Bias

The author uses the neighbors’ litany of misconceptions about the little widow as the narrative soil for her thematic explorations regarding bias. Although the neighbors have never met the little widow before she moves into their building, because rumors about her have preceded her arrival in New York City, the neighbors form an impression of her based on the sparse information they do have. Because “sources in the old country” have only provided them with the bare details of her past life, the neighbors invent and impose a story and identity onto her (65). When they see her for the first time, therefore, they are regarding her through the lens of these rumors and this gossip, and thus their biases. For example, on the story’s second page, they immediately decide that the widow’s “hand-sewn and outdated” attire is a reason not to like her (66). The...