The play’s central conflict revolves around how to negotiate personality differences productively, exemplified in the relationships between and among the characters in the play. Newlywed Corie is adventurous, spontaneous, romantic, and energetic. She throws herself into life and experiences, often without planning or other forethought. Instead, she acts impulsively, on the force of her emotions. The tension her impulsivity causes is established early in Scene One, when Corie and Paul bicker and Corie declares, “The whole marriage is over” (15). Paul does not take her seriously and smooths things over. Still,Corie’s tendency to embellish—seeing each disagreement, difference, and argument as marriage ending—contributes to the tension in her and Paul’s relationship.

When Corie gets an idea into her head, she pursues it immediately and relentlessly, and she may manipulate facts to achieve her ends—further evidence of her propensity for embellishment. This has a positive aspect in that she sees the bright side and does not panic in the face of obstacles and challenges. She is happy to try new things, such as Victor’s knichi, and looks for solutions rather than panicking, like in promising to keep Paul warm when the heat does not work. The downside to her relentless, impulsive nature is that she does not consider how others feel about her plans.