I've never understood the shocked reaction to discovering these two hugging. If they had been caught kissing that would have been different, but the hug was a moment of comfort for them both. It should have been obvious that Scarlett looked upset and he was comforting her. Why the scandal?
Go to bed Frank or this is going to get ugly .
It's because India always harbored a jealous hatred of Scarlett, and long suspected that she was having an affair with Ashley.
While innocent in itself, that hug in the lumber office was just the ammunition India needed to spread rumors that Scarlett was an adulteress.
And there were witnesses--people who also hated Scarlett.
Of course, Melanie believed none of it, and as a result, it was India's reputation that was ultimately ruined.
I'll add to the previous post that the manners and morals of the time forbade any meaningful friendship between men and women were were unrelated and married to other people. Had she and Ashley shared DNA that might have been different. The fact that they grew up on neighboring properties made no difference. Here is one Southern Law on the subject of manners for unmarried girls:
With young girls and young married women, you slopped over with
sugar and kissed them every time you met them, even if it was ten
times a day. And you put your arms about their waists and
suffered them to do the same to you, no matter how much you
disliked it. You admired their frocks or their babies
indiscriminately and teased about beaux and complimented husbands
and giggled modestly and denied that you had any charms at all
compared with theirs. And, above all, you never said what you
really thought about anything, any more than they said what they
really thought.
Other women's husbands you let severely alone, even if they were
your own discarded beaux, and no matter how temptingly attractive
they were. If you were too nice to young husbands, their wives
said you were fast and you got a bad reputation and never caught
any beaux of your own.
Well technically, Scarlett & Ashley would have been considered related, since Scarlett was the widow of Melanie's brother. Even though Scarlett remarried twice, Melanie still considered Scarlett to be her sister-in-law.
shareThank you very much for all the replies. It must have been awful to have lived at that time, every little thing you did was scrutinised. Even something as innocent as a hug could cause trouble.
I love the party scene, Melanie lets everyone know by her treatment of Scarlett, that there is no scandal(or even if there is, they are to pay it no mind). India hasn't been invited, and Scarlett in that stunning gown has been. I love how she makes everyone speak to Scarlett, and be courteous to her.
Go to bed Frank or this is going to get ugly .
I agree it must have been horrible to live under such a code, and I'm sure it was WORSE then - but I'm not sure it's changed all that much, lol (I exaggerate, of course). To me, it just goes to show that human beings take a perverse pleasure in "exercising" any perceived superiority over others. Back then, they were able to (at least attempt to) disguise their nastiness as simply pointing out how others weren't adhering to strict moral code, and that such behavior, if allowed to go unchecked, could bring down their society. Today, we know it's just that people can't mind their own business, among other imperfections.
share