Setting

Physical setting

The short story “Nairobi” by Joyce Carol Oates takes place in Manhattan, New York City, on a Saturday afternoon in early April, which is described as “balmy and windy” (l. 30). The precise time setting is not specified, but we can assume it is contemporary to the time of the story’s publishing (the 1980s), as evidenced by the clothes which Ginny tries on – a jacket with wide lapels and shoulder pads (which is very typical of the 1980s). Also, Ginny’s own clothes are made of denim, which only became popular in the late 1970s.

Oliver first takes Ginny to the shops on Madison Avenue above 70th Street, which are located on the Upper West Side of New York, and then they stroll uptown (l. 27), first to a jewelry boutique at 76th Street, where he buys her bracelets and earrings, and finally to a shop called Michel’s, where Oliver buys Ginny the new shoes, and she discards her old ones. Afterward, they take a cab to the apartment building at Fifth and 88th, where they meet Herbert and Marguerite. Their journey is symbolic of making their way up the social ladder, as their stops get progressively wealthier. After Oliver and Ginny leave the apartment, they take the elevator back down, a symbolical descent down the social ladder for Ginny who also notices that her appearance is not as perfect as she thought on her way up: her eyes look shadowed and tired and her hair is getting dirty from the strong wind during their walk up Madison (ll....