Literary Wives #15

My Father's Wives 

by Mike Greenberg

Admittedly, I know nothing about this author. We never watch TV--purposefully! And if I did, I would never watch sports! So I have no preconceived notions or expectations going into this book. Though the premise does sound interesting and I feel it could go anywhere.

I enjoyed this book! Granted, I could personally relate to several aspects of this story, and that always seems to increase my enjoyment! There was much humor, subtle and otherwise! One of the opening scenes was amazingly similar to Jonathan Tropper's This Is Where I Leave You, though in its own way, it was unique to Jonathan's story. I was left with much to ponder since the ending was not all nicely and neatly wrapped up, leaving some room for interpretation and speculation! The initial opening scene was quite humorous, John listing the three times he had been "struck by lightning" by various females, and the one time he was not... 
     Her face was so close to mine our noses touched, and I could smell the 
  apples and cinnamon on her lips, feel the warmth of her breath. It was the 
  closest I have ever been to anyone, in every way. It didn't feel like lightning 
  at all--just the opposite. Lightning is loud and scary; Claire made me feel 
  quiet and safe. (26)
Awwww...how sweet! I have read of male characters depicted as just knowing they will marry someone after their initial meeting, as Jonathan does.  This seems a bit too impetuous to me. I certainly never felt that way upon meeting someone. Girls, could you weigh in on this? Any of you felt that way? 

I can definitely relate to discovery of your spouse's infidelity and the emptiness, bewilderment, and abandonment you may feel as you try to incorporate this new reality into your most intimate of relationships, particularly if you have children. Yeah, I remember...and I applaud Jon for proceeding with his daily life, though he was naturally a bit distracted--I was totally unnerved--it took quite a while for me to fully incorporate this knowledge and get back to my routine. I could understand how the mind might latch onto some seemingly nonsensical thought about the fancy Frette sheets in the wake of what he saw through the keyhole. I believe that is a defense mechanism of the mind, incorporating such shattering knowledge a bit at a time...

I loved the way Jonathan actually missed his children so much! I cannot imagine missing out on time spent with them when they're young. He seemed to be a very kind, caring, hands-on father to both Andrew (age 6) and Phoebe (age 9) even though he was obviously a successful Wall Street executive. That made me like him even more. Speaking with them on the phone actually made him miss them more than not, so he would simply speak to their photographs in his office! Awwww... 

I loved how Claire used the fact that she was married to finally assert herself with her parents and decline their skiing invitation, 
     "I hate skiing!" Claire said...
     "You're kidding," I said. "I hate it too! I thought you loved it!"
     "Never! My parents have been making me ski since I was six; I've hated 
  every day of it. It's freezing cold, the lift lines are endless, and the food in the 
  lodge is disgusting, even the hot chocolate. I just never had the heart to tell 
  my parents because it makes them so happy. But come on, I'm a married 
  woman now." (37)
As Jonathan realizes in remembering this scene, Claire lied to her parents rather skillfully... Though he continues,
     I think every couple has that perfect moment, when both people realize   
  they really are right for each other and all the assumptions they had to make 
  along the way have been verified. Little doubts melt away, and for the first 
  time they both know for sure they really are going to be all right after the 
  euphoria of the engagement and the buzz of the parties and the whirlwind of 
  the wedding an the sporadic arrival of fancy dishes; when life becomes just 
  life again, they really are going to love each other after all. (37)
Although I never had a formal wedding or any of the other hoopla--just threw a party for the families the first time, and quietly signed papers at the courthouse the second time--I could relate to this feeling of solidarity with your partner, kinda you and him/her against the world. :)

Another aspect of this book to which I could closely relate was not really knowing your own father. I have never met my biological father and it is too late since he died almost 20 years ago, so I could easily relate to wanting to know more about this person, but especially given the fact that his father was so famous and powerful, and obviously NOT someone for whom a relationship would necessarily last a lifetime! I thought the perspectives of Jonathan's stepmothers were quite interesting, to learn that basically this man went from one partner to another based upon what he thought he needed at that time in his life, with evidently no thought of their feelings, only his own...though that could fit with the stereotypical politician's reputation? 

