The first thought that pops up when anyone mentions Gone with the Wind I immediately think of the movie with Vivian Leigh and Clark Gable. In fact, while reading this novel, those are the faces that I pictured while I read. The next thought that comes up is the Carol Burnett skit about Gone with the Wind. Carol takes down the curtains so that she has a dress to wear to go woo Rhett Butler out of his money. It is probably the funniest thing I have ever seen. When I was reading the part in the novel where Scarlett does take down the curtains, I was laughing the entire time! Sadly, the last thing that I think of when I hear Gone with the Wind is the novel with 1030 pages. That is where the credit lies. When I saw this book on the list, I was a little skeptical. I am not a high-drama person and this movie was drama to the brim. I chose to read it, regardless of the drama and hype. I was a little excited to see what all the fuss is about.
Truth is, I really loved this book. It did have a lot of drama but it was interesting because of the time period it was set it. I found it cool to tell a story about the Civil War from the South. History always tells of the victors, but there is another side, the losing side. The South was made to look like a villain during history class at times. This was a new and different perspective.
It seems that ever since, I have gotten married I have been drawn to novels that focus on what happens after marriage and after the love story has taken place. Let me just say that if what these novels tell is true, then NEVER GET MARRIED!! I am making broad generalizations here but what I think these novels are really trying to show is that marriage is difficult; especially if you are Scarlett O'Hara, I mean Scarlett Hamilton, I mean Scarlett Kennedy or finally Scarlett Butler. Of course it does make it difficult when you married the person just to get their money, make someone else mad, or to get their money, or to get their money. There is a theme here. Even when Scarlett does marry a person who loves her for who she is, the marriage falls apart. The reader can actually watch it crumble. It is a little heartbreaking, really. She made some decisions that set her up for this, but she felt that she did what she had to do. Marriage is tough and even though Scarlett faced and conquered many challenges in her life, marriage is one that defeated her. I think this happened because to be married is to really open up to someone or (especially in her time) just put up with everything, it also means letting every other man go. These are two things that Scarlett just could not do.
Scarlett makes some decisions that cause a lot of people to either stick with her or to abandon her completely. These decisions you may not like and you may not agree with but given some of the situations she was put in she was doing what she thought was best. Her first marriage to Charles was just unfair. She married him because Ashley was going to marry Melanie and she needed to prove that she didn't care. Charles was infatuated with her, and she used that for her own gain. Not ok. Her second marriage was really just as bad but I think that she did it because she was trying to save Tara and the life that she knew. On the other hand, she did steal her sister's fiance because he had an enough money to pay for the taxes and business ideas she could steal and make money with. Scarlett really had her challenges set out for her. After the war, her mother died, her father had gone senile, her sisters were sick and little help, Melanie had just had a baby and was not up to full strength, taxes were really high on the plantation and she had little money or cotton. She had her work cut out for her. However, her marriage to Frank was really unfair to him because he really cared about her sister, but he was told that she was going to marry another man which was not true at all. So Scarlett got Frank and promised herself that she would be good to him, but the marriage fell apart, Frank died and Scarlett was left as the outsider in all of Atlanta. She went out on her own to run a business when most women or even men did not venture out without protection. Melanie tried to hire someone to protect her, but she managed to make him so angry with her that he refused to drive her around anymore. She placed herself in serious danger. She didn't even take ordinary precautions in order to make herself safe. This was a dangerous time and she knew it, I am not one who thinks that you should run around frightened but I do lock my doors, I do wear my seat-belt, you should take basic steps in order to make sure that you are safe.
I have been talking a lot about Scarlett but I have a theory that Melanie is the real heroine of this story. Everyone loves Melanie and in return she is strong and steady when her friends need her. Many people would think that Melanie would not have survived had it not been for Scarlett. It is true that in the Siege of Atlanta when Melanie was having her baby, she probably wouldn't have survived without Scarlett. However, after the war and even during the Siege and the months at Tara, Scarlett would have gone as senile as her father if it wasn't for Melanie. When Scarlett was shouldering the responsibility at Tara, she didn't notice that the sick Melanie was right there beside her, helping her with her load. When Scarlett shot the Yankee soldier, Melanie was right there, sward in hand, ready to help bury him. When the entire town of Atlanta wanted nothing to do with Scarlett, Melanie and Melanie alone, not Rhett, not Ashley, just Melanie stood beside her, ready to take on the world if need be. Even when Scarlett and Ashley were caught in questionable circumstances, Melanie refused to believe it and turned her cousin out. (which I think Melainie did because she didn't want to believe it) Melanie took her hardships and did everything she could for the ones she loves; heroism. Scarlett is a strong woman who lacks a heart for others. Melanie is a strong woman who loves (at times blindly) the people she loves and protects the people that she loves. Take your pick, but they couldn't have survived without each other.
At the same time, honorable Ashley may not have been so honorable after all. He married Melanie and I really think that he loved Melanie but he was infatuated with Scarlett. For me, this was the difference between love and lust. He loved Melanie but lusted after Scarlett and he really wanted to choose Melanie but Scarlett was so gosh-darn pretty. Fiddle-de-de!
All in all, this is a novel about human folly, and how humans deal with difficult situations. The Civil War ended life as the Southern elite knew it. When something like that happens, every one is going to deal with it a little bit differently. Scarlett took matters into her own hands and come hell or high water, she was going to take care of things in her own way. Melanie did what she could for others, no matter how poor she was, Rhett made money from exploiting and then tried to change his ways, Ashley was left with nothing to do because even though he knew that the South might not win the war, he had no idea what that really meant. This story tells how four different people dealt with some very difficult times. It took me about a month to read but I enjoyed it all. Hear that? Gone with the Wind actually has literary credit and is worth reading, even if it is 1030 pages.
My perfect pairing for this book is a window seat in the sun with a cup of tea or hot chocolate. Put on your southern airs and enjoy a well written book that will take you back to another time and place. Good read.
Next up, in honor of the new Peter Jackson movie, the book that began it all; The Hobbit
No comments:
Post a Comment