Tuesday, May 6, 2014

In "Roman Fever," what does Mrs. Ansley look like?

You might find it worthwhile to re-read the opening of
this classic short story to find the description of Mrs. Ansley. Although at first it is
difficult to distinguish between these two old friends, if you read on the narrator
explores the differences between them. At the beginning, the similarities between them
are emphasised, as both of these women are described as being "two American ladies of
ripe but well-cared-for middle age." However, as the story continues, we see that one of
the ladies is "smaller and paler" than the other, who is "fuller, and higher in colour,
with a small determined nose supported by vigorous black eyebrows." The identification
of Mrs. Slade as this "darker" woman therefore means that the "smaller and paler" woman
is Mrs. Ansley. Of course, there is an irony in this opening description of the women,
as such details would lead us to suspect that Mrs. Ansley is overshadowed by the more
impressive Mrs. Slade, whereas this, like so much else in there relationship, is nothing
more than a pretense, for Mrs. Ansley shows that she is anything but overshadowed by her
friend.

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