Cari Mame

Author: Theodore Dreiser (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-08-01
Features: When Henry comes home at seven o'clock, he's in a bad mood—always so before dinner. This rarely shows in his words but often in his stern face and silence on everything. He has a pair of yellow plush slippers, his favorite, which he always takes off his hard-soled shoes immediately. After changing his shoes, he washes his face with ordinary laundry soap, making it red and shiny. This is his preparation before dinner. Then, he picks up the evening paper and reads it quietly. For a young man, this is a morbid personality, deeply affecting Carrie. It also affects the atmosphere in the entire room, as such things often do, making his wife have to speak softly and tactfully, just trying to avoid a scene of silence.
When he heard that Carrie had found a job, he seemed to perk up slightly. "You're quite prompt with your time, aren't you?" he said, smiling. "Yes!" Carrie replied with a hint of pride. He asked her a couple more questions, then went to tease the children, and the topic was dropped until Mina brought it up again at the dinner table.
But Carrie was not satisfied with just making ordinary remarks, as the family usually did. "It seems to be a very large company," she said during the conversation. "They have huge plate-glass windows, and there are so many employees. The person I met said they've always employed this many people."
"It's not that hard to find a job now," Henry interjected. "As long as you look presentable." Influenced by the enthusiastic Carrie and her husband, who was actually talking and laughing, Mina began to tell Carrie about some famous places worth visiting—places that didn't cost anything to enjoy. "You'll love Michigan Avenue. There are such beautiful houses there. It's a very pretty street."
"Where is the Jacob's Theatre?" Carrie asked, referring to a theater that specialized in romantic dramas and was known by that name at the time. "Oh, it's not far from here," Mina replied. "It's on Holsat Street, just a little further on."
"I really want to go see it. I walked past Holsat Street today, didn't I?" Hearing this, the person who answered hesitated. Thought is a strange and infectious thing. When she mentioned wanting to go to the theater, an unspoken shadow of disapproval for spending money on such things—a sense of unease—rose in Henry's heart, then in Mina's—slightly affecting the atmosphere at the dinner table.
Mina murmured "Hmm," but Carrie had already noticed that going to the theater was not encouraged here. The topic was dropped for a while until Henry finished eating and went into the front room with the newspaper. Carrie didn't say anything. When the twins came home, they still had that inexplicable expression on their faces. He silently washed his hands and went straight to his newspaper.
During dinner, Carrie felt a bit tense. Her own plans weighed heavily on her spirit, and she strongly felt that she was not welcome here. "Did you not find a job?" Henry asked.