Bread Givers

Sara fantasizes about food every day because she does not have enough money to eat. She becomes so distracted by her hunger that she accidentally burns a the shirts at work, and the manager takes it out of her wages. When Sara goes to the cafeteria later, she asks for beef stew, but the serving girl gives her a helping with only vegetables and broth. The girl serves the man behind Sara a huge piece of meat. Sara repeatedly asks for a piece of meat, but the other women in line tell her that the men always get the meat and that she should be grateful. Sara leaves the cafeteria and goes home to eat a stale piece of bread. The room is so cold that Sara has trouble focusing on her studies.

Shenah visits Sara and brings her a feather bed to keep her warm. She gives Sara some herring and tells her that she cannot stay long because Reb Smolinsky does not know she left. Since the journey was so long, Shenah already must return to Reb Smolinsky, but she holds Sara and asks her to come visit her. Sara tells her that she cannot travel to New Jersey because she must study in her spare time. She promises her mother she will come to see her when she finishes her education.

One night, Fania and Bessie visit her. Fania tells Sara that she should come live in Los Angeles with her, but Sara wants to focus on her studies. When Bessie asks about Abe, Fania cries and tells them that Abe wants her to dress in the latest fashion but yells at her when she spends money. She does not have any friends and spends her time gambling with Abe because there is nothing else to do. Fania tells them that she constantly thinks about how different her life would have been if she married Morris Lipkin. Bessie bemoans the match Father made for her as well because she hates being a stepmother and working in the fish store. Fania tells Sara that she knows a man who she thinks would be good for her as a husband, but Sara says she is better off being single because they had such bad luck with marriage. Fania tries to get Sara to come with them to their parent’s house, but she refuses because she must study.

During lunch at the laundry, Sara sits with the other workers. However, when one of the girls tells a raunchy story, Sara gets embarrassed and leaves the group. The other women mock her for her embarrassment and insinuate that Sara rents a room alone because she sleeps around. Sara tries to make friends with them again, but they shut her out of their conversations. Sara does not have any friends at night school either because her classmates do not like her persistent questions.

Sara thinks that if she buys makeup and starts dressing like everyone else, her coworkers and classmates might accept her. She buys makeup and new clothes and practices applying the makeup in the mirror at night. The next day, she goes to work with makeup on, but as she walks to work, she feels self-conscious and tries to wipe the makeup off her face. The other workers see her taking her makeup off and mock her for trying to fit in. After that, Sara decides to focus only on her schooling because she does not think her coworkers will accept her.

Sara fails a test in geometry, and she worries that she is not smart enough to be a schoolteacher. She receives a letter from Fania telling her that Max Goldstein, the man she told her about, is coming to New York and will visit Sara. Sara is frustrated because she does not want to meet him. One day, Max comes to visit Sara. He is friendly and charms her. He tells her that he likes that she studies and works for herself. Max tells her that when he arrived in America, his first job was shoveling snow out of the streets with a group of men. Then, he became an actor before he caught consumption and could not sing anymore. After a while, he moved to Los Angeles and bought a store, which is now one of the biggest department stores in the city. Sara is impressed with his stories, and he tells her that he wants to take her out. He takes Sara to a vaudeville show, but she does not like the crass jokes, so they go dancing instead. Sara realizes she loves dancing, and they stay out late.

The next day, Max returns and wants to go out again, but Sara feels tired from the night before. He convinces her to go to a restaurant with him, where he buys her food. Max tells her that he likes that she is independent and different from other women. He comes to visit her every night that week, and Sara feels that she is falling in love with him despite herself. One night, he tells her he wants to marry her, but he wants her to give up her studies. Sara realizes that he thinks of her as another thing he can buy with his money. She tells him she does not want to marry him, and Max leaves. Sara wonders why she refused him even though she loves him. However, she knows in her heart that she would grow tired of him because she feels happier with her books than with him.