So Big · Character

Julie Hempel

August Hempel's pampered daughter, who married into the family business and mistakes comfort for happiness, gently needling her old school friend Selina for letting herself go.

supporting

Also known as Julie, Julie Hempel Arnold, Arnold, Julie Arnold

First appearance: I

As a supporting figure in So Big, Julie Hempel is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Julie Hempel, Selina's chum, tries to persuade Selina to stay for dinner.

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See Julie Hempel in I Book page

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Julie moves through Chicago's moneyed circles as the wife of Michael Arnold, a man her father privately scorns as too soft to smell the stockyards. She is amiable, literal, and a little blinkered — she nods wisely at Selina's talk of beauty and growth without grasping a word of it, and she cannot see that her own life, arranged by a doting father, is exactly the gilded cage Selina is warned against. Her cheerful incomprehension sharpens the novel's central question: what does it mean to want the right things for the people you love?

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The fuller portrait of Julie Hempel sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Julie Hempel in I

Character Web

17 connections

A slice of how Julie Hempel sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Family
Social
Other

Character groups

Chicago Elite Circle
Protagonist

+12 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This excerpt marks the dramatic climax because it reveals the central psychological crisis: Selina’s entire id…

Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.

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Relationships

Selina DeJong
friendship · ambivalent
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle… How this plays out →
August Hempel
family · positive
Dirk DeJong
social · ambivalent
Pauline
social · ambivalent
Selina DeJong
friendship · ambivalent
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle… How this plays out →
Selina DeJong
friendship · ambivalent
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle… How this plays out →
Pauline
social · ambivalent
August Hempel
family · positive
Dirk DeJong
social · ambivalent
August Hempel
family · positive
Pauline
social · ambivalent

Selina DeJong
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle rivalry over social status.
August Hempel
Father and daughter in a formal, affectionate relationship with August indulging Julie's social ambitions.
Dirk DeJong
A flirtatious social acquaintance driven by Julie's wealth and Dirk's social climbing, lacking genuine depth.
Pauline
A superficial friendship between two society women, bonded by gossip and shared social circles.
Selina DeJong
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle rivalry over social status.
Selina DeJong
A complex friendship between two strong-willed women, blending admiration with subtle rivalry over social status.
Pauline
A superficial friendship between two society women, bonded by gossip and shared social circles.
August Hempel
Father and daughter in a formal, affectionate relationship with August indulging Julie's social ambitions.
Dirk DeJong
A flirtatious social acquaintance driven by Julie's wealth and Dirk's social climbing, lacking genuine depth.
August Hempel
Father and daughter in a formal, affectionate relationship with August indulging Julie's social ambitions.
Pauline
A superficial friendship between two society women, bonded by gossip and shared social circles.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Julie Hempel in I

In the story

Julie Hempel appears across 10 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

I
Julie Hempel, Selina's chum, tries to persuade Selina to stay for dinner.
II
Helps Selina prepare for her new life, reading Washington Irving with her.
IV
Selina writes to her but receives no reply; Mrs. Hempel says Julie is visiting a friend in Kansas City.
VI
Mentioned as engaged to a Kansas man named Arnold; Selina no longer writes to her.
XI
Now Mrs. Arnold, she rescues Selina from a policeman on Prairie Avenue, recognizing her old friend despite her ragged appearance.
XII
Tries to take charge of Selina's affairs, arranges an automobile ride, and brings her father to help.
Chapter XIV
Julie is mentioned as the mother of Paula and Eugene, and as having hosted Dirk at Prairie Avenue parties. Selina plans to get a recipe from her.
XV
Mentioned as telling Selina about Paula's new house.
XVI
Julie Arnold, now living in a new house in Chicago, warns Selina about Dirk and Paula's relationship and discusses her own elaborate beauty regimen.
Chapter XVII
Invites Selina to stay at the Arnold house during her city visits.

Chapter companion notes

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See Julie Hempel in I