‘’Emmie Cole started the whisper.
“Lil Kelvey’s going to be a servant when she grows up.”
“O-oh, how awful!” said Isabel Burnell, and she made eyes at Emmie.
Emmie swallowed in a very meaning way and nodded to Isabel as she’d seen her mother do on those occasions.
“It’s true—it’s true—it’s true,” she said.’’
Lil seems to suffer from social alienation, as it she is shunned away from group’s and teased of her low status. They are not only shunned because of being poor, they are shunned as they seem to be neglected at home considering the mother makes little money to be at home often and the father is unknown. It is no wonder they turn on each other to be able to get through life.
‘’Where Lil went our Else followed. In the playground, on the road going to and from school, there was Lil marching in front and our Else holding on behind. Only when she wanted anything or when she was out of breath, our Else gave Lil a tug, a twitch, and Lil stopped and turned round. The Kelveys never failed to understand each other.’’
Lil is aware of the other kid’s malice and seems to try hard to keep herself and Else as distant as much as she can. The Kelvey sister usually walks closely to her sister as if seeking for her protection.
‘’Playtime came, and Isabel was surrounded. The girls of her class nearly fought to put their arms round her, to walk away with her, to beam flatteringly, to be her special friend. She held quite a court under the hung pine trees...the only two who stayed outside the ring were the two who were always outside, the Kelveys. They knew better than to come anywhere near the Burnell's.’’
These girls are excluded from viewing the doll's house. While the Kelveys were shunned by everybody, they were also belittled as they had no money coming from a poor family.
“Is it true you’re going to be a servant when you grow up, Lil Kelvey?” shrilled Lena.
Dead silence. But instead of answering, Lil only gave her silly, shamefaced smile. She didn’t seem to mind the question at all. What a sell for Lena! The girls began to titter.
Lena couldn’t stand that. She put her hands on her hips; she shot forward. “Yah, yer father’s in prison!” she hissed, spitefully.
‘’Lil, for instance, who was a stout, plain child with big freckles, came to school in a dress made from a green art-serge tablecloth of the Burnell's with red plush sleeves from the logans curtains. ‘’P16
The Kelveys are shown to be poor throughout the story as their clothing marks them as outsiders among peers in the school. Lil, for instance, her clothing is made of materials from the homes of the other girls
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