"Last week I took a girl away from Jamie the lifeguard" -- Part 8

This article follows up Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6 and Part 7.

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Neil Kellerman has just told Baby Houseman that his wealth attracts other girls. Their conversation is interrupted when they see Lisa Houseman and Robbie Gould rushing by. After the interruption, Baby does not react to Neil's remark. He suggests that they go eat something, and she goes with him compliantly.

Neil tells Baby that last week another girl was attracted to him
because he owns two hotels

Here is the scene's entire dialogue:

Neil Kellerman
I love to watch your hair blowing in the breeze.

Baby Houseman
Maybe my parents are looking for me.

Neil Kellerman
Baby, don't worry. If they think you're with me, they'll be the happiest parents at Kellerman's. I have to say it: I'm known as the catch of the county.

Baby Houseman
I'm sure you are.

Neil Kellerman
Last week I took a girl away from Jamie, the lifeguard. And he said to her, right in front of me: "What does he have that I don't have?" And she said, "Two hotels."

(Lisa Houseman and Robbie Gould rush out of the woods and talk at each other.)

Lisa Houseman
Robbie, I don't hear an apology.

Robbie Gould
Go back to Mommy and Daddy and keep listening. Maybe you'll hear one in your dreams.

Neil Kellerman
I'm sorry you had to see that, Baby. Sometimes in this world, you see things you don't wanna see.

You hungry? Come on.

Baby goes with Neil to the hotel's kitchen. She says nothing more about her parents looking for her.

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When Baby said Maybe my parents are looking for me, Neil thought that Baby was worried that her parents might want to come and take her away from Neil. He assured her that her parents would be happy to know that she was with him. After all, he is a wealthy young man. They would be happy if Baby might marry into such wealth.

Last week, another girl had remarked even that he was "the catch of the county", because he owns two hotels.

Therefore Baby should not worry that Baby's parents might come and take her Baby away from him.

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I am sure that most of the movie audience interprets this dialogue differently than I do. When Baby remarks Maybe my parents are looking for me, she is expressing a reason to leave this isolated location, where she feels uncomfortable being sweet-talked by Neil. She wants to go back to the crowded gazebo -- with or without Neil.

Furthermore, most of the movie audience interprets Neil's remarks about the other girl and his two hotels as a crass assumption that Baby should naturally be attracted to him because of his wealth.

Most of the movie audience assumes that Baby is offended by Neil's insinuation that Baby -- like all young women -- is a gold-digger.

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However, after their conversation is interrupted, Baby goes compliantly with Neil to the hotel's kitchen. She goes with him from one isolated location to another isolated location. She does not go back to the gazebo because her parents might be looking for her. She does not respond to his remarks about the other girl and about his owning two hotels.

Baby does not seem to be offended significantly by Neil's remarks. She likes him, but only as a practice boyfriend. She is having fun interacting with him. When she said Maybe my parents are looking for me, she was teasing him, provoking him to insist that she stay alone with him.

When he responded about the other girl and his two hotels, she was not offended by his insinuation that she might be a gold-digger. Rather, she was amused by his silly male boasting.

When Baby's sister Lisa rushed by, obviously upset by Robbie's actions and words, Baby had an immediate excuse to leave Neil. Baby could have told Neil that she had to go look after her sister. However, Baby preferred to continue spending time with Neil.

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People who teach men techniques for seducing women teach a concept called social proof or preselection. Women are attracted to men who have attracted other women. When Neil remarked that he had taken another girl from a lifeguard, he figured that this feat intrigued Baby rather than made her jealous.

The concept is explained by, for example, a pickup artist who calls himself AlphaX, in an article titled Social proof and why it is catnip to hot girls. His article includes the following illustration and passages.

A pickup artist using the "social proof" technique of seducing women.
He demonstrates to a new girl that other girls are attracted to him

.... A large part of seducing women is Displaying High Value, which is a form of Social Proof. ....

Pre-selection – proving that other women want you; this is the hardest one to fake and one of the most powerful ... attraction switches .... If you are surrounded by hot girls, and a new hot girl sees you, she will be curious. Tease and flirt with her a bit, and the fact you have other women is actually a turn on. It also displays a high level of confidence to flirt with one woman in front of another woman you appear to be with.

Most men I know would actually try to hide the fact they have other girls, or are dating several, or that they even have girls as friends. They believe this is either disrespectful to the girl of their desires, or that it would turn her off, yet in real life, having lots of girls that want to fuck you is the easiest way to fuck the new girl. ...

Willingness to walk way – you WANT her, but you don’t NEED her. Think of it this way, most women experience a man being overly jealous, hanging on, clingy or needy. Even from the first interaction, a woman can feel this needy attitude. For example, most men at a club will see a woman they want to meet, walk over and offer to buy her a drink. If she accepts, they take it as a sign she wants to be with them and simply will not leave. This typically gives a woman the “ick” feeling. It also demonstrates low value.

In a relationship, dating or otherwise, your mental ability to walk away if she doesn’t treat you the way you want is your strongest tool. A girl can feel this. She will test you, and how you demonstrate your ability to walk away will either cause her to get wet and want you, or leave you.

Another interesting feature of being able to walk away is that it demonstrates, to some degree, Pre-Selection. See a man that has many girls that want to fuck him, or if he knows he can easily replace this girl, he doesn’t place too much on the interaction. His attitude displays the high value of a man surrounded by women.

However, Neil perhaps boasted too blatantly about the other girl.

The important aspect of an Alpha’s game is that the High Value traits are real and a part of who you are and in any long term relationship, a fake High Value trait will be felt by the girl. In a cold approach (where you are approaching a random unknown girl) pick-up, it is important to display subtle high value traits in an efficient and effective manner to create attraction within a given time window. If you are too bold in displaying high value, you will be seen as bragging or a show off, which is try hard and not Alpha.

It is important to note that High Value traits are different from boasting or bragging, which are approval seeking behaviors that are actually a demonstration of Low Value. I have been the guy bragging about wealth, and it rarely actually helped me get the girl. A subtle, congruent high value wealth signal would be the car you drive and her seeing you in it, not telling her about it. DHVs work best when they are woven subtly into stories or displayed through action.

In other words, Baby perhaps perceived that Neil's boasting about the other girl made him look desperate rather than attractive.

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I think that Baby's most significant reaction to Neil's remark about the other girl and the hotels was that Neil, who was born rich, was able -- because he was rich -- to take a girl away from Jamie the lifeguard, who was not born rich. During this time in her life, Baby had become obsessed about unfairness.

Although Baby did not react to Neil's remark, the unfairness of that situation bothered her. Although Baby liked Neil, she recognized that his wealthy birth unfairly gave him the ability to take a girl away from a lifeguard.

Later in the story, Baby would recognize also that  and also gave him the ability to boss around Johnny Castle, even on dance issues where Johnny was the expert.

Eventually, these moments at Kellerman's would cause Baby to rebel against her father's political opinions.

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This article concludes this series.