Angel Pavament
... modern' lady lives her own life 'by pounding a typewriter all day' when she is the right type of a person to be the 'inheritor of the Earth'. We can trace some kind of contrast in Matfield's personality: being almost pretty and possessing an insatiable vitality and energy, she wastes the latter on being cross and haughty and on showing her grievance with life to others. No wonder almost all the staff in the gloomy office was frightened of her. Her dissatisfaction with life can be partly explained by her living conditions. She was confined to live in a residential club with depressing atmosphere, in which girls 'stayed year after year until at last they were girls no longer but women growing grey...' But through the description of the club and Lilian's contempt for it we can trace the main inner conflict of this character: her forced state of boring living and work against her firm and decisive nature, and also her solitude and weariness of stupid weak men surrounding her against her inner hidden desire to meet a good reliable partner in life. Being a master of psychological analysis, Priestley has his heroes encounter various life situations to see modifications in their lives and personal features. Thus, into the far from flourishing office of 'Twigg and Dersingham’ the author introduces the rough and enthusiastic Mr. Golspie to catalyze the business and transform the lives of its clerks. The most eminent modification in Miss Matfield’s personality was her indecisive state of mind in the presence of the man that she couldn’t put in his place, as she had always put others in their places. ‘Miss Matfield found herself wanting to lower her eyes, turn her head away, and almost retreat in maidenly blushes...’ Moreover, she does show some other features of her character, that develop through her short- lived relationship with Golspie. We can see her all blushing, humorous, laughing, romantic and adventurous nature. 'She floated easily now on a warm tide' and though this tide of relashionship was really new and fresh and adventurous for her, step by step she had to give up some part of her dignity under the influence of Mr. Golspie’s charms and charisma and because of the fact that he made the male-dominated world ...