Find your name, take a stand

             When I sat down to read Karen Cushman’s The Midwife’s Apprentice, a story about a girl named Brat, I was quickly absorbed by the girl who didn’t have a name or a place in the world.  The reader meets Brat when Jane Sharp, the pointy nosed midwife, finds her seeking warmth in a farmer’s dung heap. The midwife quickly gives Brat the name Beetle, for dung beetle. Whether out of compassion or more likely the desire to do what’s right, the midwife offers Brat food and shelter in return for work. Despite her slight improvement in life, Cushman’s writing made it clear that Beetle doesn’t have a lot going for her in life. It’s hard to decide what made life the hardest for her: having been a homeless child or having been born a girl. She spends most of her days being bullied by boys in the town or yelled at by the midwife.

Despite feeling small and useless, she works hard and focuses on learning as much as she can while serving the midwife. She also finds comfort in the friendship of an orange cat who becomes her confidant. Through a series of events and newfound friendships, Beetle finds herself growing in knowledge and skill as the midwife’s apprentice. As her confidence blossoms, she claims the name Alyce for herself.  Unfortunately, a laboring mother’s request for Alyce to act as midwife during a challenging birth leaves Alyce feeling like a useless nobody once again. Defeated, she runs away and the cat follows. Alyce and the cat find safety in an inn where they make many new friends.  At the inn, she does household chores that she feels she is not too stupid to do while an old scholar teachers her to read by talking to the cat. When unexpected visitors arrive at the inn, Alyce must look once more for her confidence. You’ll have to read the book to find out whether or not she finds it.

While the history about midwives interested me, the description of life for children and women captured my attention most.  As a young girl,  Alyce finds herself alone, hungry, and cold.  Her life does not improve much after she is taken in by the midwife who treats her harshly.  At the midwife’s, she sleeps on the cold floor and often finds her-self hungry. Later in the story, Alyce meets a young boy named Edward who seems to remind her of her-self. Found abandoned and hungry, he is also treated harshly by the world around him.  The childhoods of Alyce and Edward paint a clear picture about medieval views toward children, who were treated much like failing adults.  Such views seem unreal when compared to the views toward today’s children who are nurtured and protected from the harsh realities of the world as much as possible.

Certainly, women’s limitations stand out in The Midwife’s Apprentice.  Alyce has little say in what happens to her or what she does with her life at the beginning of the book. Going to school or mastering a respectable trade is not an option for her.  Aside from the midwife, the women’s roles in the story revolve around helping their husbands and motherhood. The author’s note laments that midwifery itself was not respected because it was women’s work with women.  I also noticed that the only educated reader in the story is Magister Reese, an older man deemed a scholar; however, he offers a ray of hope when he teaches Alyce to read.  Most pointedly,  he asks Alyce what she wants which sends a message of prophetic hope for both Alyce and the reader.

As briefly discussed above, The Midwife’s Apprentice lends itself to multiple discussions about “now and then” with regard to women’s roles, children, jobs, community life, health care, and more. The author’s note provides detailed information about the history of midwives, especially during the middle ages. This book left me with a clear message for all children and adults:  just as we all have a name, we all have a place in the world.  For more information about Karen Cushman and The Midwife’s Apprentice visit this website.