Women of the past and present have always spent their days worrying about their families, spending money on everyone but themselves. In "A Pair of Silk Stockings" by Kate Chopin, a young mother goes to sleep wondering, as so many other mothers do, who she is going to spend the extra money on - in all veracity she is the one who needs to treat herself.

The idea Chopin is trying to convey is that sometimes it is okay for one to stop and ponder about his or her own self; not every day has to be spent worrying about everyone else. Chopin shows Mrs. Sommers as a meager mother who disregards herself and focuses her attention on her family. This story also implies that sometimes mothers get so wrapped up in their family lives that they have no time to reminisce; it is almost like they become...