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Sister Carrie, Chapter 4 summary

Chapter 4 of 47 · 18 min to read the chapter

In Chapter 4, Carrie Meeber imagines spending her wages on pleasure, but Minnie and Hanson discourage a theater visit and expect serious attention to work. Her first day at the shoe factory replaces these hopes with physical exhaustion, fear of the foreman, and distress at the workers’ behavior.

What happens

  1. Carrie dreams of pleasures her weekly wages can buy, while Minnie considers household costs and the help Carrie’s board money provides.
  2. Minnie and Hanson resist Carrie’s theater proposal, and she begins to find their home confining.
  3. After a Saturday walk among signs of wealth, Carrie starts for the factory early on Monday, anxious about her abilities.
  4. Mr. Brown hands Carrie over to a foreman, who assigns her to a machine punching holes in shoe leather.
  5. Repetitive work causes increasing pain, while coarse conversation and unwanted touching deepen her discomfort.
  6. Carrie leaves at six, relieved to escape but ashamed beside better-dressed girls and convinced she deserves something better.

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In this chapter

CarrieMinnie

What to notice

The sentence marks the gap between Carrie’s expectations and her experience. Earning money brings not immediate pleasure but pain, social discomfort, and a desire to escape.

Quick check

What task does Carrie perform at the factory?

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