Lily and Nona Foster Character Analysis in Housekeeping

Lucille and Ruth’s great-aunts, a pair of old and anxious spinsters, who come to care for them shortly after their grandmother Sylvia’s death. Lily and Nona are not twins, but function as a pair—they are “maiden ladies” who have lived their entire lives side-by-side, and both comfort and feed one another’s fears, anxieties, and prejudices. Lily and Nona seem bewildered by Ruth and Lucille, and are unable to care for them properly. They become nervous about the prospect of living out the rest of their lives in Fingerbone, and so take the first opportunity to write to Sylvie and ask her to come take up housekeeping in their place. Lily and Nona are not mean or cruel, but it’s plain that they don’t particularly understand Ruth and Lucille, and don’t want to.

Lily and Nona Foster Character Timeline in Housekeeping

The timeline below shows where the character Lily and Nona Foster appears in Housekeeping. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...their grandmother Mrs. Sylvia Foster; when she died, they entered the care of Sylvia’s sisters-in-law, Lily and Nona ; and when their aunts “fled,” the girls at last entered the care of their... (full context)

...they had to sell off the surrounding orchards one day. After Sylvia’s death, her sisters-in-law, Lily and Nona —about ten years younger than her and nearly destitute—were grateful for the chance to live... (full context)

Lily and Nona arrive from Spokane, Washington, to “[take] up housekeeping” in Fingerbone. They are nervous, plump women,... (full context)

As the winter goes by, Lily and Nona refuse to make friends in town or learn how to cook, and complain often of... (full context)

Lily and Nona , too, stay up late each night discussing the possibility of Sylvie’s arrival with excitement.... (full context)

One spring day, after several months of correspondence with Lily and Nona about Sylvia’s death, the state of the house, and the presence of Ruth and Lucille,... (full context)

Back at the house, Lily and Nona welcome Sylvie and the girls home, but chide Sylvie for wearing only loafers out on... (full context)