Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes stood out to me as a story. It was the first one that really confused me, which isn't really normal when I read a Salinger story. I really didn't know what to make of the story so I shamefully looked at a summary to try to get more info that I might have been missing. I guess the thing that confused me the most was the relationship of the woman in the story to the two men. Was she just some random woman? Or was she Arthur's wife? *dun dun dun*
I think it's interesting that we can read the story in two completely different ways depending on how we see the female character. So I guess that's what I'm trying to compare right now.
If we view the female character as just some random lady:
I think that in this situation, Arthur looks a little (or a lot) less sympathetic. He calls up Lee in the wee hours of the morning after a party, freaking out about his wife. She isn't home, which I guess is definitely a little worrying, and he keeps accusing her of hooking up with any guy she talks to and going crazy at parties. Someone in class mentioned that it made Arthur look a little possessive in a way, and I kind of agree with that. It does make him look a little possessive. Plus he keeps saying all these bad things about his wife (granted I think he feels a little bad for saying them...). But overall, Arthur definitely looks a lot less sympathetic.
If we view the female character as Arthur's wife, Joanie:
This changes things a lot. At first, it's a little hard to pick up on the idea that the lady might be Joanie. Some people in class didn't pick up on it, I didn't even pick up on it until I read online that it could be Joanie. We'll never really know, but I think that it makes it a more interesting story if Joanie is the one with Lee that night. If we assume that it is in fact Joanie in the room, Lee looks like (to put it bluntly) an asshole. He's hooking up with his coworker's wife! I just feel really bad for Arthur here too because it's obvious that he's worried. He might even have his suspicions about Lee and Joanie, and maybe that's why he's calling. I have a lot of theories that I could talk about but really I'd end up writing an entire essay. But if this really is true, it also makes Lee look pretty impressive by walking this tight rope of trying to give Arthur advice but also trying not to give him any hints that he's with Joanie.
There are a lot of things that might point to the second theory (as Joanie being the woman in the story). First of all the title could give it away. "Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes" could suggest eyes, green with envy, and a pretty mouth having to talk their way out of a sticky situation (Lee talking to Arthur on the phone). Another small thing that could allude to the second theory is in the beginning, when the phone was ringing, Lee asked if he should answer it or if he should just let it ring. Why would he not answer it? Was he worried that it actually was Arthur? We may never know.
Really, I don't know anything as to whether or not it is in fact Joanie, but I definitely have my suspicions and theories.
When I first read the story, I thought that Arthur was telling the truth when he told Lee that Joanie came home. However, upon closer examination, I have to believe that the woman in bed with Lee is certainly Joanie. Lee's reaction when he hears Arthur lie over the phone, as well as the sparse conversation between Lee and "the girl" seem to be strong indicators of her identity as Joanie.
ReplyDeleteI must say that I too believed that Johnie had, in fact, come home when Arthur said she did. But, if Johnie was the woman in bed with Lee, then it makes Arthur even more sympathetic because then we would know that he was just lying in order to save face, unaware that his wife is sleeping with one of his apparent good friends.
ReplyDeleteThis story also confused me. Starting from the title, which seemed like poor grammar itself, I didn't really know what to expect. However, as the story progressed, I did pick up on the potential plot twists that would make the woman in the room Joanie. This also led me to reevaluate the thing about the eyes, since even though Joanie's eyes are described as blue, the "Green My Eyes" could very well be referring to envy. If anything, I think Salinger meant for it to be unclear, but for the sake of drama I am leaning towards the girl in the room being the actual Joanie, as she does seem to fit Arthur's description.
ReplyDeleteI think the second theory is much more likely, but there's no way to be sure. I agree with you. If Joanie is actually hooking up with someone else, Arthur's fears are not unfounded. And if she isn't hooking up with other people, it's wrong for Arthur to accuse her of doing so; but that wouldn't make Arthur bad; it would just make him a man who is very consumed with paranoia.
ReplyDeleteI like this post, Alyson! You did a good job discussing the implications if the story is interpreted either of two ways. Personally, I believe that the woman is Joanie; why else would Lee ask if he should answer the phone? And you're right- with this interpretation, Lee really does seem like an asshole.
ReplyDeleteI think that the "mysterious woman" is in fact Joanie. Why else would Lee seem really awkward while on the phone with Arthur? Even reading the first time around, it seems like there were hints of guilt in Lee's voice. I'm interested to see if anyone in the class wants to argue for the first theory.
ReplyDeleteAlso- I wasn't in class the day that we discussed this book so I assume that the explication of the title came from class discussion. I was curious about the meaning of the title and your explanation makes sense to me.