The interpretation of the teacher's image in literary studies is one of the crucial topics. In the literature of the West and the East this image has been recognized by various writers. In the American literature of the XX century several authors also worked on this topic, a striking example is the novel of Bell Kaufman "Up the down staircase". This autobiographical work also summarizes and describes the author's experience during her teaching career on the examples of a young teacher named Sylvia Barret in a peculiar manner. Based on the above work, this article depicts the image of a teacher in literary studies, her role in the development of society and her influence on young generation. This article also exposes the coverage of the concept of the teacher's identity using several examples by the sequence of events in an educational institution.