Mrs. McPherson
At age 50, Mrs. McPherson has been widowed. The first 20 of those years were simply spent growing up. After she got married, the next thirty years were spent fulfilling all the duties expected of being a wife and mother. The last three years have been spent earning money for herself and preparing for a future on her own terms.
She makes a dramatic entrance into the story by interrupting the plans of her three children to hear the reading of their father’s will. She is dressed in a black mourning cloak and her face is hidden behind a black veil. Her removal of this disguise of her actual emotional state is equally dramatic as it reveals she is actually attired in a tailored traveling suit. The fashion term is quite literal.
Mrs. McPherson announces to her children that the will of their father has been altered to give her complete authority over the dispensation. As for herself, she plans to eschew any remaining duties to others and enjoy a life of pleasure and contentment by traveling around the world. Her children, of course, take all this in and conclude she must be mentally unbalanced.
James
James is the son and lives in New York City with his wife and children. Like his sisters, James’ spouse chose not to make the trip to Denver for the funeral. He lives in a bigger house than his sisters, suggesting he is wealthier. It is also suggested that his sisters are envious of his success.
It is also implied that James really needs to make a good income because his wife spends rather freely. This irritates his sisters, but James considers it just another inevitable expectation from women. Also like his sisters, James is presented as attending the funeral of their father out of a sense of duty rather than any deep affection.
Upon learning that his mother has been working to take sole control over the estate left by their father, James adopts a steadfast misogynist attitude by patronizing his mother. He questions her ability to fully understand the consequences of her actions. He soon enough learns he has seriously underestimated the intellectual capacity of women in general and his mother in particular.
Ellen and Adelaide
Notably, James is introduced in the opening paragraph in a singular fashion. Ellen and Adelaide are introduced together in the opening line of the next paragraph. This pairing sets the stage for the treatment of the two sisters as a singular unit comparable to James on his own.
Ellen lives in Cambridge while Adelaide calls Pittsburgh home. Ellen appears to be slightly more emotionally connected to her mother than the other two kids, but hates Denver so much that she is almost willing to do anything just to get the visit over with so she can head back home. Adelaide is not quite of the same financial status as James, but is clearly capable of supporting her mother if only she were also willing.
Upon learning that none of the children will have to suffer the burden of taking care of their aging mother, Adelaide does the math and is shocked to realize her mother will enjoy an income of two-thousand dollars a year in 1890’s money. Upon Adelaide’s speaking this number out loud, Ellen immediately pivots from her former position to extend an invitation for her mother to come live with her and family. Mrs. McPerson respectfully declines, more than aware of the precise nature of the connected she shares with these grown adults she no recognizes as her “children.”
Mr. Frankland
Mr. Frankland is the lawyer in charge of executing Mr. McPherson’s last will and testament. His primary role is to act as mediator between Mrs. McPherson and her children as a result of the unexpected revelation that they will not be receiving exactly the inheritance they expected upon arrival.
He expresses much the same shocked surprise at the widow’s rebellious independence as the children. The most notable thing about him, however, is that he is quick to leap to Mrs. McPherson’s defense when James begins questioning her ability to understand the intricacies of the finances of the dispensation of the estate. This is not just a conscious decision to support a wealthy client. It is also a conscious rejection of what appears to be on the part of James a decision to lay the groundwork for contesting the will.
Another notable aspect of his character is that he seems far more emotionally invested in the gravity of the circumstances than the children. Even though they have just lost a parent and are about to find themselves figurative losing the other parent, they express little genuine emotion that is not self-serving. Mr. Frankland even sincerely expresses his regrets that he was not able to attend the funeral in direct contrast to the eager decisions by the spouses of the three siblings to stay as far away from the ritual as possible.
