Characterization of Hailey
Outer characterization
Hailey’s age is not specified in the text, but since she is at college, we can assume she is probably about 21. At the graduation, she is described as wearing a cap and gown (l. 10). While she is with Connor, she wears “black Topshop jeans, suede ankle boots, and a tight tee that read HOMEMADE across her tits” (ll. 132-133).
Hailey is enrolled for a while at Hibernia College, in the College of Arts and Sciences (l. 10). Some of the courses she attends here are Introduction to Poetry (l. 15) and American Literature (l. 49).
After she is arrested, Hailey starts working as a sales clerk at Nordstrom Rack in a town called Poughquasic Falls (ll. 141-142) which is 15 miles away from the place she used to study (l. 145).
Inner characterization
Hailey is a young girl who is going through a difficult time in terms of her emotional and mental health. She has suicidal tendencies. This behavioral pattern can be observed from the first lines of the story, where Hailey confesses through a text message her wish to take her own life: “I want to kill myself” (l. 4). She expresses this wish several other times in the text: “I’d rather die” (l. 37), “I’m going 2 like off myself” (l. 41).
These suicidal tendencies are coupled with low self-esteem. She experiences a depressive episode which leads Hailey to hate herself and stop partaking in activities she enjoys (ll. 108-110). She also refers to herself as being a “nobody” (l. 174). These remarks show that she is an unstable person and that her mental health is deteriorating as she experiences stressful situations. The instability of her mental health is an important topic in the story, as she suffers from depression and finds it hard to motivate herself either to finish her work or to seek help.
When she falls in love with Connor, she discovers a new, chaotic way of life that includes consciously neglecting her courses to spend time with him. She goes to bars that offer large amounts of alcohol (l. 65), and she even drinks at breakfast (l. 131).
Hailey seems to be detached from conventional morality and more concerned with herself than with the happiness or safety of others. She wishes for situations which might endanger her own life and that of the people around her. She wishes for a school shooting (l. 43) and to have a real bomb (l. 119) just so she could get away from the graduation ceremony. To sabotage the ceremony, she calls in two bomb threats, which is an illegal act.
Hailey also lies about her life by pretending to still attend college. She lies to her mother, her friends, and the people she meets (ll. 101-102). She fakes that she is studying by bringing home books (ll. 99-100), and she tells her mother that she has moved off-campus (ll. 103-104). She even goes to the extent of lying about her graduation and attending the ceremony even though she is not on the list (ll. 38-39).
She appears to have a complicated relationship with her mother. Hailey’s mother seems to be a demanding woman who criticizes her daughter’s behavior, expecting her to work harder: “Her mother, since as long as she could remember, was always harping on her. And what was her main theme? You’re a procrastinator, that’s what she said” (ll. 46-47). When her mother tells Hailey that she is proud of her for being the first one in their family to graduate, Hailey feels like she needs to keep up the pretense (ll. 97-99). Hailey seems to be afraid to disappoint her mother. She texts that she would rather die than let her mother know about the fact that she is no longer attending her courses (ll. 36-37).
When she does find out, her mother is very harsh with Hailey and does not want to bail her daughter out of jail (l. 141). The fact that her mother refuses to pay bail but previously offers her money for tuition and housing (l. 103) shows that she is supportive of Hailey, but her support is conditional and is directly related to Hailey attending college. This can be another reason for why Hailey is afraid to tell the truth to her mother.
Hailey seems to have a strong connection to the person she texts with. The person seems concerned about Hailey and asks her about her well-being “RU OK” (l. 1), “I’m here but i’m afraid to ask – u ok?” (l. 112). The person also gives Hailey advice, support, and tries to prevent her from having negative thoughts and a negative attitude towards herself (l. 5; l. 175). Hailey also communicates freely with the person, talking to them about her plans and concerns.
Hailey often refuses to take responsibility for her actions: “The problem wasn’t her, really, it was Nathaniel Hawthorne” (ll. 48-49). She finds excuses for not doing her work, blaming it on the book being too boring (l. 56) or on her being in love (ll. 62-63) or feeling heartbroken (ll. 105-106).
Hailey is also occasionally superficial and judgmental of others. She pays a lot of attention to other people’s looks and is generally cruel when commenting on them: “And then, after a quick shuffle of her clunky white platforms that only show off how thick her ankles are (…)” (ll. 24-25). Also, the amount of detail Hailey gives in describing her outfit while meeting Connor suggests that she is proud of the way she looked while wearing it (ll. 132-133).
Hailey enjoys criticizing others and seeing them miserable or in unflattering circumstances: “Stephanie looks even worse than in college (…). That helps.” (ll. 149-150). This could be linked with her low self-esteem, as she may criticize others in an attempt to feel better about herself. Furthermore, the imagery of Connor’s slow smile (l. 133) suggests that Hailey appreciates and expects to be complimented by him, reflecting her low self-esteem.