Breakfast at Tiffany's

The narrator of Breakfast at Tiffany's remains unnamed throughout the book. Though the events of the story are portrayed from his perspective, he remains a passive force throughout much of the narrative. The narrator is rarely the instigator of events or the person who sets a course of action. Rather, he stands at the fringes to observe, document, and comment on what he sees. In this sense, the narrator performs a literary function in what is apparently real life. Even at a party, he stands on the edges of the social group and gives himself the job of documenting events for posterity. The narrator is so invested in becoming a writer that he tries to live this profession at all times, sacrificing social interaction for the sake of his literary pretensions. Holly is able to cut through these pretensions. She accuses the narrator of beginning stories that he does not know how to end. In her subtle fashion, she is correct. The novel itself is a story about Holly which has no idea how to end. Vague rumors of Holly being in Africa or Buenos Aires mean that the story of Holly Golightly, as written by the narrator, lacks the definitive ending that she diagnosed in many of the narrator's stories. The narrator's status as a struggling writer reinforces Holly's character and shows that she is the figure in control of the narrative, even if he is technically the narrator.

The question of the narrator's identity plays an important role in the novel. He never identifies himself, preferring to remain detached and observant in a narrative sense, but he cannot deny Holly's influence. She assigns him a name, choosing to call him Fred after her beloved brother. This choice of identity reveals Holly's discerning nature. Early in the relationship with the narrator, she realizes that theirs is a platonic friendship. The act of naming the narrator after her brother sets the terms of their relationship; she is reminded of her brother and she is announcing that this is how she will continue to view the narrator. In assigning the narrator an identity, she is dismissing the prospect for romantic love and, in a subtle fashion, Holly is asserting her agency over her romantic life. The narrator seems to retain a romantic interest in Holly, however, until he fears that she may be married to Rusty. At this point, he reexamines his feelings for Holly and realizes that he does, in fact, love her in a platonic fashion. The narrator's realization vindicates Holly's astute understanding of romantic dynamics and shows that she understands the modern world of romance better than the narrator. As such, the narrator's vague identity becomes a canvas for Holly's character, rather than the narrator's own.

The narrator is forced to deal with guilt. After he loses control of his horse in Central Park, Holly chases after him and—in doing so—suffers a miscarriage. The narrator blames himself for this loss and this guilt motivates him to help Holly flee the country, even though she is breaking numerous laws in doing so. The narrator feels responsible for his involvement in the loss of Holly's baby, so he tries to help her find a life to replace the potential life that was lost. The responsibility continues beyond Holly's departure. He searches for and finds her cat, a moment which gives him a sense of catharsis. He is able to observe the cat in a happy, loving environment and this gives him hope that Holly has found the same. As ever, she remains in control and he cannot contact her. She controls the ending of his story and leaves him only with vague hope and a lingering sense of wistful responsibility which still shapes the narrator’s life.

Jose is a Brazilian politician who falls in love with Holly and then chooses to abandon her when she is labelled a criminal by the press. Jose fears public scandal. Several times in the novel, he outlines this fear to other people and insists that an ambitious man like himself cannot be associated with criminal or scandalous activity. Despite this, he continues to pursue a relationship with Holly for some time. He knows that she has a somewhat scandalous reputation (even if she denies that these rumors are true) but he cannot extricate himself from her. The stark difference between Jose's pronouncements and his actions shows the audience that Holly is a powerful, enchanting woman: each time he reiterates his fear of public scandal and then returns to Holly, he reveals the effect she has on him. This effect is more than just lust: Jose cares deeply for Holly, as shown when he fetches a doctor and explains to the narrator that she is grieving for her brother. He keeps returning to her because he loves her, but this love places him in an impossible situation.

Ultimately, however, Jose proves himself to be a coward. He acknowledges this in his letter to Holly; he does not have the courage to meet her face-to-face, to the point where he ends their relationship via letter and sends his cousin to her apartment to fetch his things. When reading the letter, the narrator credits Jose with at least being able to admit that he is a coward. Holly takes a more mournful tone, reflecting on why she ever loved Jose. She acknowledges that her relationship with Jose was always doomed to fail because he could not choose her over his career. To Holly, however, Jose was an important symbol of hope. He represented genuine love and affection, as well as the chance to escape. Through Jose, she could leave the United States and start a new life in Brazil where she would not be chased by tawdry and untrue rumors. Jose, to Holly, was a symbol of the possibility of reinvention: She mourns the end of their relationship not only because of their love for one another, but also because of the hope that he represented for her future.

Mag Wildwood is a tall, striking model who provides a counterpart to the character of Holly Golightly. She arrives at Holly's party—seemingly uninvited—and immediately begins accusing Holly of hiding the eligible bachelors from her. Holly plays a cruel joke on Mag, implying to the other guests that Mag has a sexually transmitted disease. In this sense, Holly weaponizes the accusations which are occasionally levelled at her. She has been accused of being a sex worker and of being, in some way, unclean, so Holly knows how insulting and damaging these rumors can be. She wields them against Mag, showing an awareness of her own reputation and an ability to use this for her own benefit. Mag's reaction is to get so drunk that she passes out. Whereas Holly reacts to such rumors by asserting her control, Mag reacts by losing control. In this sense, the similarities between the two women serve to show Holly's strength, particularly in comparison to Mag's weakness.

Mag and Holly share an uneasy friendship. Though they seem close at times, Mag repeatedly accuses Holly of trying to steal her boyfriend. To that end, Mag seems to marry Rusty purely to spite Holly. That she does this reveals how little she understands Holly; as Jose explains, Mag marrying Rusty is beneficial for Holly and she is happy for the couple. When Holly gets into trouble, Mag's spiteful side shows again. She threatens to sue anyone who associates her with Holly, rather than putting up money for Holly's bail. She is more concerned with preserving her own reputation and allowing Holly to suffer than she is with helping her friend. Since Mag and Rusty file for divorce a short time later, it is implied that Mag has gained nothing from her relationship. She has lost Rusty, she has lost Holly, and she has lost her dignity. Her downfall is tragic but justified, due to her lack of loyalty, providing a direct contrast to Holly's own unjustified tragedy.