Speaking about the main character of the story, I should say that Mamzelle Aurlie is described both directly and indirectly. The narrator presents her as a lonely woman, who at the very beginning of the story doesn't quite realize it. She never regrets not being married and it seems to her like the company of dog and plantation workers is enough. But her plain world is torn apart by sudden realization of losing a possibility to become a mother. Even her appearance shows that she is a strong-willed, determined, manlike person ("she wore a man's hat about the farm, and an old blue army overcoat when it was cold, and sometimes top-boots"). Aurlie's speech suggests that she is of European origin, either German or French, as she uses some foreign words and a lot of colloquialisms.

p.s. stylistic devices will be characterized in the next post