The Only Woman in the Room

Chapters 1 and 2 introduce the novel’s protagonist, her major motivations, and her first antagonist. Benedict’s choice to open the novel with Hedy on the stage is a symbolic one; she is an actress by trade and by nature. She is empowered by her control over the crowd, calling each night on stage “my moment” (4). This reveals that Hedy is more comfortable inhabiting the lives of other people than her own. It also emphasizes her awareness of her own skill; she relishes her ability to control those around her through performance, alluding to her chameleon-like persona that history remembers as both a talent and an asset to surviving WWII. Her passion for acting, though, is slightly threatened by her desire to undo the damage her reputation suffered from Ecstasy. The mystery surrounding what Ecstasy is exactly foreshadows its importance in the narrative—it is perhaps a stain she cannot wash out so easily.

Mandl’s appearance is similarly ominous. By sending the roses publicly in Chapter 1, he is making a statement to both Hedy and the ultra-conservative audience; he does not care or need to abide by society’s rules of decorum, and he is claiming Hedy. Chapter 2 emphasizes Mandl’s potentially menacing role in the text as Hedy learns of his “unsavory business” (9). This information works twofold; first, it historically roots the narrative as focusing on the many European crises of the first half of the 20th century; second, it foreshadows Mandl as the first antagonist for this book. As “the Merchant of Death” (9), Mandl is organized into one of the clear groups that the novel uses to distinguish between good and evil: Rather than being against the war, he is manufacturing it.

Chapter 3 introduces Hedy’s family dynamic as she describes how traditional her parents are. Their disapproval, she anticipates, around Mandl is an echo of the Viennese society she lives in. Her vocation makes her subject to suiters and gossip, so she understands what a delicate dance she must maintain to keep her audience happy while never shocking them. In this way, the chapter introduces the novel’s meditation of the unrelenting work women had to undertake to protect their reputation while simply asserting independence. The chapter concludes with a brief but significant mention of where Hedy lives: in the Jewish neighborhood. This not only reveals Hedy’s ancestry but also foreshadows what the audience knows to be the Austrian Jews’ tragic fate in a matter of years.

Chapters 4 and 5 work to build the historical world through Hedy’s interactions with her parents. First, her unconventional relationship with her father is represented as he asks about her performance, making a point to show interest and pride in her talents. As Hedy reveals that he has always shown care in her intellect and worked to teach her, the novel demonstrates the significant influence her father has on the wit and ingenuity that she will be remembered for. Her mother’s criticism is a stark contrast, representing more conventional standards impressed upon women. Chapter 4’s most significant contribution, though, is its examination of the subtle but catastrophic changes that politics wreak. Hedy’s father’s breaking down of exactly what Mandl’s role in the changing world means for them is emblematic of the political machinations of that time; power moves nearly unseen through the world, and the implications of challenging that power are incredibly dangerous—especially for a Jewish family.

While Chapter 4 articulates Mandl’s power, Chapter 5 demonstrates it. The fear that permeates Hedy’s house is revealed through her great care in dressing for a man she does not yet like, her mother’s willingness to play for a stranger, and her father—who has always protected and trusted Hedy to make her own decisions—agreeing to let Mandl date Hedy. This interaction symbolizes the political power moving through Europe—acting as liberation or even democracy to veil tyrannical ambitions—and overtly represents the female experience particularly during this time. As a man, Mandl wields that power under the pretense of tradition to remove Hedy’s autonomy.