Final Thoughts on Dorothy Parker

I can't believe this is my Last Dorothy Parker post! Its been a good literary adventure. I am happy I picked her as my author study.

Ms. Parker ended up being more fascinating than I originally thought. She had the wit I had expected, but she was a tragic figure too. Her stories rarely had happy endings, but that's life. Her life was sadder than I thought it was and her stories reflect that. I believe that she was a lonely woman and writing was an outlet for her. Her marriages were troubled and she never had any children. Her writing was the companion that we all need in our lives.

Her works are very feminist, but in an usual way. Her female protagonists tend to be weak and surround themselves with bad men. Only a few are strong on their own. Parker is empowering in her unique way because she chose to write about dark subjects that were swept under rug during her time. She points out the issues and they become warnings to her readers.

 I wish I could have met her. I think we would have had a good conversation. (I'd tell her that Guys do make Passes at girls who wear glasses :) I'm sad our blogging relationship is over, But I promise Dorothy I'll be reading you again soon! <3

Poetry

I finally got my hands on a few Dorothy Parker poems. Honestly I am not that impressed. After reading her short stories, her poems seem very generic. They are an OK read. I think this class has spoiled me with poetry. I'll review three of them today.

A Dream Lies Dead
The title gives away what the story is about. The narrator is saying that a dream of her died and she's warning people to stay away from its grave. The words were fun though. Fecundity. I never heard that word before. It means the ability to reproduce. The narrator cannot reproduce her dream.

Alexandre Dumas and his son
 This one made me laugh. Its a short poem that says that Parker is a busy woman and she cannot care for the works of Alexandre Dumas or his son, even though she tries to read them. This sounds more like something Dorothy Parker would say.

A Fairly Sad Tail
Poor Dorothy. She is talking about being left by men, who put her off with stories of their parents and their jobs. The best line is about her heart being a mosaic. That was good imagery.

I'll find some more for next week!

oh and it turn out that Dorothy Parker was the one that said "Men rarely make passes at girls who wear glasses."
I hate that phrase. Don't be hating on my glasses Lady/

Horsie Time

Hello everyone!

            Today I will be looking at one of Dorothy Parker’s strangest stories, “Horsie.” It is about (to be perfectly frank) a woman who looks like a horse. Now while you are laughing at this image, let me explain.

            “Horsie” is actually a completely human woman named Miss Wilmarth. She has the “pleasure” of being the nanny to an infant rich girl.  The little girl’s parents spend the story making fun of their Nanny’s appearance.  They make jokes about her long face and horse like qualities the whole time she works for them. They never make them to her face however. Miss Wilmarth is shown to be a loving and kind person, who has no idea that she is getting made fun of. She is sort of a sad character in the way that no one appreciates her, and she spends her life being a proverbial doormat. The story ends when the Mother is well enough to care for her baby  and Miss Wilmarth leaves. She gets a flower in thanks from the father and she is happy about feeling worthy enough to get one.

This story is a weird one. It does not have a real point to it. But after reading all the depressing stuff that Parker wrote, it’s a nice break. If you’re bored and want to read something entertaining check it out.

Big Blonde

     Big Blonde is the one of the longer stories in my Dorothy Parker Collection. Its a tragic tale of a woman's descent into a bad marriage, alcoholism, and a suicide attempt. During my first read though of Parker's Bio, it said that she had she had struggled with drinking and depression. I think her story Big Blonde is her exploration of her own feelings about her bad marriage and her sense of self worth.
 Big Blonde is the story of Hazel Morse. Hazel is a young woman who is busty and Blonde earning her the name "Big Blonde." Hazel is popular with the men, and makes the poor choice of marrying a man who a fun drunk. Their marriage falls apart quickly and Hazel spends her days waiting for it to get better. She learns to drink and spends the next few years living in a scotch induced blur. Her husband leaves her and she becomes the mistress of a rich man. (He's from my Home City of Utica!) After the man leaves her she becomes the mistress of several other men. Hazel then starts thinking of killing herself and buys sleeping pill. She ODs on them, but they only knock her out. Her maid finds her and then she gets her stomach pumped. The story ends with her asking her maid for a drink and the cycle beings a new.
This is one of Parker's better stories. You get a real feeling of helplessness from Hazel and grief that her life will never be better.

Sylvia Plath's Drawings

I know this isn't about Dorothy Parker, But you all really should check them out. Plath's artwork is very pretty. Sylvia Plath's Artwork

The Dorothy Parker Society.

The Dorothy Parker Society

Check it out! its a cool website filled with galleries and a description of a thing called Parkerfest! A party all about Dorothy Parker. It looks really interesting.

Dorothy Parker: The Movie!

Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle

No big essay this week! I have too much to write already! But this film looks like they did a good job presenting Dorothy Parker properly! I might watch it sometime soon!