The Relationship between the Bunner Sisters - Amanda Fulco

"The purchase of Evelina's clock had been a more important event in the life of Ann Eliza Bunner than her younger sister could divine. In the first place, there had been the demoralizing satisfaction of finding herself in possession of a sum of money which she need not put into the common fund, but could spend as she chose, without consulting Evelina, and then the excitement of her stealthy trips abroad, undertaken on the rare occasions when she could trump up a pretext for leaving the shop; since, as a rule, it was Evelina who took the bundles to the dyer's, and delivered the purchases of those among their customers who were too genteel to be seen carrying home a bonnet or a bundle of pinking—so that, had it not been for the excuse of having to see Mrs. Hawkins's teething baby, Ann Eliza would hardly have known what motive to allege for deserting her usual seat behind the counter" (14).

This scene illustrates the relationship between the sisters very well. Even though Ann Eliza Bunner is the oldest sister, she seems to portray a child-like behavior. In this quote we can see the struggle that she has working "underneath" her younger sister. She felt satisfaction when she was able to possess money without adding it to their mutual funds. Ann Eliza describes this possession as an "important event in her life." Something so small as having a little bit of ownership of money, allows Ann Eliza to feel independent. This is significant because it demonstrates this feeling of dependency that Ann Eliza may be experiencing. Even though she is also a contributor to the funds, it seems as if for her it's a struggle of feeling dependent on her sister. This reminded me of other texts that we have read such as The Yellow Wallpaper and The Awakening where the woman were under the control of their husbands. As much as they longed for their own voice and independence they still felt "underneath" their husband just like Ann Eliza.

This quote also portrays Ann Eliza as a weak woman because Evelina is the one who takes care of all of the "bundles to the dyer's and delivered the purchases of those among their customers who were too genteel to be seen carrying home a bonnet or a bundle of pinking." This makes me also wonder if Ann Eliza is not a reliable person. Why can't she also take care of these responsibilities? Since she does not leave the shop much, she needs to come up with excuses in order to leave her seat behind the counter. This illustrates the power that Evelina has over her older sister because she has to tell her sister where she goes, every time she leaves. This text is interesting because instead of seeing a struggle within a male/female relationship we are able to see almost the same dynamics between sisters.