Stepfan’s Research Prospectus on “New York Day Women”

Stepfan Hospedales

Research Prospectus

English 1121(Prof. Scanlan)

May 2, 2020

Short Story: “New York Day Women”

1. “New York Day Women” is a short story by Edwidge Danticat. I personally liked this wonderful story because it highlights immigrants adjusting to the states. Then there were the flashbacks that came at the right moments, full of wisdom from Suzette’s mother. Lastly, I loved the mother-daughter relationship between the main characters. As a reader, I observed the bond they share that spread throughout the story,  it was genuine.
2. Summary: The short story “New York Day Women” is about a woman named Suzette, who one day spots her mother in Manhattan, a borough her mother is not familiar with at all. Knowing this, Suzette decides to follow her and notices how her mother is adjusting to this new town nicely. While she follows her mother, Suzette recalls the wisdom her mother would share with her when she was young. Each activity her mother partakes in had triggered flashbacks, which eventually influence Suzette’s state of mind to undergo a change that made her a better person just as her mother.
3. Main Characters

• Suzette

-A young eccentric woman who has much love and respect for her mother, and looks to her for guidance.

Decision

• Suzette decides to follow her mother secretly to observe her

Change

• After observing her mother, Suzette decides to give her seat to an old lady (as old as her mother), or a pregnant lady on a train. This is important because, in the beginning she was quite picky on whom she will give her seat on the train. For Suzette, it depends on certain factors before she would give up her seat.

Suzette’s types of Ethics are of a utilitarian in the beginning, due to her thought process. By the end, her ethics are of virtue by following her mother’s example.

• Suzette’s Mother

– Suzette’s mother is a wise, woman (possibly in her fifties or sixties), who uses her past and roots to adjust to her new life in the Big Apple.

Decisions

• Suzette’s mother decides to get out of her comfort zone, and begins to adapt to living in the new area using her experiences from Haiti.
• Suzette’s mother chooses not be a part of Suzette’s school PTA meetings, because she didn’t want Suzette to be ashamed of her or as she put it “day woman.”

Unlike Suzette who ethics shifted, her mother’s type of ethics is of virtue and global. This is displayed from beginning to end, and it ultimately rubs on Suzette, hence the shift of ethics for her.

(428 Words)