A Pair of Silk Stockings (Unabridged) (Kate Chopin).

“A Pair of Silk Stockings” by Kate Chopin is a classic story about a woman’s impulsive spending habits. Mrs. Sommers is a once wealthy lady who has fallen on hard times, and when she inherits $15, her first thought is to spend it on her children’s clothing. However, she is entranced by a pair of smooth silk stockings she sees in a shop window, and she decides to spend her money on them as well. Overwhelmed by “mechanical impulses” that direct her actions, Mrs. Sommers becomes obsessed with the stockings, spending the money not only on them but also on new boots and gloves. The book is reminiscent of The Awakening, another famous work by Kate Chopin, where the protagonist Edna Pontellier also succumbs to her impulsiveness. The novel was first published in the magazine Vogue in 1897 and has since become a classic in literature.