themes
- Love/Relationships: The theme of love and relationships is followed throughout the story. The story begins with the narrators unspoken love for her dear friend, and her fear of getting her heart broken. We hear the thoughts the reader obtains as her friend says or gestures toward different things. Eventually we see the love ignite as the story ends with the line, "That magical evening of Marilyn Monroe, when I kissed you for the first time." This shows that not only was this a story of an adventurous Marilyn Monroe sighting for the girls but also a night where their love took off with a first kiss.
- Expectations vs. Reality: The theme of expectations vs. reality is followed through the story by Marilyn Monroe. The girls held the common expectation of her Hollywood glamour, beauty, and lack of intelligence. All of which turned out to be different from her realtiy. Rather than being the blond showgirl she was expected and known for, Marilyn turned out to be very similar to the two girls. They also were captured by the expectation of a "leading man" to be with her, when in reality it's just her alone.
- Women in society: The theme of women in society is carried out throughout the story because there are many references to "conventional" females. The commonality of the conventional female is often challenged throughout the story as "real" women are shown. Women, especially durning this time period, were expected to be beautiful, stay at home moms that married young. Yet the two girls in this story were intellectuals, poets (which was very uncommon for women at the time), and homosexuals (which was frowned upon). Also this is further challenged with the introduction of the studious Marilyn Monroe, which seems uncalled for the time.
motifs
- Books: The appearance of books is very reoccuring throughout the story. Books start at the beginning as a passion and common love for the two girls. They are further included as a surprising favorite for Marilyn Monroe. As books are incorporated into the story and countlessly mentioned we are shown how versatile they are. Each character seems to be "searching" for books, and often gets immersed into their beauty. They bring out the intelligence to the story and its characters.
symbols
- Winter: Winter is a symbol for the story. It is first mentioned at the beginning, "one snowy March early evening," "sidewalks encrusted with ice..." The story taking place in winter leaves the reader with the idea that the setting is harsh, cold, and bitter. Which for the ending of the story this seems to be the opposite. So it leaves irony that the girls could have such a magical and loving moment in such a cold, harsh season.
- Marilyn Monroe: Marilyn Monroe symbolizes fame and unexpectedness. She epitomizes the fact that your expectations, whether they are for fame, beauty, or women, do not always match up with reality. She is not the same "Marilyn Monroe" the girls are used to always seeing, yet she is at the same time. She is still Marilyn Monroe, just a different side no one expects to exist.