Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Sister Carrie, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Urban Life and Decay
Morality and Instinct
Wealth and Class
Summary
Analysis
Carrie finds comfort in the sensation of traveling and “almost [forgets] that she had been tricked into this long journey against her will.” They arrive in Montreal and Hurstwood gets rooms at a hotel under a false name. Carrie is pleased with the “lovely chamber” but remembers Hurstwood’s deception and remains aloof.
Carrie is easily influenced by the environment—the strangeness of her surroundings is enough to make her temporarily forget about her situation. A lovely chamber is enough to convince Carrie to stay with Hurstwood despite his deception.
Themes
Hurstwood traps Carrie in an embrace and asks her to be his wife. Carrie begins to remember “her old affection for him […] so handsome, so daring!” Carrie asks Hurstwood if he will marry her and he replies, “this very day.” With this promise, Carrie fully accepts Hurstwood and no longer feels resentment towards him.
Carrie has gained some experience with men, but evidently not enough to allow her to see Hurstwood’s deception as the indication of an unworthy man. She is also innocent enough to believe that if she marries Hurstwood, she will be a respectable woman, even though Hurstwood already has a wife.
Themes
Literary Devices
Hurstwood goes out to look for a barber shop and bumps into a friend from Chicago. This unnerves him and he realizes that “he forgot in his triumph with Carrie […] the possibility of soon being known for what he was, in this man’s eyes, a safebreaker.” Hurstwood decides to have breakfast with Carrie “in some more inconspicuous place.”
Hurstwood is a man of pride—he dreads the idea of being known as a thief, even if he will not see any of the people who know. Evidently, leaving behind his life in Chicago and starting anew will be more difficult than Hurstwood anticipated.
Themes
Literary Devices
On his way back from the barber shop, Hurstwood notices a detective in the lobby of his hotel. He begins “to trouble concerning the extradition law” and feels a desire to leave Montreal. Hurstwood finds Carrie refreshed but cold towards him once again. On their way out to breakfast, Hurstwood notices the detective again. At breakfast, Hurstwood tells Carrie they will go to New York.
The fact that Hurstwood does not tell Carrie about his theft shows that he does not trust and respect her as a partner—she is more of a pet to appease and keep under wraps. To Hurstwood, Carrie is not his equal. The fact that Hurstwood desires to go to New York shows that he does not plan to keep the money—he will return it for a safe passage back to America.
Themes
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Hurstwood grows increasingly anxious regarding his crime. He finds a small addendum describing it in the papers and decides to keep Carrie from finding him out. The detective knocks on the door to Hurstwood and Carrie’s hotel rooms. The two speak quietly outside and the detective attempts to find out whether Hurstwood will give the money back. Hurstwood feels frustrated at being treated as a thief and does not give the detective a straight answer.
Hurstwood’s pride keeps him from even admitting that he is a thief. His desire to keep the theft from Carrie’s knowledge shows that he believes that Carrie’s opinion for him would be irrevocably lowered if she were to know. He does not believe Carrie is understanding enough to take the problem in stride and help him come up with ideas.
Themes
After returning to his rooms, Hurstwood tells Carrie that the detective is a friend from Chicago. He then decides to send the money back and, wondering if his superiors could forgive him, sends them a letter. At the same time, Hurstwood “[accepts] his present situation with Carrie, getting what joy out of it he could.” He tells Carrie to stay with him from now on. Carrie solemnly listens and agrees but maintains that Hurstwood must marry her. The two then marry as George and Carrie Wheeler “by a Baptist minister, the first divine they found convenient.”
Hurstwood uses Carrie as an escape from his problems rather than respecting her as a partner. On the other hand, Carrie’s desire to marry Hurstwood shows that she wants to be his partner, his equal, and share in his troubles. Carrie is innocent enough to believe that a hasty exchange of vows before a convenient minister means that Hurstwood is now married to her and no longer tied to his wife.
Themes
Hurstwood’s superiors from Chicago reply, expressing astonishment. Fortunately for Hurstwood, they firm declares that “if the money were returned, they would not trouble to prosecute him, as they really bore him no ill-will.” Hurstwood returns $9,500, keeping $1,300 for his own use. Still, he is anxious that he might be arrested upon returning to the States. Hurstwood and Carrie board the train to New York. Carrie, blissful in ignorance, enjoys the train ride. Furthermore, she “had heard of the Hudson River, the great city of New York, and now she looked out, filling her mind with the wonder of it.”
Hurstwood’s superiors are unwilling to prosecute him, showing that he made a good enough impression in Chicago to render him deserving of mercy. Carrie’s blissful ignorance highlights her innocence—she does not realize the hardships that come from starting life in a new city and being married for the first time. Carrie spends a train ride dreaming about the big city that is too come, recalling the beginning of the novel. Once again, she expects glamour rather than difficulty.
Themes
When Carrie and Hurstwood arrive in New York, Hurstwood finally feels relieved after finding no one at the station to arrest him. Hurstwood decides to stay at the Belford, “knowing it to be less frequented by those whom he knew.” Hurstwood tells Carrie that there are no lawns in New York and Carrie expresses her disapproval—she “was coming to have a few opinions of her own.”
Carrie, though still innocent, is not as naïve as before. She no longer simply absorbs information; rather, she now has a certain independence of mind. Carrie’s new display of autonomy shows that life in Chicago was a sort of education. From this, readers can expect that life in New York will form the second part of this education.
Themes
