Clothes
Deborah describes the clothes she had to wear in the sect, saying "I change quickly, buttoning a long-sleeved blue oxford shirt all the way to the top so that the collar is tight against my neck. I put the sweater back on over the shirt and pull out the two collar points so that they rest nearly on the navy blue wool, and I turn twice before the mirror, checking to see if I'm tucked in on all sides." In her descriptions of the clothes, Deborah suggests they are conservative and traditional.
"A fine girl"
In one passage, Deborah describes herself as looking like "a fine girl, just like Zeidy wants me to be, just like teachers always call Chavie, the rabbi's daughter. Fine, like expensive fabric, like good china, like wine." In this passage, Deborah uses imagery to compares herself to fine, expensive things like china and expensive fabric.
Williamsburg
Deborah often describes the place she used to live, Williamsburg in New York. In one description she describes how: "In my rush, I almost collide with a man walking in the other direction, mumbling prayers to himself, his earlocks swinging. I have to step awkwardly in the gutter to avoid him. Funny, I notice suddenly there are no other women on the street. I've never been on the street at this time of day before, when all the girls are in school and mothers are busy cleaning house and preparing dinner. Williamsburg seems hollow and empty." Here descriptions of Williamsburg and the imagery used gives us a clearer idea of what life was like in the sect.
