Birds of a Feather

     "Two Blue Birds” by D.H. Lawrence features three main characters: the writer, Cameron Gee, his secretary Miss Wrexall, and his estranged wife. The two women in the story are polar opposites. Mrs. Gee, finding herself unable to live with her husband despite her emotional attachment to him, has moved to the south. Miss Wrexall, on the other hand, adores her employer and works day and night, hanging on his every word. However, even under such different circumstances both of these women experience the same level of unfulfillment from Mr. Gee.

            One of the main distinctions between Mrs. Gee and Miss Wrexall is the way each woman views her financial situation.  On her extended vacations to the south, Mrs. Gee carries on gallant affairs and spends money on expensive clothes and fine things, thus driving Mr. Gee into debt. Instead of protesting this, he allows her to continue living her lavish lifestyle. It seems Mr. Gee will do anything to pacify his estranged wife. Miss Wrexall, in contrast, works around the clock for little to no pay from Mr. Gee because she’s fully aware about his deteriorating financial situation.  She even has her mother and sister come work for Mr. Gee too. The narrator says, “His secretary flew to town when a creditor became dangerous, and she ALWAYS smoothed over the financial crisis.” This shows how devoted Miss Wrexall is to his wellbeing and how considerate she is of his finances. It’s obvious that Mrs. Gee has a strong sense of entitlement. This is probably because her husband allows her whatever she wants, and yet pays his secretary hardly any wages.

            Their differences are further illustrated at the end of the story when the argument takes place in the garden. Mrs. Gee proves to be very offensive and passive aggressive while Miss Wrexall is more calm and ladylike about the matter. Mrs. Gee’s jealous clearly gets the best of her when she says, “You don’t call that being cheap? Why, I should say you got nothing out of him at all, you only give! And if you don’t call that making yourself cheap — my God!” This verbal attack shows Mrs. Gee’s catty immaturity. Miss Wrexall replies by saing, “And REALLY, need any woman be jealous of me?” This quote, juxtaposed with Mrs. Gee’s accusations illuminates Miss Wrexall’s innocent intentions and overall respect for the situation.  Mrs. Gee’s jealousy is clearly misguided because despite the secretaries romantic admiration for her boss, she would never carry on a ‘gallant affair’ like Mrs. Gee would.

             Throughout the entire story Mr. Gee is completely indifference to the actions of either woman. It’s as if he is ignorant to each of their feelings. He completely depends on Miss Wrexall and knows his wife more intimately than he knows anybody else, but still can’t satisfy either woman emotionally.  Because of Cameron’s egotistic nature, both women are left feeling incomplete in his wake, despite the dissimilarities in their personalities.  Their reactions and coping mechanisms with this could not be more different, but it all stems from their alienation from the man they care so deeply about. A reader might wonder if it’s their fault at all, or if it’s simply a statement on the character and morals of Mr. Gee himself.