![]() She is ultimately unlikeable, but, here’s the thing, so is everyone else. That Miss Brodie is a terrible teacher is actually not chief among them. So, there are lots of problems with The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark. She deserves every scornful stare sent her way by the other teachers at the school who, presumably, are a ctually doing their jobs, however boring they may be to the Brodie girls. And, despite all of this, the headmistress can never quite nail her on any fire-able crime. She tells her students to study on their own, so they’ll pass their end of year exams. She chooses favorites, a group of girls acknowledged by the whole school as the “Brodie set.” She meets with them on weekends and treats them to the theater and outings on her dime. This man, conveniently, tragically died in WWI, opening the door for two sort of love affairs with other male teachers. Instead, she tells them stories of her life, particularly of her stirring romance with her perfect man in the marvelously orderly Mussolini-controlled Italy. ![]() She tells her students to keep their books open on their desks, so it appears they’re doing history. ![]() She keeps a math problem up on the board during the period when they’re supposed to be doing arithmetic. ![]() Let the record state that Miss Jean Brodie (whether in her prime or not) is the worst kind of teacher. ![]()
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