The hero of the story, Italian journalist Marcello basically sinks into the pit of moral depravity because his desire for celebrity/fame (embodied in a rich Italian actress and a buxomy hollywood movie star) ultimately turns the man into a shallow cad who sacrifices the art of writing for decadent bourgeois parties where he humiliates a poor country girl. Was Fredrico Fellini on to something? That la dolce vita - the sweet life is really a bitter pill. I was a television presenter from age 11 to 16 and was a stage actress till I discovered....other forms of 'escape' as a teenager. It takes a very clear mind and stout moral/spiritual temperament to resist the trappings of hollywood or fame. If Marcello could do it all over again, perhaps he would have married his neurotic Emma.