"She loves us the way she loves her bidet."

Solange says this about Madame after Claire insists she loves them in Part Two. The choice of a bidet, a structure popular in Europe for feminine genital hygiene, is telling. Solange constantly identifies the maids with filth. She hates their garret because it is filthy, says she and Claire cannot love each other because "filth doesn't love filth," and even the first syllable of her name, "sol," means "dirt" in French. "Claire," on the other hand, means "clear," and she seems to be the more hygienic sister, putting on make-up and getting disgusted when Solange mixes her hairpins with hers. If Madame loves them, she is also repulsed by them. The maids are objects she does not like but depends on for everyday tasks. Solange's self-loathing association with dirt shows no signs of going away; she is, after all, a maid who must clean up filth. Filth is a reminder of her poverty and her feelings of inferiority that will never cease.