Breakfast at Tiffany’s Themes

A novella about a young woman fending for herself in New York City in the 1940s, Truman Capote’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s spotlights a certain kind of female independence that was rather uncommon in the mid-20th century. In particular, 20-year-old Holly Golightly emanates a sense of untethered freedom that not many women enjoyed at the time, allowing herself to move through the world on her own terms despite the many people trying to encroach upon her…

Because Breakfast at Tiffany’s is about a young woman who sustains herself by consorting with New York City’s wealthy elite, Capote scrutinizes the relationship between wealth, social status, and overall happiness. More specifically, it becomes clear that Holly worships the idea of wealth and prestige, as evidenced by the fact that she goes to Tiffany’s—a jewelry store famous for its diamonds—when she’s feeling down, finding that the store gives her a sense of tranquility…

In Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Truman Capote explores the boundaries between public and private life. As a fashionable and popular young woman who attracts both positive and negative attention in New York City’s “café society,” Holly Golightly has a hard time maintaining any sense of privacy. This is mostly because the people who are drawn to her—and, indeed, there are many—tend to become rather obsessed with her. In fact, even the unnamed narrator becomes fixated…