What kind of character is Laura?

As a character Laura Sheridan is endearingly naive. Pampered and petted, she is accustomed to the privileges and comforts associated with the upper middle class and yet she is eager to prove how pragmatic she can be. In comparison to her siblings (who make only brief appearances in the text) Laura is a capable organizer and budding socialite who tends to favor the simpler pleasures of life unlike her mother who is noted for her extravagances. Laura is sympathetic toward the emotions of others and is naturally concerned about the world around her, especially concerning the plight of the lower class. Despite her compassion, Laura’s ignorance in talking to the workmen illustrates how truly naïve she is about how she and her family are perceived by others. Raised in a life of privilege, Laura’s usual concerns about flower arrangements, clothes, and preparing menus seem frivolous but are a necessary part of her life. She is thrilled to be asked to help organize the garden party and is pleased by her family’s and by extension her popularity but there is an underling curiosity about Laura that separates her from her more vapid siblings and mother.

The death of Mr. Scott, only a passing acquaintance, shocks Laura into action. She feels it would be incredibly rude of her family to proceed with their garden party so soon after Mr. Scott’s death especially because he lived and died so close to the Sheridan’s property. No one in her family shares her concerns which causes Laura to begin to view her family in a different light. How could they be so ignorant of the suffering of others? Laura’s vivid imagination and musings over how devastated the Scott family must be in the wake of the tragedy only intensifies her desire to help them. She cannot understand her family’s lack of empathy.