The More Conflicts, the Better

The main character of this novel is a 16-year-old girl named Griet. Because Griet’s story is completely centered around new people she meets, and family she is forced to leave behind, the characters and conflict are intertwining subjects. Her family is not in a good position financially, because her dad was in an accident and was permanently blinded. Because of this, Griet is forced to work for a master named Johannes Vermeer, and can only see her family on Sundays.  The new family has six children...four girls named (from oldest to youngest) Maertage, Cornelia, Lisbeth, and Aleydis, one baby boy named Johannes, and one child on the way. Most of the girls she has grown to like, except Cornelia who is rude and tries to be manipulative of their new maid, Griet. The artist (and Griet’s master) Vermeer is a mysterious man who she takes an interest in, although she does not see him around their property often.

So far this story contains many conflicts, especially internal. As if Griet’s life couldn’t get any more miserable, she has heard that the area of her family back home has been quarantined because of a terrible plague sweeping through the streets. A young man who usually flirts with Griet at the market is willing to find out who has died and who is affected, and several days later delivers the news that Griet’s younger sister, Agnes has the plague and is not going to survive. This is a conflict not only because Griet has lost her sister, but also because her mistress is delivering a baby in a few days, and Griet will have to put her best face forward and deal with her family issues after the extravagant baby shower. Although Griet is hurting inside, she is able to get through all the party preparations, and is surprised how her work has taken her mind off of her sister’s death. She is also surprised when a man who buys Vermeer’s paintings tells Vermeer that Griet would be a great subject for his next painting...

The most interesting part of the story so far is Griet’s interest in Johannes Vermeer along with his paintings. Griet’s new family has several maids who do their housework and for the most part, try to stay out of the way of the mistress and master. However, after Vermeer is told that he should paint Griet, he also seems to be interested more in her. They share a strange relationship, though, because Griet is a shy teenager who has recently gone through a lot, and she does not like new the attention she is getting from her master. Although Griet is just trying to make money for her family back home, her beauty is making her noticed by Vermeer. This book has so many conflicts in it, which make it a more complicated, yet more interesting story to read. I’m excited to see what other problems will erupt in the future of the novel.

The end of the section really left off with a cliffhanger. Griet was in Vermeer’s studio cleaning the window when the artist walks in. She is startled because she rarely sees him, and quickly looks over her shoulder. Vermeer is realizing Griet’s beauty, and tells Griet to look over her shoulder again. I believe the next section will be all about the forming relationship between Griet and her master Vermeer. I believe the picture on the cover of the book is a painting of Griet so Vermeer will probably paint this picture of her. Some of the other maids have already noticed Griet’s beauty, so I think there might be some jealousy in the future, because Vermeer’s interest in Griet will become apparent.


Below is a photo from the movie, staring Scarlett Johansson as Griet. This image shows some of the jealousy that may develop if Griet becomes the center of Vermeer's painting.