sister carrie

Chapter 54 (2)

Chapter 31 A Man of Good Luck: Triumphant Broadway (2)
The conversation turned to other matters, and Carrie gave no further thought to the matter, except that a day or two later, when she was out to the market, Mrs. Vance came in.Vance recognized her and nodded, and Carrie smiled back.This solves the problem of getting to know each other.If they didn't vaguely recognize each other on such an occasion, they wouldn't be in contact with each other in the future.

Carrie did not see Mrs. Vance again during the weeks which followed, but through the thin wall which separated the front room of the suite she heard her piano, cheerful and splendid performances of her chosen tunes. feel very happy.She herself can only play in general.In Carrie's opinion, Mrs. Vance's ability to play so refreshingly approached great art.From what she had seen and heard—only fragmentary and vague—sufficiently, these people were elite and well-to-do.Carrie, therefore, would be glad if the friendship should be extended further in the future.

One day, the doorbell of Carrie's house rang, the maid in the kitchen rang the bell, and the main entrance door on the first floor opened.Carrie was on the third floor at her door, waiting to see who would come to see her, and it turned out to be Mrs. Vance.

"Excuse me," said she, "but I've been out for a while, and I forgot the key on the outer door, so I thought I might as well ring your bell."

This is a common method used when residents in this building forget the key to the door.However, they generally do not say a word of apology.

"Of course," said Carrie, "you do. I do that sometimes, too."

"It's a lovely day, isn't it?" said Mrs. Vance, after a moment's rest.

In this way, after a few sporadic greetings, the friendship of visiting each other was formed smoothly.Carrie and the young Mrs. Vance made a perfect companion.

Carrie visited her several times, and she returned several times.Both suites looked good, though Vance's was somewhat more ornate.

"Come over this evening, please, and meet my husband," said Mrs. Vance, shortly after their intimacy, "he wants to see you, will you play cards?"

"Hit a little," said Carrie.

"Well, let's play cards for a while. If your husband comes home, bring him over."

"He won't be home for supper tonight," said Carrie.

"Well, we'll ask him to come when he comes home."

Carrie agreed.That night I saw the fat Vance, who was a few years younger than Hurstwood.The reason why he can form a marriage that does not look bad is not so much because of his good looks, but because of money.He made a good impression on Carrie when he first saw her, and he made a point of being very kind, taught her new ways of playing cards, and told her about New York and various places of entertainment.Mrs. Vance played a few pieces, and then Hurstwood came.

"Nice to meet you," he said to Mrs. Vance when Carrie made her introduction.He displayed the air which had first attracted Carrie's heart.

"You thought your wife had run away?" said Mr. Vance, holding out his hand when he was introduced.

"I thought she had found a better husband," said Hurstwood.

Then he turned his attention to Mrs. Vance.For a split second Carrie saw again what she had unconsciously lost in Hurstwood for some time—his gift of mellow flattery.She realized, too, that she was poorly dressed--not as well dressed as Mrs. Vance.These are no longer just hazy notions.She had already seen clearly what her situation was.She felt that her life had become moldy, for which she had reason to be sad.The wholesome, uplifting loneliness of the past has returned.Carrie, eager for desire, heard a voice reminding her to pay attention to her own future.

For the time being this awakening had no concrete results, for Carrie was not a pioneer.On the other hand, she always seemed to be able to jump into the tide of change and let it carry her forward.Hurstwood paid no attention to any of this.The stark contrast, which Carrie perceived, was not felt by Hurstwood.He was not even aware of the sad look in her eyes.It was all the more bad that she now felt the loneliness of the apartment, and was always looking for the company of Mrs. Vance, who was very fond of her.

"Let's go to a matinee this afternoon," said Mrs. Vance.She came to Carrie's apartment one morning in the pale red pajamas she had been wearing when she had woken up.Hurstwood and Vance had each gone out about an hour ago.

"All right," said Carrie.In Mrs. Vance's appearance, she saw a pampered and fashionably adorned woman.The way she looks like she is loved deeply, and all wishes will be granted, "Then what are we looking at?"

