In "A Canary for One," a seemingly mundane journey on a train to Paris unfolds, subtly revealing the complexities of the characters' lives. Through the interactions of three Americans—a middle-aged woman and a young couple—readers are drawn into a story shaped by past loves and impending separations. The narrative quietly builds to a poignant revelation, leaving a lasting impression of life's unpredictable turns.

On the Train to Paris

As the train speeds towards Paris, three unnamed Americans share a compartment: a middle-aged woman who speaks incessantly and a younger couple who mostly listen. The older woman's apprehension about the swift pace of modern trains betrays her unease, and she occupies herself with constant chatter. Notably, she omits any mention of her husband, presumably staying behind with their daughter. Instead, her monologues often return to the theme of matrimony, as she firmly believes that only American men make "good husbands" for American women.

A Mother's Concerns

Her primary worry centers on her daughter's marital prospects. Two years earlier, during a family vacation in Vevey, Switzerland, her daughter had become enamored with a Swiss man of respectable lineage and promising future. The pair wished to marry, but the woman's staunch aversion to her daughter marrying a foreigner led her to drag the family back to the United States. Now, she confides in the young couple that her daughter remains heartbroken over the thwarted romance. In a bid to uplift her daughter's spirits, she has even bought a caged, melodious canary.

The Young Couple's Silence

Throughout the journey, it is only the wife of the younger couple who interacts with the older woman, though her responses are often vague or indirect, particularly when it comes to evaluating "good" American husbands. She shows some curiosity about the daughter's emotional recovery by asking a single direct question on the matter. The wife also mentions that she and her husband had honeymooned in Vevey one autumn and had lived in Paris until "the Great European War" had compelled them to leave. This trip marks their first return to Paris since the war.

A Quiet Observer

The young husband remains largely silent, uttering only a single sentence throughout the journey, content to observe the passing landscape through the window. It is through his understated narrative that readers grasp his role as the story's first-person narrator. His detached and unemotional recounting of events causes the reader almost to forget his presence until the very conclusion of the tale. Only as the train approaches its destination in Paris does he ponder whether the ordinary aspects of life have withstood the ravages of war.

A Revealing Arrival

As the train pulls into the bustling Paris station, the young husband unveils the crux of their journey and the story itself: he and his wife have come to Paris, the city synonymous with romance and enlightenment, to finalize their divorce. This stark revelation casts a new light on the preceding narrative, altering the reader's perception of the couple's interactions and the young wife's muted responses. The story closes with this unexpected twist, quietly emphasizing the unpredictability of love and the dissonance between appearances and reality.

First published in 1927, “A Canary for One” occurs in the early 1920s on a train headed toward Paris. Its three characters, an older wealthy woman and a couple in their late twenties, are all Americans; only at the end do we realize that the young husband is the actual narrator of the story. As they sit together on the train, the older woman initiates and then dominates the conversation. She first voices her concern...