The House

The narrative takes place almost entirely in the woman’s house. She, her husband, and her children have recently moved into this house. The only notable issue with the house is the appearance of dead bugs on the downstairs carpet each morning, presumably killed by the cat. The woman soon becomes fascinated by the anatomy of these carcasses, which then leads to her profound new interest in bugs in general, as well as similar creatures like worms and arachnids.

The Previous Residence

The woman makes a few references to the residence in which she, her husband, and her children previously lived. She implies that it was much worse than the new house. The previous residence was badly infested with roaches and red ants. These problems are somewhat ironic when compared to the fascination with insects that the woman develops while living in the new house.