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Katherine Anne Porter Theft

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Disillusionment can be defined as a feeling of disappointment resulting from the discovery that something is not as good as one believed it to be. Katherine Anne Porter was alive to witness and experience many different conflicts and accomplishments in the world. In addition to this she struggled with a tough upbringing and very dramatic love life. The era in which she lived was full of disillusionment. Organized crime and bootlegging was hidden behind the excitement of the roaring twenties which Porter lived during. One of the many problems to arise during her lifetime was the increasing presence of nazism. Although this was a large problem it helped and inspired her to look into and accept the darker side of the average person, which most …show more content…

The main character in this short story thinks back on her entire night after noticing her purse went missing. After finding out the janitress was the one who stole the purse this woman reflects on her life and realizes that, “she had never locked a door in her life”(Porter 109). This woman is in the midst of realizing that the world is no longer what she envisioned it was. She never once before had to lock something to protect against theft but after this experience will live the rest of her life differently. At the end of the story the woman says to herself, “I was right not to be afraid of any thief but myself, who will end by leaving me nothing”(Porter 110). This woman can’t find it within herself to blame the changing world for the outcome of the situation so instead turns the whole problem on herself and convinces herself it is her fault.
This is Porter puncturing the outer layer of the average human and investigating the darker side that we all have inside of us which was new for this time period. In all of Katherine Anne Porter’s pieces of literature an essence of disillusionment is present. This can be explained by her upbringing and things she has experienced throughout her life. Whether it be her characters realizing the world is changing, proving stereotypes wrong, or an underlying theme of betrayal, all of

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