Sister Carrie, Chapter 34 summary
Chapter 34 of 47 · 13 min to read the chapter
In Chapter 34, Hurstwood’s Warren Street partnership ends, and his search for another business or suitable employment produces nothing, leaving the household dependent on savings. Carrie fears poverty and grows distant, while Hurstwood’s shame about seeking lower-status work leads him toward hotel lobbies, newspapers, and the comfort of home.
What happens
- Carrie fears returning to poverty, while memories of the Vances and Ames sharpen her dissatisfaction with her present life.
- Hurstwood searches business advertisements, but available saloons cost too much, seem unsuitable, or are no longer for sale.
- His anxiety produces a quarrel over dinner, and the couple’s conversation becomes increasingly strained.
- Hurstwood and Shaughnessy divide the remaining business money and end their Warren Street partnership.
- Hurstwood searches unsuccessfully for work, feeling too ashamed to ask employers directly or consider bartending.
- He pays twenty-eight dollars toward rent from his savings and escapes his worries by reading newspapers at home.
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Why does Hurstwood reject the idea of seeking a bartender’s job?
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