Tools of Characterization

Characterization in His Girl Friday

Clothing

When we first see Hildy with her fiancée she's wearing a feminine, highly patterned coat and a fancy hat. Later, when she heads off to do her reporting, she switches to a plainer, more utilitarian coat and hat.

That's the central conflict for Hildy throughout the film; does she want to be domestic and go live in a nice house in Albany with Bruce? Or does she want to be a career go-getter and tackle Wardens with a single bound? She's got the wardrobe for both, but which will she choose?

Or maybe she can go back and forth when it suits her, just by switching hats. (See Symbols: Hildy's Clothes.)

Profession

Bruce is in the insurance business, which Hildy and Walter talk about:

HILDY: That's a good, honest business, right?
WALTER: Sure it's honest. It's also adventurous. It's romantic.

Walter doesn't actually think that the insurance business is adventurous or romantic. He thinks it's boring and safe and stodgy. And that describes Bruce exactly—he's boring and safe and stodgy.

He doesn't take chances. He carries an umbrella when it's cloudy. He won't even take rum in his coffee. Newspapermen live for excitement and chasing ambulances and tackling Wardens. Insurance, on the other hand, protects against risks, and Bruce — kind, confused, pottering Bruce—is a protect-against-risks kind of dude.

Direct Statement

Hildy frequently says exactly what Walter is—she calls 'em like she sees 'em. For instance, she doesn't hold back when she says:

HILDY: I am fond of you, you know. I often wish you weren't such a stinker.

…or when this exchange occurs:

WALTER: What do you think I am, a crook?
HILDY: Yes.

…or when she solves the mystery of Walter's ancestors:

BRUCE: [Walter]'s got a lot of charm.
HILDY: Well, he comes by it naturally. His grandfather was a snake.

Those are all jokes… sort of. They're funny, but they're not exactly wrong.

Walter's a crook, literally—during the course of the film he passes counterfeit money, frames others for criminal acts, and is part of a kidnapping plot. He's also a stinker and a snake (though he's charming).

Part of what's funny about Hildy's insults, as you watch the film, is that they're all 100% true. Walter really is a bounder, a cad, and a criminal. It's a good thing he's also Cary Grant, or nobody could stand him.