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Theft
A day in the life of an unnamed urban woman.
- GenresShort Stories
7 pages, Unknown Binding
15 people want to read
About the author
Katherine Anne Porter
154 books350 followersKatherine Anne Porter was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist, essayist, short story writer, novelist, and political activist. She is known for her penetrating insight; her works deal with dark themes such as betrayal, death and the origin of human evil.
See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katherin...
See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katherin...
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
December 9, 2020
I didn't like it.
March 5, 2022
***Contains Spoilers***
In Katherine Anne Porters short story, Theft, readers follow a heroine named Camilo through a series of hollow events taking place in New York City. The story emphasizes many material objects, most notably a purse that Camilo carries with her in every scene. The story begins with, “She had the purse in her hand when she came in”. A certain value is placed on this purse in the way she takes care of it and in her explaining to her friend Roger that it was gifted to her as a birthday present. This early scene containing a taxi ride, shared by Camilo and Roger, stands out as pleasant compared to events that follow. The overall feeling of the story is shaded dark with use of heavy rain, Autumn atmosphere, and a seeming seasonal depression exhibited by characters.
As the main character makes her way home, the author pays peculiar attention to various material goods in Camilo’s path. We see ways in which she perceives them coupled with judgements made toward them in her head. The first of such judgements is made about a brand-new hat worn by a man walking with her in the rain. She mutedly implies that wearing a new hat in the rain is a “dreadful” act. Camilo makes it to her apartment building after sharing train rides, taxis, and walks with two different men. She is greeted by a distressed friend insisting she share a drink with him. While explaining recent hardships of his career, a comment is made about not being able to keep up with bank payments on his piano and victrola record player. Bill’s comments attach more negative connotations to material objects, a pattern that can be speculated thus far into the story. A clue concerning Camilo’s past is revealed when she finally makes it home and reads a damp letter pulled out of her purse. From broken fragments we can piece together that the letter is from an ex-lover, and she carries remorse towards him. She burns the letter.
The following day we arrive at a scene where Camilo decompresses in her bathtub while a janitress performs maintenance in her flat. As she continues her morning routine, Camilo notices that her purse is missing. Immediately she assumes that the janitress stole it and upon attempting to let go of the matter, storms down the stairs to find her. Camilo, at this time contemplates how she has always felt “uncomfortable in the ownership of things”. This fully unpacks Camilo’s attachment style to objects and people which also explains her behavior towards other human beings. She meets the janitress in denial and after arguing receives the purse back, ridden with guilt. Camilo, back in her flat, ruminates on her actions and ends the story with her thinking; “I was right not to be afraid of any thief but myself, who will end by leaving me nothing”.
Camilo has seen the last straw in her dealings with loss. Her relationships, lack of boundaries, and pride have only brought pain and anguish. Following the quarrel between the janitress and herself, she recognizes that her actions have left her with nothing and that her loneliness is self-inflicted and driven by trauma. It is clear to readers that each of Camilo’s encounters with the material world contain an emptiness and unfulfilling quality to them. The recognition of this by Camilo is subtle but present in the concluding statement.
In Katherine Anne Porters short story, Theft, readers follow a heroine named Camilo through a series of hollow events taking place in New York City. The story emphasizes many material objects, most notably a purse that Camilo carries with her in every scene. The story begins with, “She had the purse in her hand when she came in”. A certain value is placed on this purse in the way she takes care of it and in her explaining to her friend Roger that it was gifted to her as a birthday present. This early scene containing a taxi ride, shared by Camilo and Roger, stands out as pleasant compared to events that follow. The overall feeling of the story is shaded dark with use of heavy rain, Autumn atmosphere, and a seeming seasonal depression exhibited by characters.
As the main character makes her way home, the author pays peculiar attention to various material goods in Camilo’s path. We see ways in which she perceives them coupled with judgements made toward them in her head. The first of such judgements is made about a brand-new hat worn by a man walking with her in the rain. She mutedly implies that wearing a new hat in the rain is a “dreadful” act. Camilo makes it to her apartment building after sharing train rides, taxis, and walks with two different men. She is greeted by a distressed friend insisting she share a drink with him. While explaining recent hardships of his career, a comment is made about not being able to keep up with bank payments on his piano and victrola record player. Bill’s comments attach more negative connotations to material objects, a pattern that can be speculated thus far into the story. A clue concerning Camilo’s past is revealed when she finally makes it home and reads a damp letter pulled out of her purse. From broken fragments we can piece together that the letter is from an ex-lover, and she carries remorse towards him. She burns the letter.