It was remarkable to note Percival's real feelings of inadequacy and fears...of dying...of being alone, etc. Perhaps that is one of the biggest differences between these two men, the father had a blustery public persona which hid deep personal "problems"/issues while Jonathan was very confident and driven but was a much more settled and psychologically balanced person in his relationships. 

Now for the wifely questions:

1) What does this book say about wives or about the experience of being a wife?
    
Being a wife to Jonathan's father, Percival the third (How pretentious is that name?), was obviously to be swept off your feet by someone with so much charisma and charm as to make you believe he really did care about you, though as several (perhaps all?) of his ex-wives noted, he truly did not care about anyone but himself in the end. And, perhaps it was to hopefully fulfill Percival's perceived need at that particular time. However, he did profess to each of them his love for Alice, Jon's mother, so perhaps somewhere down deep he did have a sense of loyalty, but he certainly didn't show it... As for Claire, I truly believe she was innocent and that it wasn't her Jon spied through the keyhole after all, and I believe he was quite secure in this interpretation of the events of the recent past. It all seemed to fit. Claire ran everything for her family, she was the glue that held it all together, but she was also very kind, caring, loving, and seemingly sincere. I believe each of Percival's wives had to be their own independent person so they could not just survive, but thrive, in the wake of his abandonment. Whereas, Jon and Claire seem to work at staying together and making a successful long-term relationship. So this book appeared to be more about how a man selects a wife than about how a woman carries out her role as wife, though we meet many women who discuss their role as wife...

2) In what way does this woman define "wife"--or in what way is she defined 
    by wife? 

I think all of Percival's wives were sincere in their role as his wife, though perhaps overly-impressed by his power and status, but they were mostly independent self-sufficient females who also made lives for themselves after their marriage to him. (Of course, the money helped make them financially secure if they weren't already...) Each of them seemed to be very unique from the others, definitely not a matter of him having always selected the same type of person to marry. It seems that wives of more successful men (at least in a financial sense) are perhaps more defined by their role as "the wife of..." whomever, than those whose husbands have less financial resources, unless the wives are successful in their own right. To me, Claire fit the stereotype of being "the wife of..." Jon, and it seemed to work for both of them, and their children. 

Have you read this one yet? What did you think? I have a copy of his other book, All You Could Ask For, and I hope to read it sometime soon...

Please check out the reviews of the other co-hosting bloggers:

Emily of The Bookshelf of Emily J
Naomi of Consumed by Ink
Kay of whatmeread

Join us for our next Literary Wives review of 
The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel 
on Monday, August 3rd. 

I am really looking forward to reading this one. 

And...we will have an interview with the author posted along with the reviews! (I'm double-excited now!) :)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Literary Wives #10: Poetry!

The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy

Image courtesy of Powell's Books

Our tenth read for the Literary Wives online book discussion group is a collection of poems about various wives of famous/infamous men throughout history, including folklore and mythological heroes, literary characters, etc., as well as some sisters and Anne Hathaway! This book sent me researching some mythological characters for context, since I never was much into mythology. 

Please check out the other co-hosting bloggers' reviews:

Emily of The Bookshelf of Emily J
Ariel of One Little Library
Carolyn of Rosemary and Reading Glasses
Cecilia of Only You
Kay of whatmeread

And join us on Facebook! 
Post your review there or on any/all of our blogs!

Having not read much poetry for many years, I was uncertain what to expect. Though this collection did make me laugh out loud once in awhile, overall, the language and imagery was a bit too crude for me...and I though I could handle crude just fine! :

There are 30 poems ranging from the easily recognizable, like "Little Red-Cap," to the somewhat more obscure, such as "Mrs Aesop" or "Circe." Some of the titles are quite humorous and made me chuckle: "Queen Kong," "Elvis's Twin Sister," "Mrs Beast," and "Mrs Quasimodo." There is violence in several of these poems that simply grossed me out. However shocking some of the language and/or imagery was for me at times, there were also some moments that me stop and consider, or just laugh out loud! I found "Mrs Sisyphus" to be the most humorous of all.

