In the final paragraph of the story, Freeman includes a subtle biblical allusion, as seen in the following passage:
That afternoon she sat with her needle-work at the window, and felt fairly steeped in peace […] If Louisa Ellis had sold her birthright she did not know it, the taste of the pottage was so delicious, and had been her sole satisfaction for so long. Serenity and placid narrowness had become to her as the birthright itself.
The biblical reference that Freeman is making here is the story of Esau, a man who sells his birthright (or the right as firstborn to inherit from his father and have authority over his family) for a pot of lentil stew—a decision regarded as shortsighted and foolish.
When Freeman writes, “If Louisa Ellis had sold her birthright she did not know it, the taste of the pottage was so delicious,” she is commenting on how outsiders may see Louisa as having traded something highly valuable (her marriage to Joe) for something far less valuable (a life of simple solitude). But what’s important for Louisa is that the pottage (or stew) is “delicious.” While others may see marriage as her “birthright,” she sees “serenity and placid narrowness” as her true birthright. Despite the fact that she has not fulfilled the norms expected of her as a woman, she ends the story in a joyful and peaceful state.
