The Heidi Chronicles

by Wendy Wasserstein

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Success and Failure

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A central theme in The Heidi Chronicles is the contrasting definitions of success for men and women. Although the prologue of the first act reveals that Heidi has a flourishing career as an art historian, the play primarily examines her achievements as a feminist and an independent individual. Unlike the male characters, Heidi's professional success does not equate to a fulfilling life.

Heidi's generation demanded independence for women in a male-dominated world, and she achieved that. However, by the play's conclusion, this success feels empty to her. She had hoped feminism would foster solidarity among women and grant societal significance, but her experience proved otherwise. Her female friends pursue superficial happiness and material success: Susan Johnston frequently changes identities, from an idealistic law student to a feminist to a Hollywood power broker, eventually becoming disillusioned with feminism and indifferent to her friend's struggles. Heidi also has little success with men, failing to maintain lasting relationships, and her life choices are often influenced by them. Only when she decides to adopt a child does Heidi find true independent success.

From the male perspective, characters like Scoop and Peter achieve traditional success. Scoop enjoys a long-term marriage, two children, and a thriving career as a lawyer and later as a publisher, with his magazine becoming wildly successful. Despite losing many friends by the end, Peter is a highly respected pediatrician in New York City with successful relationships with men. In a male-dominated society, the standards for success are less stringent for men than for women. In Wasserstein’s world (and the real world), women often have to work twice as hard to prove themselves.

Identity

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A primary theme for Heidi is her quest for self-identity. In the first two scenes, she is young, sixteen and nineteen, confident in her intellect and commitment to women's causes. Her dedication to feminism is showcased in the women's consciousness-raising group scene, where Heidi advocates for the equality of women in art and life.

Heidi's identity faces significant challenges, particularly during events like Scoop's wedding reception. At this event, Scoop tells Heidi he couldn't marry her because she would have wanted to be his equal. This comment foreshadows future disappointments in her life. In the second act, Heidi increasingly feels out of sync with other women, whether at a baby shower, the gym, or even a casual lunch. Her friend Susan exemplifies these changes. Susan starts as a feminist lawyer but eventually abandons her principles. Near the end of the second act, Heidi contemplates moving to Minnesota to start anew, but Peter persuades her to stay because he needs her close. Until she embraces motherhood, Heidi's sense of self is continually influenced by those around her.

Coming of Age

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The Heidi Chronicles traces the development of its protagonist, showcasing her journey from awkward adolescence to adulthood. The story is set against the backdrop of significant political and social upheavals in the United States from the mid-1960s to the late 1980s, including the Vietnam War, the rise of feminism, and the AIDS crisis. As Heidi grows older, she becomes deeply involved in the politics of the era, starting with the Eugene McCarthy presidential campaign ("clean for Eugene") and later the feminist movement. The feminist movement provides her with a sense of identity and purpose—Heidi protests the lack of female artists at the Chicago Art Institute—but it doesn't fulfill all her expectations. When Heidi acknowledges how out of touch she feels with other women, a sentiment embodied by Susan, and unexpectedly voices this realization to her high school alumnae, she comes to terms with her reality. As the play nears its conclusion, she...

(This entire section contains 190 words.)

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considers moving to Minnesota but ultimately remains in New York City and adopts a child. While various events shape her growth, it is her personal choice to embrace motherhood that signifies her coming of age.

Friendship

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Nearly all relationships in The Heidi Chronicles are based on friendship. These friendships are crucial to the main characters. Heidi's closest relationships are with two men, Peter and Scoop, with Scoop also being her lover for a period. In the first act, Susan is a close friend who introduces Heidi to the Eugene McCarthy party and the women's consciousness-raising group. However, Susan's eventual shift to traditional societal values alienates Heidi. To Heidi, women's solidarity is paramount, and Susan's betrayal disrupts her worldview.

Heidi’s relationship with Scoop is fraught with difficulties. At the McCarthy party, Scoop flirts with her while simultaneously undermining her beliefs. He expresses his opinion that women exist for the pleasure of men and not as intellectual equals. When they become sexually involved, Heidi prioritizes seeing him above all else. Their breaking point occurs at Scoop’s wedding, where he confesses he couldn’t marry her because she would be a competitor. After this, although they remain friends, they are no longer close. In the final scene, Scoop reflects on this and envies the strong bond Heidi shares with Peter.

Peter and Heidi have been friends since the beginning. Despite their frequent bickering and his tendency to trivialize her concerns, they are deeply devoted to and respect each other. In the second-to-last scene, Heidi decides to stay in New York City for Peter's sake, rather than moving to Minnesota as she had planned. While Peter and Scoop share some similarities, the key difference is Peter’s homosexuality, which allows his friendship with Heidi to exist without the sexual tensions present in her relationship with Scoop. Moreover, Peter acknowledges Heidi as a complete person and relative equal, something Scoop’s worldview prevents him from doing.

Heidi's Chronic Unhappiness

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Amid more than two decades of social change witnessed by her baby-boomer friends and acquaintances, Heidi’s chronic unhappiness emerges as one of The Heidi Chronicles’ most significant constants. It is certainly her most troubling character trait: Peter justifiably states that this sadness “seems a luxury” in comparison with the difficulties faced by AIDS victims and their loved ones; Heidi herself is puzzled by her feelings of worthlessness and isolation. By the end of the play, however, it is clear that her discontent emanates from a profound awareness that she is living in an era during which her cherished ideals have become as passe as any other trend embraced and then discarded by her peers.

Dedication to Women's Causes

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As Scoop tells Heidi in the 1960’s: “You’ll be one of those true believers who didn’t understand it was just a phase.” Indeed, while her mild temperament precludes her becoming a radical activist, she devotes her career to advancing the cause of women in art, even when this sort of dedication is no longer in vogue among her friends. Susan, for example, distances herself from the movement’s concerns when she immerses herself in a business career in the 1980’s.

Feelings of Estrangement and Self-Esteem Issues

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If Heidi’s feeling of estrangement from other women intensifies during the latter portion of the play, her lack of self-esteem, particularly in relation to Scoop, persists throughout the work. “I keep allowing this guy to account for so much of what I think of myself,” she admits to the encounter group three years after meeting him. Heidi’s feeling that men of her generation have a psychological edge over their female counterparts is evident as late as the last scene, when she envisions her daughter encountering Scoop’s son on a plane over Chicago. Hoping that her child “will never think she’s worthless unless he lets her have it all,” Heidi voices her dream for the future and thereby expresses her dissatisfaction with the present.

Friendship with Peter and Shared Values

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Although Heidi’s relationships with Susan and Scoop cool during the course of the drama, her friendship with Peter deepens with time. To be sure, Peter angers Heidi when, with Scoop, he prevents her from having her say on “Hello New York.” Yet the two are ultimately bonded by a friendship bulwarked by shared values: Neither of them will find contentment until conventional society changes to respect women and homosexuals as equals. While Scoop and Susan find their niches within the establishment, Heidi and Peter count themselves among the disenfranchised, for whom happiness, contingent on a change in mainstream values, seems remote.

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