Cohn's growing obsession over Brett is his fault, not hers. No one can force a person to pick fights, to engage in clandestine meetings, and to play the fool. Cohn's foolishness is a direct consequence of his own lack of self-esteem and his decision to live as a literal outsider in Europe. Even Mike Campbell, who Brett pledged to love and marry, must take responsibility for his own pain. Knowing Brett's past and her attitude toward interpersonal relationships, Mike should not expect Brett to suddenly transform her personality and lifestyle for him and in many ways Mike,...

Although never achieving true satisfaction or happiness for herself, Brett acts on her own convictions and purely out of a love of sensuality. Her unisex name suggests that Brett expects to be treated with equal respect as her male counterparts, and therefore to blame her for the male characters' problems is to sharply deny the importance of personal responsibility.