From the first poem: 

Lesson one that night,
breath of the wolf in my ear, was the love poem.
I clung till dawn to his thrashing fur, for
what little girl doesn't dearly love a wolf? (p. 3)

At which point I stopped and exclaimed aloud, "What?!?" Little girls LOVE wolves...well...okay...that's a bit different perspective. As you may well have guessed, this excerpt was from "Little Red Cap." And trust me, she did exact revenge for grandma's untimely demise!

"Mrs Quasimodo" was a particularly "ugly" poem, in my opinion. (Pun intended, I suppose.) He leaves her for someone "well formed" and she takes revenge by dismantling the bells.

I sawed and pulled and hacked.
I wanted silence back.
Get this:

When I was done,
and bloody to the wrist, 
I squatted down among the murdered music of the bells
and pissed. (p. 38-39)

All righty then! Mission accomplished, eh?!? ;) I felt the word choice "murdered music of the bells" was quite apt and depicted her intent accurately. I could easily suspend my disbelief to envision this scene.

I found "Mrs Midas" quite moving. I had never truly considered how the "Midas touch" turning 
everything to gold could destroy a person's (Mr. Midas's specifically) life and relationship. 

I made him sit
on the other side of the room and keep his hands to himself.
I locked the cat in the cellar. I moved the phone.
The toilet I didn't mind I couldn't believe my ears:

how he'd had a wish. Look, we all have wishes; granted.
But who has their wish granted? Him.

...He tried to light a cigarette; I gazed, entranced,
as the blue flame played on its luteous stem. At least, 
I said, you'll be able to give up smoking for good. (p. 12)

She made him move out and he eventually became "thin" and "delirious." Mrs. Midas states

What gets me now is not the idiocy or the greed
but lack of thought for me. Pure selfishness. I sold
the contents of the house and came down here.
I think of him in certain lights, dawn, late afternoon, 
and once a bowl of apples stopped me dead. I miss most,
even now, his hands, his warm hands on my skin, his touch. (p. 13)

Ending with a bit of irony, that one! And how much does she lack perspective and understanding? I'm rather assuming this man simply thought to make his own and his wife's lives much more enjoyable and less stressful with more money and riches. Perhaps he was only thinking of himself, but I could envision someone believing they would make their partner more comfortable with more money obtained by selling the gold. And I doubt he foresaw being granted this peculiar ability as the granting of his wish, but rather just a pile of treasure? Alas, we will never know...

I could continue giving you bits and pieces, but really, if you're interested, these poems do give you moments of pause. They're not exactly to my taste, but that is just me. You may find them all utterLY fascinating and delightful! One thing is for certain, they are a bit deeper than I expected, and I certainly appreciate that. Duffy's use of language is captivating, to say the least!

Now to the Literary Wives questions:

1) What does this book say about wives or about the experience of being a wife?

To say these wives were feminists is perhaps a drastic understatement. Most of them exacted revenge in the most vicious ways, in my opinion. Mental note: do not "cross" any of these women, 'cause they can be evil and wicked! At the very least most of them berate, criticize, and make fun of their husbands And there is certainly no need to worry about these females, 'cause trust me, they can (and will!) definitely take care of themselves, and woe to the males upon whom they unleash their cruelty! For many of them the experience of being a wife meant they felt they were married to "bumbling idiots" or selfish pricks, or both! Overall, I did feel these poems expressed to some degree how living with another person can become a trial on certain days, once the thrill of a new relationship has settled into daily routines. However, there are coping mechanisms other than murder, etc., that can be employed to help alleviate such frustration! :)

2) In what way does this woman define "wife" -- or in what way is she defined by "wife"?

I felt many of these women were only wives until they felt they couldn't stand living with their husbands any longer. Perhaps the more deadly ones have lodged in my mind, but overall, I would say they only remained wives as long as they felt loved or at least some hope of being loved. And by love I mean receiving respect and consideration, not just sex. I wholeheartedly agree with this depiction of a marriage/relationship, which I consider to be realistic. I would never again remain committed to a relationship that wasn't based upon mutual respect, consideration, empathy, and caring. I felt most of these women were desiring these same qualities in their mates.

