Valley of the Dolls

“You stand there, waiting for

the rush of exhilaration you thought you’d feel—but

it doesn’t come.

You’re too far away to hear the applause

and take your bows.

And there’s no place left to climb.

You’re alone, and

the feeling of loneliness is overpowering.”

Suzanne opens the novel with a blank-verse poem in which she describes the ultimate fate of her three protagonists, each of whom attains the success they seek, which she equates with climbing to the top of Mount Everest. Each of them, however, also experienced a surprising lack of fulfillment, abandonment, and profound loneliness, leading to a dependence on prescription drugs.

“‘Here everyone is looking for a husband. Including me!’ […]

‘You mean you marry just anyone?’ […]

‘Not anyone. Just anyone who’d give me a nice beaver coat, a part time maid, and let me sleep till noon each day. The fellows I know not only expect me to keep my job, but at the same time I should look like Carole Landis in a negligee while I whip up a few gourmet dishes.’”

This exchange between the young woman at the employment agency and Anne captures the essence of the unrealistic expectations of young men and women in New York during that era: Men dreamed of gorgeous wives who would have an income, keep house, and pamper them, while women dreamed of men who would shower them with gifts and indulge their leisure. The quote reveals the underlying conflict of the Mid-Century Patriarchy and the Objectification of Women. Her reference to Carole Landis is the first of many references to celebrities and foreshadows the sad fates of the book’s female characters.

“There were several men standing in the hall outside the office when she arrived. They parted to let her through. Suddenly one shouted, ‘Hey, it’s her!’ Cameras flashed, questions were shouted. Through the confusion she heard Allen’s name. She pushed past them, but they followed her into the office, calling her name. It was like one of her childhood nightmares, where she was pursued and no one tried to help.”

This is Anne’s first encounter with frenzied reporters, who have just read that she is engaged to Allen. The experience is horrible for Anne, who never accepted Allen’s proposal, in large measure because he never asked her to marry him and simply told her that they were going to wed.