What does New York City represent to Elizabeth in the novel, Want?

Elizabeth has lived in New York City ever since graduate school, and even though she and her husband are struggling to raise their children and pay rent in the city, she is reluctant to leave. During her wanderings about town, she senses old versions of herself on different streets. Indeed, the city is a representation of Elizabeth's freedom. It is the first place she feels she has been allowed to be herself, without judgment or expectation. She is also intimate with the place, walking and running through the neighborhoods as if they are liberated extensions of herself.