Instinctively, she felt a desire to imitate it.
Surely she could do that too.
When one of her mind sees many things emphasized and reemphasized and admired, she gathers the logic of it and applies accordingly.

Drouet was not shrewd enough to see that this was not tactful.

He could not see that it would be better to make her feel that she was competing with herself, not others better than herself.

He would not have done it with an older, wiser woman, but in Carrie he saw only the novice.

Less clever than she, he was naturally unable to comprehend her sensibility.