In addition to her thoughts of unhappiness, versus her earlier bliss, Esther starts to think of all her deficiencies. She can't cook, can't take shorthand (her mother's specialty), can't ski, or ride a horse (because they cost too much, she says). She is only good at winning scholastic and literary prizes, and she fears that these opportunities may be coming to an end. Then comes her image of the fig tree. She sees one fig (rather than a branch) as a husband, family, and children; another fig as a poet, then one as a brilliant professor, one as "Ee Gee" — a parallel to Jay Cee — one as a traveler, one as a "pack of lovers," one as an Olympic lady crew champion, and she sees many, many more figs. But Esther feels that she can — and must — choose only one fig, and she can't make up her mind which one she wants. She wants to "shoot off in all directions" and doesn't believe that is possible. Buddy, of course, has told her that after she has a baby she won't care about being a poet any more. Esther can't accept that idea. She wants all the figs, and she fears that they will wither and fall off the tree before she has made up her mind which one to pick.
When she goes to dinner with Constantin, Esther fails to realize her very real dilemma. She says that maybe she was just hungry — that's why she was thinking of the fig tree. She is unable to push forward with her vision of a diverse and interesting life for herself. Instead, she eats hungrily and decides to let Constantin seduce her. After listening to music sitting on his balcony, Esther retires to the bedroom. When she awakens, she again wonders if she's been poisoned. But no, she is physically fine, and except for her thoughts on marriage as a slave state, she is quite well. Constantin combs her hair with his fingers, which gives her an electric-like shock, but she returns to her hotel still a virgin.
