The story opens as if the narrator is interrupted while at a typical domestic task. This simple first sentence gives us some clues about our narrator. What kind of a person would say "I stand here ironing?" We think this person isprobably a woman, a woman who does not have the money to pay for someone else to do the laundry, a woman who, if she is ironing constantly, probably has a large family to care for. As we read on, we find that our guesses would be right on target.