Symbolism And Character Analysis
Symbolism and Character Analysis in “Bernice Bobs Her Hair”
The short story "Bernice Bobs Her Hair" was based, by Fitzgerald’s own account, on his letter to his sister, the story itself is "virtually a handbook of advice on how to become a successful “flapper". Fitzgerald "borrowed his major elements and themes, which we can see from the symbolism and characters in the novel, from Little Women and turned them "upside down in a Jazz Age revision."1, showing the changing social mores of Fitzgerald's time
1. Symbolism of women’s hair
It's obvious from the title that women’s hair – and a certain haircut – is of great importance in this text. It sounds silly, but hair (both Bernice's and Marjorie's) has great symbolic weight here. From Bernice preparing talking about haircut, to Bernice choosing haircut as her chatting topic to Bernice losing her hair, “hair”一women's beautiful long hair is the heart of the story and also the marked female characteristic in traditional western culture.
The fact that a simple hair cut could so upset an entire town may seem ludicrous to us now, but if we consider it in the context of the changing social period Fitzgerald lived in, it makes more sense. Up until the 1920s, long, glorious, pampered hair was a key component of traditional feminine beauty. The idea of bobbed hair, which came into style in the Roaring Twenties, was considered scandalous and, as Bernice herself jokingly comments, even "unmoral"2. At the end, one of the reasons Mrs. and Mr. Harvey are so upset by Bernice's bob is that one of their friends, Mrs. Deyo, is a strong opponent of bobbed hair.
As we can find out, long hair represented both a woman's beauty and her virtue – and bobbing one's hair simply wasn't seen as something a respectable, well-bred girl would do. When Bernice bobs her hair, she is horrified by the dramatic way in which it changes her whole appearance; it robs her of her charm and renders her totally altered. This horror is what makes her ultimate
The short story "Bernice Bobs Her Hair" was based, by Fitzgerald’s own account, on his letter to his sister, the story itself is "virtually a handbook of advice on how to become a successful “flapper". Fitzgerald "borrowed his major elements and themes, which we can see from the symbolism and characters in the novel, from Little Women and turned them "upside down in a Jazz Age revision."1, showing the changing social mores of Fitzgerald's time
1. Symbolism of women’s hair
It's obvious from the title that women’s hair – and a certain haircut – is of great importance in this text. It sounds silly, but hair (both Bernice's and Marjorie's) has great symbolic weight here. From Bernice preparing talking about haircut, to Bernice choosing haircut as her chatting topic to Bernice losing her hair, “hair”一women's beautiful long hair is the heart of the story and also the marked female characteristic in traditional western culture.
The fact that a simple hair cut could so upset an entire town may seem ludicrous to us now, but if we consider it in the context of the changing social period Fitzgerald lived in, it makes more sense. Up until the 1920s, long, glorious, pampered hair was a key component of traditional feminine beauty. The idea of bobbed hair, which came into style in the Roaring Twenties, was considered scandalous and, as Bernice herself jokingly comments, even "unmoral"2. At the end, one of the reasons Mrs. and Mr. Harvey are so upset by Bernice's bob is that one of their friends, Mrs. Deyo, is a strong opponent of bobbed hair.
As we can find out, long hair represented both a woman's beauty and her virtue – and bobbing one's hair simply wasn't seen as something a respectable, well-bred girl would do. When Bernice bobs her hair, she is horrified by the dramatic way in which it changes her whole appearance; it robs her of her charm and renders her totally altered. This horror is what makes her ultimate