She is something he comprehends well enough to present to her own father, in ways that he hasn’t been able to do for himself. But here, Christian’s virtuoso verbal description is how he marks Maddy as his. Many romance heroes from books of this type use sexual possession at this point in the narrative (looking at you, Woodiwiss): marriage, or kidnapping, or outright rape. But more than that, it’s a way of taking possession of Maddy, of staking a sort of ownership. I keep thinking of that early scene, where Christian turns to Maddy’s blind father and says, “Shall I describe her to you?” It’s a charming thing to do for a father who’s never seen his daughter’s face, yes. Obviously this is a book more than usually concerned with language, which Charlotte’s post does a wonderful job breaking down.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |