‘A Cup of Tea’ is a short story written by Katherine Mansfield. It was first published in 1922.
A lot can change over a cup of tea. Or can it actually? The English tea parties have been a recurring theme in the Classics, but here Katherine Mansfield uses just ‘a cup of tea’ to expose the class consciousness and materialism of Britain in the early 1900s.
The story is narrated by an unnamed third person who charms you through this tale. ‘A Cup of Tea’ reveals class feelings, individual insecurities, and jealousy. It is a remark on the pompous lifestyle of the rich, compared to the wretchedness of the poor in that period. There is a complete lack of understanding on the part of the rich class, who are immersed in their lifestyle and are on a constant lookout for social adulation.
Katherine Mansfield begins the story with the physical traits of the central female character, terming ‘Rosemary Fell was not exactly beautiful.’ But, she is pretty. Rosemary is rich, young, and well-read. The ‘well-read’ remark is important, for Rosemary understood things in context to her world of books (as we understand during the story). She is highly placed in society and has a reputation for organizing parties. Rosemary was married two years back, her husband adores her and they have a son.
The rich lifestyle of Rosemary is given thrust by telling the readers about her wealth to shop from Paris while others may go to Bond Street. The narrator engages the reader with the remark that causes them to have the same socio-economic outlook. There is a section devoted to Rosemary’s dedication to buying flowers at the florist. She has the time and money to select ‘those and those and those’ at the shop. A girl from the shop carries the purchase to the car waiting for Rosemary.
So, it is established that Rosemary could buy anything on which she set her eyes. One winter afternoon, she goes to the antique shop where she is the point of admiration for the shopkeeper. He has kept an exquisite little box for her and she asks for it to be kept aside, after hearing its price at twenty-eight guineas. While leaving the shop, Rosemary sees a ‘plump’ tea kettle on the shelf, just above the shopkeeper’s head.
She comes out of the shop and the weather is quite harsh. She thinks, ‘One ought to go home and have an extraspecial tea.’ Interrupting Rosemary’s thoughts on tea and the little box, there stood a young, lean, and dark girl by her side asking for money for ‘a cup of tea’. Instead of giving some money, Rosemary asks the girl to come home with her for a cup of tea.
‘She was going to prove to this girl that – wonderful things did happen in life, that – fairy godmothers were real, that – rich people had hearts, and that women were sisters’.
She imagined things as they would happen in the books that she read, instead of analyzing the consequences or having an understanding of the situation.
Rosemary took this ‘Samaritan initiative’ to her home. She tried to make this girl all comfortable. However, there is a discreet voice of the narrator that proves the intent behind Rosemary’s efforts is probably selfish and for self-adoration. For instance, when Rosemary asks the girl to remove her coat and hat, these things are placed on the floor. And, before asking for the tea to be served, Rosemary goes to get a cigarette for herself. This shows that in her heart, Rosemary had not given the girl the required priority.
Finally, tea and snacks arrive for the girl. All through, the girl is in awe of the grandeur of Rosemary’s home and feels uncomfortable. However, Rosemary is glad to have positioned herself on the pedestal as the savior of this girl. She tells the girl that she need not worry, “I’ll look after you.”
At this point, Rosemary’s husband Philip enters the room and sees this girl with his wife. Philip wanted to know about the stranger in the house. It is now that Rosemary asks for the girl’s name, which is Smith. Philip questions Rosemary on her newfound excitement in helping this girl. Rosemary thinks it has been great on her part to have uplifted this girl and instead of paying her for a cup of tea, she brought her home.
Philip tries to tell Rosemary that her plans may not be practical but with no heed. The only way he could get Rosemary out of this enthusiasm was to comment on how pretty Miss Smith looked and how he would appreciate her joining them for dinner. The spite and jealousy work wonders as Rosemary immediately sends away Miss Smith with three pounds.
Now, the only thought that lingers on Rosemary’s mind is purely personal, to know whether her husband feels she is pretty or not and she tells him about her desire to buy the little box from the antique shop.
It is the simple writing and an engaging tone with the readers that enhances the value of this short story. And, there are those intelligent inserts like ‘It was like something out of a novel by Dostoevsky, this meeting in the dusk.’ With each paragraph, one realizes how the rich romanticize their lives while the poor may just need a warm cup of tea to get through cold and hunger.
You can read more stories by Katherine Mansfield The Ideal Family and Miss Brill
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