The following day we arrive at a scene where Camilo decompresses in her bathtub while a janitress performs maintenance in her flat. As she continues her morning routine, Camilo notices that her purse is missing. Immediately she assumes that the janitress stole it and upon attempting to let go of the matter, storms down the stairs to find her. Camilo, at this time contemplates how she has always felt “uncomfortable in the ownership of things”. This fully unpacks Camilo’s attachment style to objects and people which also explains her behavior towards other human beings. She meets the janitress in denial and after arguing receives the purse back, ridden with guilt. Camilo, back in her flat, ruminates on her actions and ends the story with her thinking; “I was right not to be afraid of any thief but myself, who will end by leaving me nothing”.
Camilo has seen the last straw in her dealings with loss. Her relationships, lack of boundaries, and pride have only brought pain and anguish. Following the quarrel between the janitress and herself, she recognizes that her actions have left her with nothing and that her loneliness is self-inflicted and driven by trauma. It is clear to readers that each of Camilo’s encounters with the material world contain an emptiness and unfulfilling quality to them. The recognition of this by Camilo is subtle but present in the concluding statement.
March 31, 2025
I absolutely love "Ship of Fools", but was disappointed by Theft... We never learn the name of the female protagonist, but do for every MALE in the storyline - Camilo the Spanish man with the ruined hat, Bill who bemoans having to pay alimony to his ex-wife and child and owes the protagonist money that he does not have, Roger who has received a letter from Stella that implies that our "heroine" may have been cheating with Roger as she also has a letter that implies that "something must end". Then the titular theft occurs when the janitress steals the purse for her unnamed niece. I think a better title for this story might have been Lost. The women in the story seem to have lost their identities and slipped into roles for men - men who do not value them or let them down in some way. Kristi & Abby Tabby
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2024
It's quite disturbing to realize that so much can be stolen from you, stuff that you will never be able to get back or compensate for. The story is brief, following the unnamed protagonist in rainy weather and dark nights while encountering three different men. When her purse is stolen, after being dumped by her lover, she tries to get it back and she eventually does. However, the theft makes her realize that even if she gets the purse back, her entire life has been stolen from her forever. This is an intense read and it's very complex.
December 30, 2021
Nothing much to say about this short story.. A woman is given a purse as a gift and someone steals it.. She gets it back and that is all.. No deep meaning behind the story I could find..
Read
April 8, 2022Why do people think that writing for adults should include characters that talk like Goofy? There's also some redundancy in the dialogue at the end that had no business being there.
September 21, 2022
So confusing
May 18, 2025
This is Porter’s most anthologized short story.
None of the women have names; all of the men are referred to by their names.
The different meanings of "theft" are parsed, material things taken or lost, intangible things never to be realized, journeys planned but never made, all such things are mused upon and considered.
Katherine Anne Porter is not a writer I'm very familiar with, but what I have read has been complicated, and challenging for the reader. Here you might expect a female writer would centre and foreground her female protagonist; but no, we see the unnamed leading lady bouncing off men and struggling to negotiate the demands of life. Porter seems less inclined to pander to readers and more inclined towards realistic fiction. And life itself is complicated and challenging.
Life itself is a gift but also represents the upcoming loss of that gift — another theft.
None of the women have names; all of the men are referred to by their names.
The different meanings of "theft" are parsed, material things taken or lost, intangible things never to be realized, journeys planned but never made, all such things are mused upon and considered.
Katherine Anne Porter is not a writer I'm very familiar with, but what I have read has been complicated, and challenging for the reader. Here you might expect a female writer would centre and foreground her female protagonist; but no, we see the unnamed leading lady bouncing off men and struggling to negotiate the demands of life. Porter seems less inclined to pander to readers and more inclined towards realistic fiction. And life itself is complicated and challenging.
Life itself is a gift but also represents the upcoming loss of that gift — another theft.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews