Florence Chigwell—Curtis Chigwell

Florence Chigwell and Curtis Chigwell’s relationship reaches a decisive change late in life when Florence ends their shared household, buys Curtis’s share of the house, and begins living alone. The account gives no explanation for their separation, but Florence’s satisfaction with her new independence makes clear that the arrangement marks a long-delayed change in how she lives.

A Household Comes to an End

After returning home, Florence tells V. I. Warshawski that she is no longer living with Curtis. She has bought his share of the house, while Curtis has moved to a retirement home in Clarendon Hills. The practical details establish a clear division of their former household: Florence remains in the house, and Curtis leaves it. The text does not specify whether they were married or what prompted the change.

Florence’s Retrospective

Asked how she likes living alone, Florence answers that she likes it very much, while wishing she had found the courage to do so sixty years earlier. Her reflection places the separation against a long history of living with Curtis, without supplying further details about that history. Rather than describing the change as a temporary absence, she presents living alone as a choice she now values.

Independence and Its Example

Florence tells V. I. Warshawski that she wanted her to know because Warshawski had shown her that a woman could live an independent life. Florence thus connects her decision to an example of female independence, though the account does not say that Warshawski caused the separation. Her brief, self-assured report contrasts with the decades of hesitation she recalls: the relationship’s ending becomes, for Florence, the beginning of a way of life she wishes she had chosen much earlier.