As Katherine Anne Porter once said The past is never where you think you left it.

This states that we may not remember how different the past was to the present. The Hired Girl
by Laura Amy Shultz is a diary of a young girl named Joan in the time of 1911. This book shows
how different the world was before. Joan runs away from her abusive home and goes to
Baltimore, Maryland where she finds a job as a hired girl. A hired girl is a young maid who gets
paid about 6 dollars a week. Joan has many attributes. She is determined, insecure, and a liar.
Joan has many attributes, out off all, these are the ones that come up most in the book.
One way Joan demonstrates her determined mind is when she proves that she is worthy
of the job to Malka and the Rosenbach's, the owners of the house. This happened when she
messed up the cooking, but later tried to make it up by cleaning the floors. I tried again. I can
clean, I said and held out my hands so she can see them. Im used to hard work, heavy work.
Isnt there something I can do for you? (101).This quote shows her being determined to work
and do whatever it takes to get the job. She is trying to persuade Malka, the old maid, that she
can take all of the work, even the hardest work. Her determination helps her get the job and earn
money for her needs.
In addition, Joan shows her insecurity by falling in love with David too fast. When he
leaves her, she gets depressed and sad. Joan met David when she was sneaking into the
Rosenbach's library to read books. David barged into the library, and she immediately started to
like him. It sounded so lovely. Floating on the water in one of those rowboats-or riding through
the park like a queen, as if he were my sweetheart. (242) Joan daydreamed. She had minimal
experience with love and she fell in love with David too fast and she got her hopes up too fast
and too high. Later, he left her and she got really sad and depressed. Her insecure young mind
lead her into this situation.

Lastly, Joan is a liar. She shows this by lying about her name, age, and past. This occurs
when she is asking for the job as a hired girl. She says that she is eighteen, when she really was
fourteen. She changed her name to Janet Lovelace so her dad would not find her. Also, she lies
about her past. Whats your name? Janet Lovelace, maam[...] How old are you Quick as a
flash I answered Eighteen. And oh, I hated having to lie to him.[...] Because Im so ignorant. I
left school when I was fourteen. (88, 150,151) This shows that, even if she does not like it,
she lied about her whole life so she would protect herself and get a job. Even if people did not
believe her, somehow she persuaded them. Joans circumstances forced her to lie in order to get a
job but her lies complicated her life even more.
In conclusion, Joan has many attributes. She is determined, insecure, and a liar. She is
determined because she has to prove to everybody that she is worthy and good for her job. She is
insecure because she is young and she falls in love way too quickly with a boy named David.
Lastly, she is a liar because she has to lie about her age, name, and past. Joan has many
attributes, out off all, these are the ones that come up most in the book.
Ana Hernandez
1st hour
Mainero
ALA

Character Attributes

As Katherine Anne Porter once said The past is never where you think you left it.
This states that we may not remember how different the past was to the present. The Hired Girl
by Laura Amy Shultz is a diary of a young girl named Joan in the time of 1911. This book shows

how different the world was before. Joan runs away from her abusive home and goes to
Baltimore, Maryland where she finds a job as a hired girl. A hired girl is a young maid who gets
paid about 6 dollars a week. Joan has many attributes. She is determined, insecure, and a liar.
Joan has many attributes, out off all, these are the ones that come up most in the book.
One way Joan demonstrates her determined mind is when she proves that she is worthy
of the job to Malka and the Rosenbach's, the owners of the house. This happened when she
messed up the cooking, but later tried to make it up by cleaning the floors. I tried again. I can
clean, I said and held out my hands so she can see them. Im used to hard work, heavy work.
Isnt there something I can do for you? (101).This quote shows her being determined to work
and do whatever it takes to get the job. She is trying to persuade Malka, the old maid, that she
can take all of the work, even the hardest work. Her determination helps her get the job and earn
money for her needs.
In addition, Joan shows her insecurity by falling in love with David too fast. When he
leaves her, she gets depressed and sad. Joan met David when she was sneaking into the
Rosenbach's library to read books. David barged into the library, and she immediately started to
like him. It sounded so lovely. Floating on the water in one of those rowboats-or riding through
the park like a queen, as if he were my sweetheart. (242) Joan daydreamed. She had minimal
experience with love and she fell in love with David too fast and she got her hopes up too fast
and too high. Later, he left her and she got really sad and depressed. Her insecure young mind
lead her into this situation.
Lastly, Joan is a liar. She shows this by lying about her name, age, and past. This occurs
when she is asking for the job as a hired girl. She says that she is eighteen, when she really was
fourteen. She changed her name to Janet Lovelace so her dad would not find her. Also, she lies

about her past. Whats your name? Janet Lovelace, maam[...] How old are you Quick as a
flash I answered Eighteen. And oh, I hated having to lie to him.[...] Because Im so ignorant. I
left school when I was fourteen. (88, 150,151) This shows that, even if she does not like it,
she lied about her whole life so she would protect herself and get a job. Even if people did not
believe her, somehow she persuaded them. Joans circumstances forced her to lie in order to get a
job but her lies complicated her life even more.
In conclusion, Joan has many attributes. She is determined, insecure, and a liar. She is
determined because she has to prove to everybody that she is worthy and good for her job. She is
insecure because she is young and she falls in love way too quickly with a boy named David.
Lastly, she is a liar because she has to lie about her age, name, and past. Joan has many
attributes, out off all, these are the ones that come up most in the book.