Miss Fortini Character Analysis in Brooklyn

Eilis’s supervisor at Bartocci’s in Brooklyn, Miss Fortini is a hawk-eyed and attentive woman with an uncanny ability to tell whether or not her saleswomen are unhappy. For this reason, she notices right away when Eilis comes to work in the throes of homesickness. Accordingly, she asks Eilis to follow her downstairs, where she asks what’s wrong and, when Eilis doesn’t say anything, guesses that she misses her family and her home. She then alerts Miss Bartocci, her boss, and arranges for Father Flood to come talk to Eilis. She also makes it possible for Eilis to take the day off, though she warns her that she has “crossed” Mr. Bartocci by coming to the department store in this state of mind. Later, Miss Fortini takes a liking to Eilis and enjoys talking to her about Tony, since she too has an Italian boyfriend. Developing something like a friendship, she tells Eilis that Italian men are very particular about what their girlfriends look like in bathing suits. She even orders several bathing suits for Eilis to try on, though she makes Eilis quite uncomfortable when the suits arrive, insisting that she change in front of her as she stares at her naked body. She also slides her fingers under the waist bands and tells Eilis that she will have to shave her bikini line.

Miss Fortini Character Timeline in Brooklyn

The timeline below shows where the character Miss Fortini appears in Brooklyn. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Immigration, Social Status, and Reputation Theme Icon

...her to the main office and introduced her to Miss Bartocci, the owner’s daughter, and Miss Fortini , the store’s supervisor. Miss Bartocci explained that Brooklyn is constantly attracting new people and... (full context)

...focused solely on her new job at first. When he departs, he leaves her with Miss Fortini , who teaches her the shop’s system for keeping track of sales. Although Eilis is... (full context)

Communication, Hidden Emotion, and Secrecy Theme Icon

Eilis finds her job at Bartocci’s easy, even though Miss Fortini is constantly watching her and all the other floor workers. As long as she looks... (full context)

While working on the sales floor, Eilis struggles to look happy, and she can sense Miss Fortini ’s gaze. Nonetheless, she manages to hypnotically go through the motions of the day, eventually... (full context)

After a tumultuous night, Eilis is almost late for work. When she arrives, Miss Fortini approaches her on the sales floor and says that she looks unwell. She then tells... (full context)

Miss Fortini goes to speak with Miss Bartocci. When she returns, she tells Eilis that Miss Bartocci... (full context)

That Monday, Miss Fortini brings Eilis to Miss Bartocci’s office, and Miss Bartocci tells her that Bartocci’s will now... (full context)

...many of the other employees leave or are fired. She also starts having lunch with Miss Fortini rather frequently, and learns that, like her, Miss Fortini has an Italian boyfriend. Consequently, Miss... (full context)

At work that week, Eilis tells Miss Fortini that Tony is taking her to the beach in Coney Island, and Miss Fortini says... (full context)

...to purchase return tickets to Brooklyn. She then writes to Father Flood, Mrs. Kehoe, and Miss Fortini and tells them the date of her return, apologizing for the delay. When she gets... (full context)