Nickled and Dimed: Introduction and Chapter One 1. Near the outset,
Ehrenreich (speaking of her own sister) employs the term “wage slave.” What
does she mean by this?
2. What are the three rules
the author sets for herself at the beginning of Nickel and Dimed? 3. Early on, the author tells us that she has a
Ph.D. in biology. How, if at all, does this figure into the narrative
CHAPTER 1 – SERVING IN
FLORIDA 1. Early in Chapter One, Ehrenreich notes that, in terms of low-wage
work, “the want ads are not a reliable measure of the actual jobs available at
any particular time.” Explain why this is so.
2. At one point, Ehrenreich
details the living conditions of her fellow workers at the Hearthside.
Reviewing these arrangements, explain how each set-up compares with the
author’s own “$500 efficiency” quarters.
3. Waiting tables at Jerry’s,
the author meets a young dishwasher named George. Who is he? What is his story?
Why do he and Ehrenreich befriend one another? And why does she not “intervene”
when she learns from an assistant manager that George is thought to be a thief?
4. On her first—and last—day
of housekeeping in Key West, Ehrenreich is met by a manager who addresses her
as “babe” and gives her “a pamphlet emphasizing the need for a positive attitude.”
Why do you think this is important? What
does this reveal?
5. In an extended footnote in
Chapter Two, Ehrenreich explains how “the point” of the housecleaning service
where she is employed “is not so much to clean as to create the appearance of
having been cleaned.” Why is this? Why the deceit? Why does The Maids outfit
not clean its clients’ homes properly?
