This article argues that material objects in Canadian writer Alice Munro’s short fiction both reflect socio-economic concerns of pre- and post-WWII Canadian society and complicate common conceptions of deprivation and material ambition. The analyses of “Royal Beatings” and “The Beggar Maid” demonstrate how Munro describes economic hardships, class anxieties, and social discrimination and distinction through items of material culture such as clothes, furniture, and paintings. These objects and their symbolic significance draw attention to the conflicts resulting from the interplay of her characters’ upbringings, loyalties, and their longings and aspirations.

中文翻译：

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在课堂上被困？爱丽丝门罗的《皇家殴打》和《乞丐女仆》中贫穷与繁荣的物质表现

本文认为，加拿大作家 Alice Munro 的短篇小说中的物质对象既反映了二战前后加拿大社会的社会经济问题，也使人们对剥夺和物质野心的普遍概念复杂化。“皇家殴打”和“乞丐女仆”的分析展示了门罗如何通过衣服、家具和绘画等物质文化项目来描述经济困难、阶级焦虑以及社会歧视和区别。这些物品及其象征意义引起了人们对由她的角色的教养、忠诚以及他们的渴望和抱负的相互作用所产生的冲突的关注。