The Maid's Secret

The Maid’s Secret establishes a sharp contrast between upper-class and lower-class characters, suggesting that the very wealthy may have material comfort and power over others, but this privilege comes with a significant price of its own: In the novel, high status and wealth are represented as corrupting forces that interfere with human happiness. The novel’s upper-class characters are mostly shallow, self-centered, and cruel, while lower-class characters are generous, loving, and brave. This results in very unhappy lives for the upper-class characters and much happier lives for the lower-class characters, offering a different perspective on the effects of wealth.

The upper class in the novel is represented by people like Audrey and Reginald Gray, the boys at Flora’s school, and Priscilla, Algernon, and Magnus Braun. These people make cruel choices—mocking and dismissing others whom they see as beneath them and refusing to extend themselves to help others unless it directly benefits them. They are even cold and unkind to one another, and their relationships are defined by manipulation and self-interest. They prioritize wealth, status, and possessions above the human beings in their lives, as when, during her engagement, Flora realizes that the only thing in the room that matters to either family is the Fabergé egg. Their behavior and priorities, however, have a direct effect on their fates. Algernon dies young—possibly at the hands of one of the women he has treated so badly throughout his life—and Magnus and Priscilla lose their only child. Audrey and Reginald are ruined financially and disappear, leaving behind both Flora and their unborn grandchild. Since the two have never really gotten along, it can be inferred that they do not find any comfort in their only remaining relationship. With these outcomes, Prose emphasizes how self-defeating these characters’ priorities are. 

The lower class, on the other hand, is represented by people like Molly and Flora Gray, the Mead-Preston family, and the employees of the Regency Grand. They are hard-working, generous, and loving people who feel grateful for whatever happiness life brings them. Mrs. Mead is a particularly strong illustration of this: Despite how badly the Grays treat her, she is unfailingly kind to their daughter, and she is generous to both Flora and others with her meager resources. When she dies, she is deeply mourned by many. As a result of their loving and generous spirits, the lower-class characters are also happy people who cherish one another and lift one another up instead of tearing one another down. Flora’s case is the most illustrative, as she begins life in the upper class and finds no happiness there, but after finding herself in the lower class as an adult, Flora’s life turns around. She became a much happier, more fulfilled person, indicating that it was membership in the privileged class, not her innate character, that was the cause of her early misery. By juxtaposing the two classes, Prose emphasizes that gratitude and kindness contribute more to happiness than wealth and influence.