Breakfast at Tiffany's Section 7

Summary

A Martini

Holly and the protangist are in Joe Bell's bar drinking martini's and discussing Holly's marriage. Holly never divorced Doc. "Divorce him? Of course I never divorced him. I was only fourteen, for God's sake. It couldn't have been legal" (Capote 72). Holly explains that she has not been to bed, to sleep that is, and for the first time feels the need to justify her actions. "Well, I had to. Doc really loves me, you know. And I love him. He may have looked old and tacky to you. But you don't know the sweetness of him, the confidence he can give to birds and brats and fragile things like that. Anyone who ever gave you confidence, you owe them a lot" (Capote 73). She is telling the protangist and Joe that she feels that Doc's mistake was his "love" for wild things. Holly offers a toast to Doc, believeing that he has made it to the Blue Mountains.

Notes

• tums (72)- an antacid for gas "You're rockin' the boat kinda early," he complained, crunching on a Tums (Capote 72).

• rounds (72)- a set of drinks bought by and individual for another person or a group of people. "It was not yet noon...and he'd already served us three rounds" (Capote 72).

• Lulamae (73)- Holly Golightly's name was Lulamae Barnes before she married Doc Golightly. "Her name's not Holly. She was a Lulamae Barnes. Was..."(Capote 66).

• Blue Mountains (74)- Map Holly must have been talking about the Blue Ridge Mountains when she said,"He must be in the Blue Mountains by now" (Capote 74).

Commentary

Doc leaves

"Capote uses some of his best dramatic irony in the novel with the characterization of Doc Golightly. Up until the last minute when he is ready to board a bus bound for Tulip, he truly believes that he has convinced Lulamae to come home with him. But as the reader and the narrator both know, she can't, it would be a total contradiction to everything she believes in" (Cash 4). It seems Holly has a fear of commitment, or of being tied down that has been implanted in her from her young days. "a wild and homeless love of freedom." (Hassan)

Study Questions

1. What time are Holly and the protangist at Joe Bell's bar? How many rounds have they already had?
2. What mistake did Holly believe Doc was making?
3. Why did Holly need to explain or justify herself to Mr. Bell?
4. What does Holly mean by the statement "the mean reds"?
5. What was Holly Golightly's name before she married Doc?
6. What does Holly realize about herself on page 73?
7. How old was Holly when she married Doc?
8. Why does Holly believe she didn't have to divorce Doc?

External Resources

• Cash, Matthew. A Travelin' Through the Pastures of the Sky: A Critical Analysis of Breakfast at Tiffany's. 1996.

Works Cited

• Capote, Truman. Breakfast at Tiffany's. New York: Vintage Books - A division of Random House, 1993.

• Hassan, Ihab H. "Wisconsin Studies in Contemporary Literature". Vol.1, No.2. Spring, 1960. pp.5-21