How does the short story "A Respectable Woman" demonstrate the universal truth of pride?

Kate Chopin's short story, "A Respectable Woman," has
several themes, to be expected from an author with such strong female protagonists.
However, the story may also demonstrate the universal truth of
pride.

Mrs. Baroda, our antagonist, is a strong woman. She
has a solid marriage and lives a comfortable life. When her husband, Gaston, invites an
old college friend, Gouvernail, to stay for several weeks, she is not pleased, having
hoped to spend some quiet time with her spouse, with no need to
entertain.

Mrs. Baroda has a preconceived idea of the kind
of man Gouvernail is, even before he arrives: she credits him with a cynical, studious
appearance, when in fact, he is anything but that. And above all, he is no bother: he
makes no demands on their time, but simply enjoys the opportunity to live in the
moment.

This bothers Mrs. Baroda, as she cannot seem to
figure him out, and wishes he would leave. Eventually, she decides to take care of
dressmaking concerns out of town and allow the men the rest of their visit
alone.

However, the night before she leaves, Gouvernail
strolls out and sits beside her on a bench and begins to speak of many things. For a
moment, she longs to touch his face and whisper to him, not of anything specific, but to
make a connection. Being a "respectable woman," she will not do so. She leaves the next
day, and for some time, resists her husband's attempts to have him visit
again.

Eventually, Mrs. Baroda changes her mind, allowing
that should Gouvernail visit again, she will be very nice to
him.

Looking for a universal theme of pride in mind, it is
important to recall the types of guests Mrs. Baroda has been accustomed to in the past.
She is used to being able to understand the people who visit. She has a sense of what
they are thinking, and she knows how to organize household affairs to be a good hostess.
With Gourvernail, none of these things matter. He is not demanding. He is rather
private. He has no desire for special attention. If she is present, he is satisfied, and
if she absents herself, he is equally satisfied.

Perhaps
her pride is a requirement of women of society at the time, in that the expectation is
there that the social gatherings in the home revolve around her, her plans for
entertainment, and her attentions to guests. This man does not look for any of these
things. And though she likes him well enough, she is not happy with him because she
cannot fulfill her social duties.

Had Mrs. Baroda been
trained differently, perhaps she would not have taken Gouvernail's "distance" so
personally. However, it gets under her skin and irritates her that he does not follow
the conventions of "polite" society.

The universality of
pride can be seen in the need of most people to believe the world revolves around them.
And as society has placed this expectation upon Mrs. Baroda, it still does with people
today, in some ways. We often feel insecure, worrying that others will find us coming up
short in some way. We may demand attention from others. We may have unfair expectations
of others and how they treat us.

Instead of needing to be
the center of the social activity within her house, seeing to Gouvernail's comfort,
regardless of his attention to her, should have been more important than trying to
discover what lies beneath his quiet exterior.