Servant
Eliza’s father is compared to a servant. Eliza’s mother dominates their marriage, such as finances and intimacy. She controls everything in their marriage. Smiley writes, “Her father was her mother’s servant, and had been as long as Eliza could remember—they slept in different rooms, he was to knock if wanted to enter.” Although they are married, Eliza’s mother treats her husband as a lowly husband who must comply with her demands. Similarly, Eliza wound up playing the role of a servant after she is married to Peters. The servant role means the couples do not share equal power, as the servants are not as powerful as their masters.
“Opening a Door”
Mrs. Parks does not condone gossip among the girls who work for her as prostitutes. She wants them to maintain distance between themselves so that gossip cannot interfere with their job. Smiley elaborates, “Mrs. Parks told them that gossiping was like opening a door and leaving it unlocked—you never knew what might happen." Therefore, the only way the door would be closed was to ensure that the girls maintain a distance from each other. They would not become intimate friendships. They resided in different places, thus, reducing the odds of engaging in gossip.
Business
Mrs. Parks calls prostitution "business." After Eliza’s encounter with Mr. Hardwood, Mrs. Parks tells her, “You need not to go there again if you do not wish to do so, but let the other girls choose for themselves, He is a kindly man, with plenty funds, and I would not like to lose his business.” Mrs. Park’s command means that she does not expect Eliza to discourage the other girls from going to Mr. Harwood’s place. Mrs. Parks wants the income to keep flowing into her ‘business.’ She would not entertain girls who stop income from coming in.
