From her longings and desires on her shopping trip, the reader can infer that Mrs. Sommers has long practiced self-denial, but she has not always had to be so frugal and responsible for others; she was once able to purchase items that were not "necessities," and she was independent.
Mrs. Sommers' knowledge of quality materials contained in the gloves and silk stockings and polished kid-leather boots which she purchases suggest her prior acquaintance with such luxuries: "It was a long time since Mrs. Sommers had been fitted with gloves." Further, after she purchases the gloves, silk stockings, and leather boots, Mrs. Sommers feels transformed to her younger years. She experiences a renewed feeling of "assurance, a sense of belonging to the well-dressed multitude." Truly, she enjoys her return to this realm and her escape from a life of "enforced frugality."
Clearly, Mrs. Sommers demonstrates a nostalgic desire to reclaim her appearance of days long past as she has equated her youth and pre-marriage self with luxuries and a sense of independence.
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