This passage from “Bernice bobs her hair” by F. Scott Fitzgerald heightens an ordinary haircut to a life and death situation. This exaggeration is used to emphasise the torment Bernice has to undergo in making her decision, and her subsequent decision to proceed with the haircut equally heightens her strong will. The passage illustrates the pressure put on Bernice by the society. On one hand she loves her long hair, as is clear from the remorse she feels at losing her hair: “she would never again feel its long voluptuous pull”; but on the other hand, she faces the brunt of the society if he chooses not to: “Four eyes... stared at her, challenged her, defied her”. The fact that she chooses to cut her hair against her will delineates her desire to not give in: she did not break down, rather she visualised “Marjorie’s mouth curling into a faint ironic smile” which caused “some last energy” to rise in Bernice. Bernice’s courage in this situation is clearly portrayed. The narrator’s appreciation of this fact is clear: “With her chon in the air, she crossed the sidewalk” Her determination also elicits admiration from the readers. Although she was a mere child, she “did not cry out that it was all a mistake” This again shows how determined she was to not lose her face, as does her imperative style in the barber’s shop: “My hair – bob it!” The passage uses a simple and colloquial style. For instance the use of conversational English in the question: “Where’d yuhget ‘at stuff?” creates a friendly atmosphere in the passage. This is complementary to the language expected of a child, and is aptly used to present Bernice’s perspective without the apparent influence of an adult’s point of view. The passage also uses a lot of exaggeration. The analogy of the barber shop to an execution clearly highlights this. The sign of the barber shop is compared to a “guillotine” while the barber himself is styled as the “executioner” This also indicates that cutting her long hair would...