# Hattie Sterling — The Sport of the Gods character guide

> Hattie Sterling in The Sport of the Gods by Paul Laurence Dunbar.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Hattie, the divine Hattie

**First appearance:** 0007-viii-an-evening-out

## Snapshot

A magnetic New York singer who lifts Joe Hamilton into the city's nightlife, then watches him squander every chance she gives him.

## Who they are

Hattie Sterling is the woman whose attention makes Joe feel chosen, and whose withdrawal unmakes him; she is at once his patron, his lover, and the mirror in which he sees his own decline. Her patience has limits, and when she finally strikes him down and throws him out, the cruelty is inseparable from the disappointment of someone who bet on him and lost. She matters because she embodies the city's promise and its price: the same glamour that draws Joe upward is what makes his fall so total.

## Relationships

### [Joe Hamilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/joe_hamilton)

_romantic_

Hattie is Joe's lover and a central figure in his descent into the New York nightlife, embodying both passion and destructive influence.

### [Kitty Hamilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/kitty_hamilton)

_rivalry_

Hattie views Kitty as a rival for Joe's attention and resents her presence in the club world.

### [Joe Hamilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/joe_hamilton)

_romantic_

Hattie is Joe's lover and a central figure in his descent into the New York nightlife, embodying both passion and destructive influence.

### [Joe Hamilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/joe_hamilton)

_romantic_

Hattie is Joe's lover and a central figure in his descent into the New York nightlife, embodying both passion and destructive influence.

### [Kitty Hamilton](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/kitty_hamilton)

_rivalry_

Hattie views Kitty as a rival for Joe's attention and resents her presence in the club world.

## In the story

### [His Heart's Desire](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/chapters/ix-his-heart-s-desire)

An actress Joe idolizes; she notices him at the club, invites him over, and treats him with condescending familiarity.

### [A Visitor from Home](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/chapters/x-a-visitor-from-home)

Hattie is amused by Joe's devotion and uses him for his money and attention. She introduces Minty Brown to Joe, unaware of the threat Minty poses to his reputation.

### [XI: Broken Hopes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/chapters/xi-broken-hopes)

Defends Joe against Minty's gossip, orchestrates a social counterattack at the club, and offers to help Kitty find stage work.

### [All the World's a Stage](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/chapters/xii-all-the-world-s-a-stage)

Acts as a mentor to Kitty, revealing her own jaded view of the stage's fleeting glory while helping Kitty get a job.

### [Frankenstein](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/chapters/xiv-frankenstein)

Joe's lover who alternately supports and rejects him; throws him out after his drunken binges; is strangled to death by Joe in her bedroom.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters/hattie_sterling
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_sport_of_the_gods_se/characters