Comparing and Contrasting the Author's Use of Style in "The Standard of Living" and "The Lesson"

An author's view of human behavior is often reflected in their works. The short stories, The Standard of Living by Dorothy Parker and The Lesson by Toni Cade Bambara are both examples of works that demonstrate their author's view of lifestyles from the past. Parker's The Standard of Living reflects pretence and make-believe. Perhaps the best example of this is demonstrated by the main characters Annabel and Midge who are two young middle-class "working women" …

…starting in paragraph 15. As the two walk along Fifth Avenue on day, the game starts once again. After leaving the store, the two young women are outdone and somewhat embarrassed about the price of the pearls. "Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars!" Midge said. "That's a quarter of a million dollars right there (para 53)!" At this point these two realizes that a million dollars isn't really worth much to those who have that and more.