Discussion: Gender in Theft and Magic

For discussion on Friday I would like to discuss the ideas of women and how Katherine Anne Porter portrays them. With "Theft," some things I was wondering include what his her relationship with these men and who knows about it? Also why is the female narrator never named even though we get the names of the men she meets? Also who gave her the purse is it one of the men we are introduced to or is it another male/person? If it is another person how does this person play a role in her life and how does that reflect her actions when the purse is stolen? For "Magic," I was wondering why does Porter develop this story in which a woman is competing, controlling and mistreating another woman? Also how do the men in this story play an important role? Also what can we say about the structure of the story, the conversation between Madame Blanchard and the girl brushing her hair? Why is the conversation between these women important?