Priorities in His Girl Friday

His Girl Friday portrays journalists as so consumed with the story that they overlook the emotions and well-being of other people. From the beginning, it seems as though Walter’s love for Hildy is grounded not in Hildy herself, but rather in her passion and talent for the newspaper business. Even in trying to “win her back,” it appears that he wants to win her back primarily as a reporter for the paper, and secondarily as his wife. He seems more frustrated with the fact that she is giving up journalism, not that she is with another man. While this is the most obvious example of journalism taking priority over human emotions, there are other supplemental examples as well: One, being how Hildy puts poor Bruce through hell as she becomes too consumed with the story to help him. Ultimately, Bruce even decides to give up on Hildy and leave without her, while Hildy barely notices or cares. Second, Hildy and Walter treat Bruce’s mother with complete disrespect, to the extent of telling her to “shut up” and having her carried like an animal out of the building where she is causing a ruckus. Even up to the film’s ending, journalism triumphs over love as the couple’s plans for a romantic and redemptive honeymoon in Niagra Falls are instantaneously negated by a trip to Albany to cover a big story—Clearly the priority!