Part 3 Summary

Elizabeth thinks back to the time she spent in the 1940s, living in a sleazy hotel in New York City called the Hotel Schuyler. There she lives with "J.", a fastidious gay man with whom she has been friends since childhood. Their roommate relationship is filled with drama and irritation, and it becomes very similar to a marriage, in the way that Elizabeth and "J." find fault with one another's idiosyncracies. "J." is very neat, and he always has to brush his teeth after a meal. Elizabeth sees his life as being chained to the disciplined habits that he has developed. He has always been very queer, from the beginning, and he avoids sports, but one day he decides that he should start exercising. He begins a disciplined regime of lifting weights, and Elizabeth is disturbed by the physical changes that result. When...