Big Blonde

“Men liked you because you were fun, and when they liked you they took you out, and there you were.”

This sentence reflects Hazel’s simplistic view of her life, which seems focused on her popularity with the men she meets in her modeling job. She realizes that as long as she’s “fun”—cheerful and good company—she’ll have admirers who will take her out and pay her way. Other types of diversion never occur to her.

“She wanted to be married. She was nearing thirty now, and she did not take the years well. She spread and softened, and her darkening hair turned her to inexpert dabblings with peroxide.”

These lines demonstrate Hazel’s realization that the passage of time has diminished her looks. Her blond hair and voluptuous figure are fading fast, and she’s concerned that her job as a model—and along with it, her financial independence—may soon end. This realization helps explain her sudden marriage to Herbie after a six-week romance.

“Wedded and relaxed, she poured her tears freely. To her who had laughed so much, crying was delicious.”

Hazel finds that in her married state, she’s free to express her bouts of sadness. Although she was occasionally known as sensitive during her “good sport” days, her outbursts were tolerated but not encouraged. Now that she’s no longer required to wear a cheerful facade, she can indulge her sad moods.