Maud sends for Egelric

How difficult for Egelrich to be reminded of his son at every turn…

What always amazed me when I read these chapters was how fast the majority of the readers ran to handsome King Sigefrith’s side during this time. IMO Maud behaved badly but I don’t blame her. She was forced to marry a man she did not know or love and she rebelled; and everyone disliked her for it. And poor poor Sigefrith being married to her despite the fact he forced Maud to marry him. He made his bed he had to lie in it.

True… but in the 11^th century there is nothing unusual about Maud’s situation. Her male guardian (her uncle the Abbot) chose to marry her to a nobleman. Nobody promised her she would get to marry a man she chose for reasons of love. She went into the church and said the necessary words. After that her duty was to obey Sigefrith.

If she were a more sympathetic character I think we would have more readers cheering her on, because we are 21^st century people after all, and we find her situation intolerably unfair (in the abstract). But Maud hasn’t shown much nobility of spirit, independent of her failure to respect her vows. She has a tendency to be catty, selfish, and cruel.

True, I don’t really think Maud had the chance to grow as a person in the 9 years she was married to Sigefrith. There was too much anger and resentment in her to be sympathetic.

Devin, it astounds me that you like this woman. This post is so classically, horribly Maud! First she calls Egelrich in, a man who she knows will side with her husband because a.) he loves Sigefrith and b.) he’s a man and she’s a woman. She proceeds to question him about her lover, who has made it quite clear in recent weeks that they will not speak again, and then to guilt Egelrich into telling her what she wants to hear, she brings up his kidnapped son who for all they know is suffering a fate worse than death with the elves. So now he’s standing there quietly suffering in front of her – over his lost baby, over the resemblance he’ll now have to see as this baby grows, over the betrayal of his cousin against his king, and his own betrayal implicit in his silence. And as he stands there suffering, she has the nerve to get mad and order him out.

And this isn’t even Maud at her worst – this is just an average day for her. I’m so glad Alred berates her in just a few more chapters. It’s about time someone told her what’s what. Even the second time around I really have no sympathy for the woman.

What I like about Lothere is that we see the good and bad in people. Later on you will see the bad in Egelric. There is a certain character whom I despise but this character is adored by the other readers. And he did much much worse things than Maud ever did. Maud majority of the time was bitchy and vindictive. But there was some good in her too, she never abandoned Brit and Caedwulf when Malcolm came along. She could have ran away with him but she never did because of her kids. I don’t only like characters who are sweet, kind, and gentle. I also love a character who is rebellious, complex, and goes against the norm. In today’s society, people judge each other, oh, so quickly. Instead of wanting to judge Maud I wanted to understand her.

So I understood that she was a lady who was never really happy, probably not even as a child. She was forced to marry a good man she didn’t love, have his children whom she loves. Later she falls in love with a man she can’t have and later goes insane. Maud was unhappy and didn’t have a good positive image of herself imo, she couldn’t really be a sympathetic person. She had a sad life, much of it was of her own doing, but it was still sad.

I liked Maud for her rebellious nature, vulnerability, and I liked that she was another example of how sometimes life isn’t really all that kind.

WOW this is the longest post I’ve written in a while!  

“And this isn’t even Maud at her worst – this is just an average day for her. I’m so glad Alred berates her in just a few more chapters. It’s about time someone told her what’s what. Even the second time around I really have no sympathy for the woman.”

I agree wholeheartedly.

Devin, I see where you are coming on this one, but the fact remains, there were several times when she could have turned around and stopped situations from occurring. She could have stayed away from the nursery, yet night after night she went to Malcolm. Now, she is not alone in this, but by golly, she is not the VICTIM.

I don’t know… There’s a difference, I think, in liking a character and wanting to hang out with the person (were they real).

A well-​done character can bring depth, pathos and beauty into a story without being overly likable or admirable. And to me, Maud is a lovely character. Like a more delicate and instinctual Catherine in Wuthering Heights or the poorly behaving parts of a female Mr. Rochester from Jane Eyre… the kind of character that explores the wild, untamed, fierce, longing, caged, wronged parts of human nature (and ourselves). We are all victims of circumstance and the intentions of others (purposeful or not) at some point in our lives. Yes, it is what we do in those circumstances that defines us, but obviously not everyone takes the righteous path (and not all the time). What is to be gained from damning someone for falling victim to their own human weaknesses (which we all share)? Seeing others fall is what lets us know to stand up ourselves, and to help them back up.

Her struggles and weakness do not make Maud despicable to me, they make her poignant. Not taken in individual instances perhaps, but overall.

Well said Dominiquex you described the same feelings I have towards Maud and even Elfleda.

We are all victims of circumstance and the intentions of others (purposeful or not) at some point in our lives.

Tiffany imo Maud was a victim of her circumstance. Though I am not saying she was innocent.

A well-​done character can bring depth, pathos and beauty into a story without being overly likable or admirable…

I agree. (Though I am not sure I would put Maud in that basket. Imin maybe…)

Still, it pleases me that there are readers who defend Maud as a character and even as a person.

I do wish I could take another stab at these early Maud chapters so her character would benefit from my improved skills as a writer. I wouldn’t call her “well-​done.”

I don’t know, Lothere, you did enough revealing of her wild creature-​like nature to make her a character of beauty to me (and Devin).

You know at first I wouldn’t place Imin in quite the category I had in mind… Although late Imin probably is there. Early & middle Imin seemed more of a straight antagonist, a villain all the more chilling because of how realistic he seems. Kind of the role filled (with less sanity) by Heath Ledger’s Joker.