Join us Monday, October 6, for our reviews of Wife 22 by Melanie Gideon.

It sounds like an interesting premise!

Literary Wives #8: The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman

Welcome to the 8th book in the Literary Wives series!

As I started reading this book I was a bit surprised as I expected more of a historical fiction format, and felt as if I was reading a documentary. Once I had read the first 30 pages or so I was enthralled, however! Ackerman has a real knack for descriptors and making the reader feel as if you are standing in Poland, seeing and experiencing everything as you read, as if you are one of the characters. 

I appreciated the outline of research completed to write this book as contained in the Author's Note at the beginning; I am always interested to know just how the author has compiled notes, etc. Although I have read about WWII before, I had no idea of the Nazis' great interest in "purifying" animal bloodlines. For example, Lutz Heck, one of the Nazi higher-ups, along with his brother Heinz, was "completely infatuated" with "the resurrection of three pureblooded, extinct species--the neolithic horses known as forest tarpans, aurochsen (the wild cow progenitor of all European cattle breeds), and the European or 'forest' Bison." The Heck brothers had produced some near Aurochsen and tarpans of their own just prior to WWII, however, the Polish strains "ran truer to type" and were "the clear inheritors." (Was that good or bad news for the Zabinski's?) Lutz appeared at the Warsaw Zoo one day pledging his "help," however, as Antonina stated, "For all we know he may just be playing with us. Big cats need little mice to toy with." Per a mutual friend, Antonina had been told that she reminded Lutz of his first great love, and while she was flattered by his attention and did find him to be "a true German romantic, naive in his political views and conceited perhaps, but courtly and impressive," she was also wary and distrusting of him and his motives. As well she should have been!                                                              

"Under the Third Reich, animals became noble, mythic, almost angelic..." However, in contradiction to this, the high-level Nazi officers got drunk and went on shooting sprees in the zoos, simply shooting animals dead in their cages! Antonina described the heartbreak and sorrow she felt as she heard the shots and realized all the zoo's animals would be dead. Jan was a "devout scientist" who credited Antonina "with the metaphysical waves of a nearly shamanistic empathy when it came to animals," claiming she was so sensitive to them, it was as if she could read their minds. Listening to them die had to be particularly heart wrenching after all the care Antonina had heaped upon these animals to make sure they were well-fed, healthy, and happy. These animals were like family members to both her and her son.

Antonina with Tofi and Tufa, two baby lynx kittens she
spent 6 months bottle-feeding and who remained
dependent upon her for another 6 months until they
reached one year of age.

However, as heartless as the Nazis appeared to be toward animals, in the end, it was nothing compared to their treatment of humans. Not only were the Nazis determined to eliminate any and all people of "inferior value" such as the Slavs, Gypsies, Catholics, or Jews, but they were determined to retain only people they determined to be of "full value." All this to create their idyllic "race of Aryan god-men." Thus confirming what the world now knows--these men were psychotic sociopaths! "Although Mengele's subjects could be operated on without any painkillers at all, a remarkable example of Nazi zoophilia is that a leading biologist was once punished for not giving worms enough anesthesia during an experiment." Unbelievably sick and sadistic. I am always saddened by the cruelty humans have shown to other humans throughout history...

At the time, it was unknown to Antonina just how involved Jan was in the Resistance, and he only told her what he felt she must know, to help protect her. He stockpiled and distributed weapons and most of all, he used the Nazis fascination with animals to his advantage to come and go, delivering money and food to Jews hiding out in Warsaw and also those imprisoned in the Ghetto. It is estimated that the Zabinskis helped some 300 Jews escape without ever being caught. I do admit to feeling sorry for their son Rys who always had to be aware of keeping secrets: about the "guests" who came and went, while secretly delivering food to those hiding in various animal shelters, underground bunkers, etc. at the zoo. Not a life you would necessarily choose for a child, but tough times call for tough measures, and as Jan himself stated, "I only did my duty--if you can save somebody's life, it's your duty to try." This book certainly depicts the strength of the human spirit, both to endure and to help others whatever the risks!

