"The bud has grown above the rose in full bloom," writes William Henryworth, elevating the process of emergence, change, and evolution over those already developed, established, and matured . Although Worth's observation is about a rose, the statement also accurately describes Katherine Mansfield's protagonist in The Garden Party. The narrative focuses on a wealthy New Zealand family, tired of the elite lifestyle and high social position. The youngest daughter, Laura, "the budding rose" of the story, tries to break the constraints of upper-class society, making her more mature and compassionate than the other members of her wealthy family. Laura's internal struggle, the main conflict of Mansfield's story is one of identity and she oscillates between imitating environmental influences and reacting to them in a way unique to her individual personality. Throughout the story, the pendulum of his consciousness swings to opposite sides, making his actions inconsistent and lacking allegiance to his family's unique ways or his inherent qualities of equality and empathy. This variable behavior causes critics to debate Laura's "true" personality, motivations, and goals. While some critics believe that his sympathetic efforts are an attempt to rebel against his class's expectations, others believe that he is an empathetic individual without a supporting family. Another group of critics believes that the story presents only the beginning of Laura's kindness, suggesting that she will continue to blossom into a compassionate person on the periphery of upper-class society; others refute this view, stating that The Garden Party portrays the extension of the d...... middle of the paper ......Daly, Saralyn R. "Katherine Mansfield" New York: Twayne Publishers; 1914.Kleine, Don W. "'The Garden Party': A Portrait of the Artist", Criticism, vol. V No. 4 Autumn, 1963, pp.360-371. Kobbler, J.F. "Katherine Mansfield. A Study in Short Fiction." Twayne Publishers. Boston: 1991Mansfield, Katherine. "The Garden Party. Norton Anthology Ed. MH Abrams WW Norton & Company: New York, London, 1996, 1996 pp. 2510-2520 Pilditch, January "Reference Guide to Short Fiction, 1st Edition.", St. James Press, 1994. Rich, Jennifer. "'The Garden Party' and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield, Ben "The Irony in 'The Garden Party'". 68-74.Sorkin, Adam J. "Katherine Mansfield's 'The Garden Party': Style and Social Occasions" Modern Fiction Studies Vol 24, 1978, pp.439-455.