Sister Carrie: Allusions 5 key examples

In the late 19th century, both Chicago and New York were hubs of America's rapid urbanization and industrialization. New York was often seen as the epitome of American modernity, wealth, and opportunity, especially as it was the country’s primary financial center. Chicago, though younger, was fast catching up, and appears in many novels of the period as a central site of American reinvention and rapid growth.

Drouet's comment here underlines an important theme of the novel: the allure of the city and its perceived opportunities. By alluding to Chicago as a "second New York," he taps into an important and prevailing sentiment of the era—that Chicago’s cultural and financial capital was booming. Drouet's comparison is both a reflection of Chicago's aspirations and an insight into how newcomers like Carrie might have viewed opportunities there.

Through Drouet's words, Dreiser also offers a glimpse into the character's mindset. Drouet, a charismatic salesman and unabashed opportunist, is himself swept up by the magnetic pull of the city. His words are not just a description of Chicago. They’re also intended to sell himself, as he aims to seduce Carrie with his expertise. The destinations Drouet mentions—like Lincoln Park—are cultural touchstones of the Chicago area. They are meant to demonstrate its historical and artistic vibrancy, and they affirm that Drouet knows his way around. In this passage, Carrie's new friend is painting a picture for her of a place where her dreams of sophistication and success seem possible.

The allusion—although Drouet gets its name wrong—to Charles Hoyt's 1887 play A Hole in the Ground serves multiple purposes. Firstly, it provides historical context, placing the events of the narrative within a specific time frame and highlighting the fact that theatrical “farces” were popular sources of entertainment in the 19th century. A "farce" is a comedic play marked by exaggerated, improbable events. Farces prioritize humor over plausible plots, using misunderstandings, mistaken identities, and rapid twists. They were popular as short standalone plays and sometimes also as lighthearted pieces following more serious performances.

The allusion has deeper implications. A Hole in the Ground was a comedy of manners, and Hoyt was known for his use of slapstick and sometimes shocking humor. By having Drouet attend this play, the author subtly suggests that the young man is inclined towards silly or frivolous pursuits rather than serious things.

Sappho, an ancient Greek poet, was known for her tender, delicate poems about relationships. Dreiser's mention of her, with the assertion that she might view Drouet as a "pig," provides insight into his shortcomings. Sappho's lyrical pieces often celebrate profound emotional intricacies. Her poetry is known for expressing complex, nuanced emotion, and, in her eyes, Drouet might lack these sophisticated reactions. His sometimes coarse and unrefined nature is at odds with the ideals of romantic love present in Sappho’s work. By mentioning her in this context, the author suggests that Drouet might not match up to the high standards of grace and beauty found in her poetry. Drouet’s character, though not all bad, would have seemed “pig”-like to Sappho.

On the other hand, the second allusion made here paints Drouet in a more positive light. Shakespeare, a famous English playwright, often wrote about everyday people in a way that embraced and celebrated both their good and bad sides. In this context, the author is suggesting that even with Drouet's flaws, he's still an entertaining person with room for growth.

Allusions invite readers to draw parallels between the reference the author is making and the narrative it appears in. “The Mikado,” a comic opera, is characterized by its topsy-turvy storyline. Class distinctions blur and romantic situations become hopelessly convoluted. “The Mikado” echoes the urban world Carrie finds herself thrust into. In her day-to-day life, lines between social classes become fluid, ambitions override traditional roles, and romantic entanglements are anything but straightforward. Much like the characters in Gilbert and Sullivan’s opera, Carrie is struggling to navigate a world where societal expectations are in constant flux.

Secondly, “The Mikado” is known for its ornate costumes and flamboyant characters. This mirrors the facade that both Drouet and Carrie put on for the world, as they dress up to achieve certain social goals. Just as the characters in “The Mikado” don elaborate disguises and assume exaggerated personalities, Drouet and Carrie dress flashily and put on airs to project an image of success and sophistication. In both stories, giving an impression of success is about survival and about fitting into a world that excludes the uneducated and unmoneyed.

Sarah Bernhardt was an extremely well-known French actress of the period. She was also a successful entrepreneur and a self-made woman who was known for challenging and breaking the strict gender boundaries of the age. For an aspiring actress like Carrie, Bernhardt would have been an emblem of success in the arts, signifying what the younger woman aspired to become. Opportunities for women in this period were still very limited, and Bernhardt was someone who defied societal conventions, both in her art and her personal life.

This is especially true given Bernhardt's social and romantic history, which was preoccupied with navigating the tricky avenues of other people’s expectations. While Carrie's overt mention of her to Hurstwood in this passage is directed towards Bernhardt's acting prowess, the subtext hints at the other parallels in their journeys. Bernhardt was also known to have spoken openly about her extra-marital sex life and was herself the daughter of a Parisian courtesan. Most actresses of this period—whether or not these claims were true—were assumed to have also been sex workers. The parallels between Carrie and Bernhard made through this allusion draw attention to the difficult choices women often had to make to achieve financial security.