Someone Else's Shoes

Nisha’s custom Louboutin heels—and, to a lesser extent, Sam’s Primark pumps—are the most prominent symbols in Someone Else’s Shoes not only because they drive the plot but also because they influence how Nisha and Sam perceive themselves, as well as how the two women are perceived by others. For Sam, wearing the Louboutins allows her to “put on” the intangible attribute of confidence as well, a deliberate shift in demeanor that has measurable effects on both her professional life and her personal relationships. She mentions more than once that the shoes make her “feel like a different version of [her]self” (189, 319) and allow her to feel seen in a world that usually renders her invisible. Nisha’s feelings about the shoes are more complicated. At first, they symbolize how far she has come from her humble beginnings as Anita. Later, however, she comes to hate the shoes because they represent the control that Carl and his patriarchal standards had over her during their marriage.

Shoes in general also represent status throughout the novel. Nisha’s wearing of Sam’s shoes coincides with a major change in her financial and social status, and they begin to force her to understand the gravity of her predicament.