Elisa Allen

Going back to what I had said on my last post about Elisa Allen, why did she all of a sudden bring up the fights at the end of the story that her husband had mention? She seemed as if she was holding something in. Elisa might have brought up the fights for the fact of her looking back on how she tried to seduce the man in the wagon. In the passage it said " She was silent for a while; then she said, "Henry, at those prize fights, do the men hurt each other very much?... Well , I've read about how they break noses, and blood runs down their chests. I've read how the fighting gloves get heavy and soggy with blood." It goes on to conclude that "She turned up her coat collar so he could not see that she was crying weakly--like an old woman." When she brought this up, could it be possible that she was imagining what would happen if her husband caught her trying to seduce the man? That if he caught her, her husband and the man would have a violent confrontation. She was ashamed for even thinking of it however "She grew complete again. "I'm strong," she boasted. "I never knew before how strong."