Cigarette

"Laura reaches into the pocket of her robe for a cigarette, changes her mind, raises her hand instead to her hair. It is almost perfect, it is almost enough, to be a young mother in a yellow kitchen touching her thick dark hair, pregnant with another child." (44)

This moment can be compared to the prologue. Laura reaches into her pocket for a cigarette which symbolizes relief from an unhappy life. Virginia has a rock in her pocket, which she places there to help her escape life. Laura compares herself later to Virginia, because she hopes that she is observant like Virginia was. The two scenes contrast, because Laura decides she is content and Virginia does not.