Anonina and Jan feeding a baby bird.

Now for the "wife" questions!

According to Jan: "Antonina was a housewife, she wasn't involved in politics or war, and was timid, and yet despite that she played a major role in saving others and never once complained about the danger." 

1) What does this book say about wives or about the experience of being a wife? Jan's comment above angered me. Exactly how was she NOT "involved in politics or war"? Just because she wasn't out and about the way he was didn't mean she wasn't responsible for all 300 people reaching safety. In fact, only 2 of these 300 didn't survive the war! She was the "leader" of this small group in the villa and totally responsible to care for and prevent the discovery of these "guests." To discount her as simply a "housewife," is, I believe, quite insulting! As usual, no matter how much a woman contributes, it seems those contributions are always viewed as less important than those of a man. I urge anyone doubting that to read this book and note how deftly Antonina handled many situations with brutal soldiers, saving not only herself, but all those for whom she was responsible while Jan was gone. She exhibited unbelievable bravery and courage, all while pregnant, then straddled with a newborn, etc. She has my utmost respect; I feel most anyone else may well have "blown it" and been unable to adapt and flex so quickly to avoid annihilation. Though I guess none of us knows how we might handle such extreme situations until we are there. 

2) In what way does this woman define "wife"--or in what way is she defined by "wife"?
I wonder what Antonina might have done with her life if she hadn't married Jan. But since she was the "wife of a zookeeper," her days were never dull! She was constantly overseeing the care and nurturing of all the animals, large and small, with a menagerie living with them in the villa. In addition, she ran the household and had her own child/children to raise. As was typical in this time period, society defined her by her role of wife, and I don't believe she resented this overall, though she did feel defeated that Jan didn't publicly acknowledge her accomplishments. She certainly proved many times over she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself and others! She certainly did much more than just serve as a "housewife," in my opinion!  

Check out the other bloggers' reviews as well: 

Emily of The Bookshelf of Emily J

Ariel of One Little Library

Audra of Unabridged Chick

Carolyn of Rosemary and Reading Glasses

Cecilia of Only You

Kay of whatmeread

Please plan to join us for our next read, The Crane Wife by Patrick Ness.

Reviews to be posted the first Monday in June.

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Literary Wives #5: Ahab's Wife or, The Star-Gazer by Sena Jeter Naslund

• Ahab's Wife or, The Star-Gazer
• Sena Jeter Naslund
• ISBN-13: 9780060838744
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Publication date: August 2, 2005

This book was so much more than I expected! I was rather pleasantly surprised. I truly enjoyed the spiritual/philosophical discussions and exploration amongst the various characters, as well as the historical information. The writing style seemed to be different within the last 150-200 pages than the earlier portion of the book, though I enjoy epistolary writing, it was a bit disruptive and I felt that as a reader I had to adjust to this change. Likewise throughout the book I found myself needing to purposefully track characters and their inter-relationships; the flow seemed a bit disjointed at times.For me, there was much ironic symbolism in this book: with names (Judge Lord oversees all Ahab and Una's investments, and Liberty, bestowed upon two different children who died young, and one infant still living by book's end), shapes and objects (rather phallic lighthouse and Frannie licking it), and I'm sure many more that I missed! Other issues addressed in this book that I'll not discuss in detail here: cannibalism and the residual guilt of "living" in the aftermath; freedom of choice in many different aspects, choice of partners, of spiritual/religious beliefs, "lifestyle," vocation/career, and ultimately, of "family," or perhaps more accurately of friends who end up being "family you choose"; the "social construct" of madness/insanity--could such eccentric behaviors be acceptable elsewhere as was implied?

