Structure

The story begins with an introduction in which the narrator presents her grandmother’s background. Foreshadowing the similar situations which the narrator and her grandmother find themselves in, the narrator mentions that she is the same age as her grandmother was in the picture on the mantelpiece and that they are both named Julia (ll. 7-8). 

In the middle part of the story, the grandmother is revealed to have been “too soon a bride” (l. 15), foreshadowing the fact that the narrator is thinking about having sex with her boyfriend before she is ready. This section also further highlights the similarities between the narrator and her grandmother's life situations. 

The narrator’s internal conflict, between her reluctance to have sex and her wish to ...