"Oh, I'd love to see Nat Gotwin," said Mrs. Vance. "I'm sure he's the funniest actor, and the papers say it's a good show."

"When are we going?" said Carrie.

"Let's walk right away, No. 30 Four Streets down to Broadway," said Mrs. Vance. "What a fun walk. He's at the Madison Square Theater."

"I'm glad to go," said Carrie. "How much is the ticket?"

"Not more than a dollar," said Mrs. Vance.

Mrs. Vance left and came again at one o'clock.She wore a dark blue promenade dress, and a handsome hat to go with it.Carrie was attractive enough, but this woman pained her by the contrast.There seemed to be a lot of beauty in her, which Carrie did not have.There were gold rings and other trinkets, there were elegant green wallets with initials engraved on them, there were handkerchiefs of fancy designs and extraordinarily rich patterns, and so on.Carrie felt that she needed more and better clothes to keep up with this woman.I also felt that if anyone met them both, he would choose Mrs. Vance just because of the clothes.It was a painful and unjust notion, for Carrie was now as agreeable and comely as a beautiful, extremely attractive woman of her type.The clothes of the two people, no matter in terms of texture or age, are not without differences, but this difference is not very conspicuous.But it was enough to make Carrie still more dissatisfied with her present condition.

A walk on Broadway, then as now, is one of the great features of New York.Before and after the matinee scene, all the beauties who want to show off, and those who want to look up to them, will gather here.Beautiful faces, beautiful clothes, formed a breathtaking ranks.The women wore the best hats, shoes, and gloves, and walked arm in arm to the best shopping malls and theaters stretching from No. 14 Street to No. 30 Street.Likewise, men also show off their latest outfits.From here the tailor gets his hints on how to cut his garments, the shoemaker gets his hints about the proper shoe shape and colour, the hatter gets his hints for what he needs.It was both true and common knowledge that if a fashionista got a new suit he would be the first to show it on Broadway.So, a few years ago, there was a popular song detailing an afternoon of matinee sex and other facts.The song, titled "What's His Privileges on Broadway," was later published and became quite popular in concert halls in New York.

Carrie had never heard of the show during her time in New York, nor had she been there when it appeared on Broadway.And this is a very familiar thing to Mrs. Vance.Not only does she know all about the matter, but she is often present in the scene, deliberately going to see people, and showing them at the same time, causing some kind of commotion with her beauty, and comparing herself with the beauties in this city and the last Let's compare the fashionable styles, so as not to overlook the particulars of dressing.

After they alighted at No. 30 Sijo Street, Carrie walked on quite naturally, but soon gazed at the lovely companions who were crowding around them and walking with them.It occurred to her suddenly that Mrs. Vance looked a little embarrassed under the gazes of handsome men and beautiful women whose glances were not bound by the rules of politeness.It seems reasonable and natural to stare at people.Carrie found herself being stared at and winked at.As for men, most of them wear perfect coats and top hats, and hold silver-headed canes, pass by, and often look at you deliberately.The woman, wearing a straight silk dress, walked by with a noise, smiling deliberately and exuding fragrance.Carrie noticed that there are very few good people among them, and the vast majority are evil people.Everywhere I saw the lipsticked and powdered cheeks and lips, the perfumed hair, the big, dreamy, lazy eyes.

She suddenly realized that she herself was among the fashionable crowd, showing off her demeanor in a glamorous occasion—and it was such a glamorous occasion! Along the way, she saw the golden light in the window of the jewelry store. sparkle.Florists, leather goods stores, clothing stores, candy stores, one after another.The streets are full of traffic.In front of the big store stood a pompous doorman, wearing a large coat with a shiny copper belt and buttons around his waist.The coachman, wearing high leather boots and white tights, respectfully waited for the lady who was shopping in the store.The whole street is full of rich and luxurious style.But Carrie felt that she did not belong in the street.She could not in all her life show the presence of Mrs. Vance, who was both beautiful and confident.Carrie could only explain this by reasoning that she was, in the eyes of many, obviously the less well-dressed of the two.It hurt her heart.She made up her mind that she would never come here again until she could dress up better.At the same time, she longed for the joy of being an equal in the feisty ranks.

(End of this chapter)