Characters

The main and most important character of the short story “A Pair of Silk Stockings” by Kate Chopin is Mrs. Sommers, the story only being about her. Absent characters mentioned in the story are her neighbors, her children and her husband (probably deceased). Apart from them, several episodic secondary characters help with the development of the plot: the vendors in the shops, the restaurant waiter and the woman sitting next to Mrs. Sommers at the theatre.

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Mrs. Sommers

Mrs. Sommers is the main character of the short story and the narrator’s focus. She is a character which changes throughout the story, her development being triggered by a very trivial thing, namely a pair of stockings. However, the real reason and motivation behind her selfish shopping spree lays deeper in the psychology of the woman, who is, in fact, disappointed with her life.

Outer characterization

Mrs. Sommers is first depicted physically as being “little” which may refer to both her stature and her age. She is probably a young mother, even if she has several children - “the boys and Janie and Mag”.

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Inner characterization

Mrs. Sommers’ inner characterization is made both directly by the narrator, who has access to the woman’s thoughts and perspective, but also indirectly through the way the woman acts.

Initially, Mrs. Sommers is depicted as gaining a “feeling of importance” after coming into the possession of a sum of money. However, she is also judicious and economical, trying to find the best possible way to spend her money and invest in necessary, practical things:

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Episodic Characters

The story features several episodic characters, three shop sellers, a waiter and a woman sitting next to Mrs. Sommers in the theatre. They are only briefly sketched from the main character’s point of view.

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