Una was my kind of woman in many ways, or perhaps the kind of woman I would like to be... I've often stated that if not for my grandmother actually serving as my main caregiver, I would probably have been a runaway by age 16, had I been forced to live with only my mother. As with Una's father, Ulysses, my mother was very rigid regarding religious beliefs, disregarding any virtues such as kindness, generosity, or respect. Her main parental goals? Fairly simple: to control and manipulate. However, unlike Ulysses, she was rarely physically abusive. Kudos to Una's mother for doing something to stop the abuse being heaped upon her daughter. Though I cannot imagine willingly relinquishing my own daily parental rights to simply  accommodate an abusive man whom I happened to have married, and then remaining loyal to him! But at least she was proactive enough to protect Una, though in my opinion sacrificing so very much--credit given...

What an exciting gut-wrenching opening to this book! Immediately we are made aware of Una's beliefs regarding slavery (echoing her mother's); she helps a runaway slave escape. Susan managed to sneak into her cabin, and stayed to help Una through the labor, birth, and, unfortunately, the death of her first child, Liberty. Disappointingly, Una later learns Susan eventually returned to the deep South to reunite with her mother, hoping to lead her out of slavery, but being pregnant and learning of her mother's foot being cut off due to her own attempted escape, she is branded by her owner (directly on her cheek!) and remanded back into slavery... Susan's story reminded me of the prisoners who have related their inability to deal with "freedom" once released, and many again commit crimes simply because they seek the reassurance, routine, and "comfort" of prison life. I believe this is very much due to lack of resources once released: financial, vocational, and interpersonal, much as with Susan... Though Una very generously supplied her with money, she used it to bribe a bounty hunter who in return did not capture her.

I did chuckle a bit as Una related her appreciation of the fact that Ahab's experience with women of the tropical islands had taught him "to touch the magic places on [her] body." However, she was assured Ahab "went to the island women no longer, saying it was not right for a Captain." Uhm...no mention that it might not be in accordance with a monogamous marriage for him to continue other sexual relationships? Hmmm...

This brings us to one of my issues with the concept of "marriage" as presented in this book. Perhaps it is just an accurate reflection of the times, but it seems that anyone could virtually say they were married, and they were! In today's society, you must at least "sign papers" to prove you're "married"! My personal belief is that any two people (male-male, male-female, female-female) should be able to cohabit (or not), but claim and live in a monogamous relationship if they so choose with no implications regarding civil laws (e.g. taxes, benefits). I have always believed marriage to be a "religious" concept interjected into civil law, and I fail to understand why. I especially fail to understand why we retain it. Wouldn't it be much simpler and fairer to all to hold each person responsible for themselves once of "legal" age? Why is it anyone else's business whether any one of us is involved in a relationship? It should be a private matter totally removed from the public realm, unless we choose to share such information with others. I can only imagine how much more peaceful our society might be by eliminating so many battles over "legal rights" of people who choose to be in relationships: same-sex relationships/marriages, divorce, etc. If each adult was treated the same and only as a single entity, so much the better, in my opinion! Relationships would require NO legal paperwork/validation.  

