Answer:
SummaryAnalysis
When Mattie and Mother arrive at the Ogilvie mansion, Mattie is gasping for breath because of her tight clothes. As Mother straightens Mattie’s bodice and cleans dirt off her face, she promises they won’t stay long. She tells Mattie that she might become a beauty after all, and that she just wants the best for her. Mattie is surprised by her gentle tone. Mother changes the subject by complaining about her dusty hem, remembering the days when her family rode to tea in a “lovely carriage.”
The day’s high fashion required girls and women to wear tightly structured garments that were likely neither comfortable nor healthy; Mattie’s gasping reaction is realistic, especially given the simpler workday outfits to which she is accustomed. Even though Lucille has succeeded in making an independent life, she feels conflicted as she recalls her more privileged upbringing, when many things came easier.
THEMES
Mothers, Daughters, and Familial Love Theme Icon
A maid lets them in to a gleaming, expensively decorated drawing room that’s almost the size of the coffeehouse. Pernilla Ogilvie “sail[s] across the room like a man-of-war” in her layers of petticoats and greets Lucille effusively. Mother notices Pernilla’s pristine, fashionable gown compared to her own coffee-stained one. Lucille introduces Mattie, whom Pernilla calls “poor little Matilda,” remarking that her father “would have gone far if he had been educated.” Mother grits her teeth.
Though it’s not made explicit, Lucille and Pernilla may have been friends in Lucille’s wealthier youth. The contrast between the two women’s dresses, and Pernilla’s pointed comment about Lucille’s late husband, show how much has changed since then.
THEMES
Mothers, Daughters, and Familial Love Theme Icon Ingenuity, Ambition, and Survival Theme Icon