Murder by Cheesecake

“‘But his rather tepid throwing of the hay during the last annual Hay Day—that really disappointed the elders.’ She placed a delicate hand on her stomach, as if the very thought made her a bit queasy. ‘Can see how that would be a problem,’ Dorothy deadpanned.”

Rose’s sober tone contrasts somewhat with the absurd nature of her story, which highlights St. Olaf’s tendency to celebrate tradition to the point of absurdity. Rose herself clearly has internalized the gravity of hay throwing as proof of masculinity, helping to establish that her love of her town will be central to the wedding plot. Dorothy’s deadpan response affirms her more cynical nature, and her awareness that Rose is likely to miss her sarcasm. This early moment underscores the theme of Tensions Between Individual Desires and Collective Traditions, since what appears comical to outsiders is treated with seriousness by insiders. The queasy gesture also captures the embodied weight of tradition, showing how cultural expectations are carried not just mentally but physically.

“‘I suppose you could make an appointment to meet one, but I met this one in an elevator,’ Blanche said. ‘You just have to put yourself out there. Go where the doctors are!’”

Blanche’s joke here establishes her own quick with and near-obsessive focus on dating—even an elevator ride is a romantic opportunity for her. Blanche’s confidence and self-assertion are key aspects of her personality and contrast her with Rose’s naiveté and Dorothy’s cautious cynicism. Blanche insists through her day-to-day life that she continues to have romantic desires and pursue them avidly, regardless of stereotypes that older women should abandon sexuality.