And now (for me, at least) the overarching theme of this epic work: spirituality. The definition I assign this word is "of or relating to a person's spirit" (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, m-w.com); my preference is to assign NO religious connotation to this word. I am deeply spiritual, but organized religion or belief in a deity of any sort no longer holds any attraction for me. My spiritual beliefs are very practical and pragmatic--easily demonstrated in my daily interactions with others and my attitude and behaviors. I believe every human being's intention, thought, and action enters the Universal flow and makes its own contribution to the positive (or negative) energy that encompasses us all. Each bit of energy we contribute then influences others in either a positive or negative way. I believe this is fairly close to the interpretation Ms. Jaslund depicts in this book overall.
Una and her mother Bertha discuss religion and God (in the Christian/Biblical sense)...
     Una: "It might be quite a different thing about God."
     Bertha: "If it makes you happy, believe it."
     Una: "But I want to know the truth."
     Bertha: "The truth about the unseen makes little difference to me."
     Una: "It would make a difference to me. But I do not believe that a man was God."
     Bertha: "Perhaps we each adopt or create our truth." 
Bingo! [Picture me ringing a very large bell! :)] That is exactly what I believe; we humans have created our own understanding of our world as we know it, hence, the large variation and diversity of "religious"/spiritual belief systems around the world and throughout our history on this planet. Una's Aunt Agatha contends we each should believe what we will. Una attends both the Universalist and Unitarian churches and compares these two belief systems, preferring the latter. Jaslund also interjects Margaret Fuller's feminism and transcendentalism, but once Una moves to 'Sconset her spiritual beliefs seem to culminate in the stars and universality of the human experience. Jaslund also interjects scientific knowledge and process through the Mitchell family, particularly Maria who was an astronomer herself who embroidered the message "We are kin to the stars" on baby Justice's dress. Finally Una believes that the fact that she is alive and can see the stars' (to my mind the Universe's) glory is her purpose. "'Little scrap, little morsel,' the stars sing to me, 'we are the same.'" Rather ironically, I just heard on a TED talk last week, a scientist claim that some scientists have discovered humans and stars have developed from the same materials/energy. And among the findings of the high-energy physics colliders (CERN, Fermilab, etc.) is that there truly are no static "particles" as we delve into the ever smaller bits of energy, but rather this energy appears to be in a constant state of flux, alternately taking the shape of two different forms, but NOT remaining in one form or another. So...our world is literally constructed of nothing more or less than ever-changing energy; so what, if anything, is truly "permanent" in the world in which we find ourselves?

As Kit says to Una, "That's the way it is in life. You let go of what is beautiful and unique. You pursue something new and don't even know that the wind of your own running is a thief." Much to ponder...

Now for the "wifely" questions!

1) What does this book say about wives or about the experience of being a wife?

As stated above in my review, it appeared to be quite easy to become a wife with little to no legal process involved. With life expectancy so limited compared to the present-day, it was not uncommon for spouses to die and another to take their place very quickly: Mr. Hussey, the tavern owner, had at least three wives; the Gaoler had at least three women as partners, though Frannie (the second one), Una's cousin, refused to "marry" him while she cohabited with him and his children and bore a child with him. In effect, it seemed as if a woman could be a wife in a variety of ways, and she could basically choose how she played that role, based upon her husband's needs/guidelines, however. For example, any wife of Mr. Hussey's MUST cook chowder and tend to the tavern. The relationships appeared to be based upon geographic availability moreso than choice in my opinion, which makes sense given the lack of transportation and portability in the mid-nineteenth century. Being a wife appeared to involve doing for your husband and being what your husband expected. However, Frannie seemed to defy these traditional roles. Una was the traditional wife to both Kit and Ahab, but it seems as if she may be more independent with her relationship with Ishmael at the end of the book.     

2) In what way does this woman define "wife"--or in what way is she defined by "wife"?

Upon meeting the Judge, "You must take tea with me, Mrs. Captain." This connected directly with Anne Morrow Lindbergh's claim that any wife would only be known by her association with her husband: "Mrs. Doctor," "Mrs. Lawyer," etc. I believe Una was defined by her role of wife to Kit, though it seemed she was truly dedicated to him simply as a result of her love and compassion for him. Everyone else certainly referred to her as his wife. I believe that many times, society identifies a person within a role and that person feels they must live up to society's expectations of them. I believe Una certainly tried to do this to the best of her ability with Kit, however, he was unable to play the role of a sane person, and therefore, was rejected by the society. I loved Jaslund's interjection of an indigenous culture where "madness" was accepted and not classified as aberrant behavior to be controlled. I vaguely remembered that from an Anthropology course years ago. In her role as Ahab's wife I felt she was a bit more independent, however, she had the advantages of financial independence and the fact that her husband was gone more than he was home with her. I believe her relationship with Ishmael was much different in this regard and much more independent, at least that was my impression. 

Don't forget to check out the others' reviews:

Ariel of One Little Library

Audra of Unabridged Chick

Carolyn O of Rosemary and Reading Glasses

Emily of The Bookshelf of Emily J.

Cecilia of Only You

The sixth Literary Wives read is The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress by Ariel Lawhorn, for December 1.