34 pages • 1 hour read
Clarice LispectorThe Smallest Woman in the World
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1960A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Mirror
The mirror appears in the fifth vignette. The mother of the boy with the “clever idea” (168) is curling her hair in the bathroom while reflecting on the significance of the desire to play and possess that her son expresses. The symbol of the mirror concludes the moment of self-reflection: Looking in the bathroom mirror, the mother produces a deliberately refined and polite smile, placing between her own face and Little Flower’s “the insurmountable distance of millennia” (169). The mirror is a representation of self-reflection and self-perception, as well as of performance. The mother in the story uses the mirror to perceive what she has in common with Little Flower, such as womanhood and motherhood. However, the mirror also helps her rehearse the performance of distance that keeps the two women apart. The act of curling her hair in front of the mirror, as well as the “deliberately refined and polite smile” (169), illustrates the woman’s desire to present herself in a certain way to the world. These acts symbolize the character’s attempt to conform to societal expectations and norms, particularly in relation to her role as a mother. The mirror is also a reminder of societal pressures and standards, reflecting the scrutiny and judgment that mothers face in Western societies.
Cannibalism
In the case of the Bantu tribe, which hunts and eats the Likoualas, cannibalism represents what Marcel Pretre sees as a savage practice. In retreating to the center of Africa and climbing the highest trees to escape cannibalism, Little Flower’s tribe has adapted to its situation. This includes the ability to live high up in the trees, a “strictly essential” language, and a way of fully enjoying every moment when they are outside of danger. The concrete example of cannibalism prefaces the metaphorical or symbolic cannibalism of how Little Flower is perceived by Pretre and by the readers of the Sunday newspaper. The readers consume her image and story as a form of projection and entertainment. By analogy, the two situations of cannibalism reflect the broader situation in which marginalized people are forced to retreat from view and adapt to their existence, which limits and complicates their experiences in the world.
Laughter
Little Flower’s laughter surprises and distresses Marcel Pretre at the moment he is contemplating the existence of an even smaller being than Little Flower: her unborn child. The woman’s laughter interrupts this one-directional exploration. The text describes her as “laughing, warm, warm” (170). Little Flower is the only character who laughs in the short story; she is also the only one described as “warm.” The author uses this element to juxtapose Little Flower’s humanity and openness about the world to the distant, calculated, and devouring gaze that is directed toward her by the explorer and the newspaper readers.
Marcel Pretre’s attempt to “smile back at her” (172) makes the explorer feel inadequate in front of a being that he was objectifying all along. His failed smile highlights the cultural and societal divide between them, as well as Pretre’s own insecurities and feelings of inadequacy. His inability to laugh—a natural human act—highlights the way objectifying others can also dehumanize the perpetrator.
Photography
The publication of Little Flower’s photograph is an important moment in the story, symbolizing that the process of her objectification is complete. She can now be presented as an object in life-size form: “Little Flower’s photograph was published in the color supplement of the Sunday papers, where she fit life-size” (167). The fact that her image appears “life-size” emphasizes the power of photography to both capture and distort reality. Since the photograph is presented as a vehicle for reality, the distortion is not taken into consideration by the readers of the Sunday paper. However, the narrator introduces the photograph through a colonial situation. In this context, photography becomes a means of commodifying Little Flower.
Unlike the mirror, where the image in the mirror can gaze back, the photograph is a tool for containing the other. The camera acts as a barrier between the subject and the photographer, raising questions about representation, objectification, and the perpetuation of stereotypes. Little Flower is not able to laugh, express joy, or show her love for things and humans alike through the photograph. The image, when it is considered to represent reality, becomes a means of exploitation and dehumanization. On the other hand, if the subjectivity of the photographer is taken into consideration, the image tells a different story; in the case of Little Flower, this includes the photographer’s biased perspective.
