Summary

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At the start of ‘‘Happy Endings,’’ John and Mary meet. The six versions of the story that follow each depict a distinct outcome for the couple.

Version A is the ‘‘happy ending’’ tale. Here, John and Mary fall in love. They marry, have satisfying careers, purchase a lovely home, and start a family. Their lives are comfortable and fulfilling. Eventually, they retire and pass away. In version B, John and Mary engage in an affair. Although Mary is in love with John, he lacks genuine feelings for her and uses her to satisfy his sexual and ego needs. Twice weekly, John visits Mary's apartment, where she prepares him a homemade meal. After dinner, they have sex, and John falls asleep while Mary cleans up the dishes and freshens herself. Mary pretends to enjoy the intimacy, hoping John will become dependent on it and propose. This plan fails, and Mary becomes depressed. Her friends advise her to leave John, but she clings to the belief that a kinder, better version of John exists and will eventually surface. Instead, John criticizes her cooking and takes another woman out to dinner, where Mary's friends spot them. They inform Mary about the date. In despair, Mary takes an overdose of aspirin, sleeping pills, and sherry, leaving a goodbye note for John. She secretly hopes John will find her, rush her to the hospital, repent, and marry her. Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen, and Mary dies. John marries the other woman, Madge, and they live the life described in version A.

In version C, John is married to Madge, and they enjoy the life described in version A, but John finds it unfulfilling. As he ages, John becomes discontent with his life. He falls in love with a twenty-two-year-old colleague named Mary, and they begin an affair because Mary pities him and also enjoys the physical aspect. Mary, however, is in love with James, a man her own age. James is a free spirit who spends much of his time riding his motorcycle, but one day he returns from a trip with some marijuana. He and Mary get high and are in bed when John, who has a key to Mary's apartment, enters. Overcome with despair, partly due to his realization of growing old and bald, John buys a gun, kills Mary and James, and then takes his own life. Eventually, Madge marries Fred, and they live the life described in version A.

In version D, Fred and Madge's home faces the threat of a giant tidal wave, causing its property value to plummet. Although Fred and Madge manage to escape the wave, many others tragically drown. Grateful for their survival, Fred and Madge continue to lead a joyful life similar to John and Mary's in version A.

In version E, Fred passes away due to a heart condition. Madge dedicates the remainder of her life to charitable activities.

Version F offers a more unconventional take on the story. Here, John is depicted as a revolutionary and Mary as a spy. Despite these thrilling elements, John and Mary's story concludes in the same way as it does in version A.

Once all versions of the story are shared, an authorial voice steps in to inform the reader that the conclusion of each version is identical: John and Mary die. However, the voice emphasizes that the writer has greater freedom in shaping the beginnings and middles of stories, essentially the plot.

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