The story is also a commentary of the "Two Solitudes" of how the French-speaking and English-speaking populations of Canada rarely interacted comfortably, especially in the author's youth. For instance, the narrator's mother did not have access to a French language version of the Eaton's retail catalogue, and wrote a handwritten order note, which helped cause the incorrect delivery. In addition, this unfair treatment of a significant linguistic minority in the country led to the woman being unaware that the business operated under the slogan, "Goods Satisfactory or Money Refunded," Thus, she did not understand that the business would have gladly exchanged the proper sweater, but instead insisted that her son keep the sweater he clearly does not want for fear of insulting Mr. Eaton, part of the dominate English-speaking establishment of Canada. On the other hand, the boy is mistreated when he is targeted by his own team, coached by the local priesthood, who reflexively resent him for not only wearing a sweater of a rival team, but also for inadvertently representing the dominance of the English-speaking establishment. Furthermore, when the coaches order him to do penance of his protests as a sin, that is part of the dominance of the Roman Catholic Church in the province of Quebec, which would later be dramatically reduced with the "Quiet Revolution," beginning in the 1960s when the French-speaking population in Quebec would take a much stronger hand in the province's economic and political affairs, such as in healthcare and education where the Church was directly involved.