bright spot in an otherwise bleak and poverty-stricken environment. Their frustration at their own lack of control over their circumstances comes out in their actions towards Miss Lottie and her flowers.
The children messed with Miss Lottie's beautiful marigolds.
Children may pick on Miss Lottie because she is different, lives in poverty, and is not able to defend herself. Children can sometimes target individuals who are perceived as vulnerable or easy targets to feel a sense of power or control. It may also be a result of not understanding or empathizing with her situation.
In the story "Marigolds" by Eugenia Collier, the main events include Lizabeth destroying Miss Lottie's marigolds out of frustration, Lizabeth's realization of the harshness of reality and her empathy toward Miss Lottie, and the symbolic significance of the marigolds representing hope and beauty amid the poverty and despair of the characters.
She is able to feel compassion for Miss Lottie.
Miss Lottie is very upset by the destruction of her garden and it causes, Elizabeth (the main character) to loss her innocence and gain compassion. She realizes that the flowers are all the hope Miss. Lottie had left and she can now empathize with her.
She lost hope
At the beginning of the story, the narrator views Miss Lottie as eccentric and perhaps a bit of a nuisance with her obsession for planting marigolds. However, by the end of the story, the narrator comes to understand the deeper meaning behind Miss Lottie's actions and sees her as a symbol of hope and resilience in the face of adversity.
Her motivation for the destructive act may have stemmed from a deep-rooted anger or frustration, while her motivation for taunting Miss Lottie earlier may have been more light-hearted or intended to amuse herself at the expense of someone else. The destructive act could be a manifestation of darker emotions compared to the more casual teasing of Miss Lottie.
Lizabeth, her parents, Joey, Miss Lottie, John Burke
im single
because the flowers remind her of va%*nas and she like va%*nas