In this narrative, Schnitzler reflects on his relationship with his first love, Franziska Reich. Years later, he encounters her again as a young widow and coolly bids her farewell after an affair. Now, he allows her to experience poetic justice in the form of Berta Garlan: the protagonist resignedly recognizes the "enormous injustice" of being unable to pursue her own needs as a woman, a freedom that men naturally claim for themselves.