A
"radical" is someone who fights strongly against the status quo. When confronted with
the word,immediately thinks of the Quakers, whom she has found to be "abolitionists, every
one". At the boarding house at which she Lyddie is staying, Diana
Goss is considered to be a radical. She is a member of the "Female Labor Reform
Association", which is a union, and her "crime has been to speak out for better
working conditions" for the women who work in the factories. Lyddie's roommates warn her
about associating with Diana Goss. Union activity is strongly condemned by the companies that
employ the girls, and the boarding house residents are afraid of the repercussions Lyddie may
have to face if she should become involved with Diana and her politics.
Diana
has shown nothing but kindness to Lyddie, however, taking her under her wing and showing her the
intricacies of operating the dangerous looms at the factory. Lyddie "had no desire to
anger her roommates, but she was quite set on going to see Diana...she wanted to learn
everything - to become as quietly competent as the tall girl". Diana gives Lyddie the
materials to write to her family when she first arrives in Lowell, and finds a doctor for her
when she is sick. The more Lyddie associates with Diana, the more she is overwhelmed by the
sheer goodness of her heart.
Diana does educate Lyddie about the burgeoning
labor movement, and she invites but never pressures her to participate. Lyddie discovers that
despite her "radical" bent, Diana's motivation is the welfare of the girls, whom she
looks upon as "sisters". Diana is a "radical" because she truly believes
that unionization will better their lives (Chapter 9).
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