Characters
Art
Art is the final boyfriend that Mrs. Morse has throughout the story. He is described as "short and fat and exacting and hard on her patience when he was drunk." Beyond this, he is quite similar to Charley, Sydney, Billy, and Fred—other men with whom Mrs. Morse has had sexual relationships and from whom she accepts money, yet cares little for. She becomes involved with Art around the time she starts contemplating suicide. Like the others, Art only enjoys Mrs. Morse's company when she is in a good mood. She finds it peaceful when he is away on business. After her suicide attempt, Nettie, her maid, hands her a "pretty postcard" from Art that again urges her to "cheer up." This has the opposite effect, plunging Mrs. Morse into deep despair. Art symbolizes the oppressive and monotonous future of having to feign happiness to please her interchangeable male companions.
Doctor
The young doctor residing in Mrs. Morse's apartment building is called upon when Nettie discovers Mrs. Morse unconscious in her room. He is irritated by the interruption as he is in the middle of a vaguely sexual encounter with a "dark girl," trying to relax after a "hard day." Like other men in the story, he exploits women for pleasure and entertainment while remaining indifferent to their suffering. He examines Mrs. Morse impatiently and roughly. When he learns that Mrs. Morse has taken sedatives in a suicide attempt, he is unsympathetic, viewing it as an inconvenience. "Rotten yellow trick, that's what a thing like that is. Now we'll have to pump her out, and all that stuff," he remarks.
Ed
Mrs. Morse meets Ed while playing poker at her neighbor Mrs. Martin's apartment during the time her marriage to Herbie is falling apart. He is part of "The Boys" with whom Mrs. Martin socializes. Ed is a married man with a business in Utica but frequently visits New York for work. He quickly takes a possessive stance toward Mrs. Morse, sitting next to her and lending her money during poker games, eventually squeezing her knee and kissing her on the mouth. When Herbie leaves, Ed immediately steps in, offering financial support in exchange for her sexual compliance. As Ed's mistress, Mrs. Morse abandons the pretense of a domestic married life and moves into a flat near the train station for his convenience. Unlike the other men in her life, Ed gets angry when she is not cheerful and lighthearted. However, Ed is distinct from Mrs. Morse's other boyfriends because he seems to have a genuine attachment to her, even though she feels little for him.
Elevator Attendant
The elevator attendant assists Nettie when she finds Mrs. Morse unconscious after her suicide attempt. He prods Mrs. Morse "so lustily that he left marks in the soft flesh," which sparks a sense of excitement in Nettie about the unfolding drama. Like other men in the story, he treats Mrs. Morse as an object, although the power dynamic in this situation is different.
Joe
Joe is one of "The Boys" that Mrs. Martin entertains at her poker games. He is euphemistically called Mrs. Martin's "admirer," but it is clear that he is her lover. Ed is a friend of Joe's, and Joe's relationship with Mrs. Martin foreshadows the one between Ed and Mrs. Morse.
Mrs. Martin
Mrs. Martin moves into the apartment across the hall from Mrs. Morse during a time when Mrs. Morse's marriage is deteriorating, and she is starting to drink heavily. The two women drink together during the day, and Mrs. Martin hosts poker games at night, which Mrs....
(This entire section contains 1356 words.)
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Morse attends. Mrs. Martin introduces Mrs. Morse to a lifestyle she adopts after Herbie leaves her, serving as a model for the woman Mrs. Morse is becoming. Described as "a great blonde woman of forty, a promise in looks of what Mrs. Morse was to be," Mrs. Martin is apparently married, though the only man visibly present in her life is her lover, Joe. "Husbands, as such, played but shadowy parts in Mrs. Martin's circle."
Mrs. Florence Miller
Mrs. Florence Miller is among the women Mrs. Morse meets at Jimmy's, the speakeasy she and Ed frequent. Like the other people Mrs. Morse associates with there, she is depicted not as an individual but as a type. Similar to Mrs. Vera Riley, Mrs. Lilian Block, and Mrs. Morse herself, Mrs. Florence Miller is a middle-aged woman who survives by having long-term lovers while maintaining an appearance of respectability by using her married name. She is notable for telling Mrs. Morse about veronal, the sleeping pill Mrs. Morse later uses in her suicide attempt. Another parallel exists between Mrs. Morse and Mrs. Florence Miller, as Mrs. Morse observes that men try to comfort Mrs. Florence Miller when she cries. Both women lead similar lifestyles that bring them despair, but they can only form the most superficial social connections with one another.
Hazel Morse
Hazel Morse is the central character of the story, which spans several decades of her life. Although she is single at the beginning and divorced by the midpoint, she is consistently called Mrs. Morse. This implies that her identity is shaped not by her husband, who wields no more influence than any other man, but by the societal roles available to her as a woman. She clings to the status of a married woman to disguise her reality as a "kept woman" or mistress, and this role consumes all her energy and imagination.
The narrative of Mrs. Morse’s life unfolds with little forward momentum, despite her experiencing significant events like marriage, divorce, and a suicide attempt. Most events are described in vague, general terms, reflecting how Mrs. Morse perceives them and highlighting her passive nature. There is a stark contrast between her outward appearance and her inner feelings. While she is continually praised by men for being fun, easygoing, and cheerful, she finds life profoundly sad. Throughout the story, she battles to contain her despair, culminating in a suicide attempt. Mrs. Morse’s ineffectiveness is pitiable. Even her suicide attempt fails to free her from others' oppressive expectations. After her recovery, she is bombarded with demands to cheer up, ending the story on a bleak and tragic note.
Herbie Morse
Herbie Morse is Hazel Morse’s husband. He is a heavy drinker and a charmer. By the time Mrs. Morse met him, she had endured "a couple thousand evenings of being a good sport" and was nearly thirty, making her eager to marry and seek a change. For Mrs. Morse, marriage is a welcome alternative to her previous life. However, Herbie’s expectations differ. He was drawn to her for the same reasons as other men—because she was fun, tolerant of his drinking, and passive to his desires. Once Mrs. Morse, "wedded and relaxed," starts to cry and prefers staying home, Herbie quickly grows impatient. She begins drinking with him to salvage their relationship, but it proves futile. Although marriage superficially seems different from the informal social, sexual, and financial relationships she later engages in, Herbie’s treatment of her is remarkably similar to that of her subsequent lovers.
Nettie
Nettie is the African-American maid that Ed hires to clean for Mrs. Morse after she leaves her previous domestic life and relocates to an apartment near the train station. She is only named in the final part of the story, where she becomes crucial to the plot. Nettie arrives to clean and finds Mrs. Morse unconscious. It is Nettie who calls for help and cares for Mrs. Morse during her recovery. While Nettie's actions literally save Mrs. Morse, her symbolic role is more complex. Mrs. Morse sees Nettie as someone who might understand her pain and tries to connect with her by asking if she has ever thought about suicide. Nettie refuses and, like many of Mrs. Morse’s male acquaintances, tells her to cheer up. The story concludes with Mrs. Morse toasting Nettie, whom she has bribed with a drink to get her to pour one for her, using the hollow cheer of the phrase, "Here’s mud in your eye."
