Gone With The Wind: Chapter 18

Chapter 18 Summary:  The Battle has come to Atlanta and the Home Guard is being sent to the front.  Scarlett watches as they march out to battle and she notices several familiar faces.  Mr. Wilkes, Ashley's Father, is among them and he bids her farewell as if he will never return.  Scarlett's own father was prohibited from fighting due to his injured knee and instead has been given charge of Twelve Oaks in Mr. Wilkes' absence.  Old men and young boys are all Atlanta has left to send to the front and the battle is brought even closer to Atlanta.  The men prepare to defend the city from a siege and those that can leave for safer places. Scarlett, Melanie and Aunt PittyPat discuss leaving the city.  Scarlett wants to go home to Tara and Aunt Pitty wants to go to Macon.  Melanie doesn't want Scarlett to go without her and Aunt Pitty won't go without Melanie.  It's Dr. Meade that settles the matter when he declares Melanie is to be on bed-rest until her pregnancy is over.  Traveling is out of the question and she won't even be able to run up and down stairs to hide in the cellar if Atlanta should come under attack.  Dr. Meade charges Scarlett with looking after Melanie and even Melanie reminds Scarlett of the promise made to Ashley to look after her.  So Scarlett and her son, Wade, remain with their only servant, Prissy, while Aunt PittyPat goes to Macon with the rest of her household.

KatieBug's Response: Again, we have mention of the son Scarlett had with Charles.  It's kind of sad to see this child forgotten as he is; hiding out on the porch while the dying and wounded soldiers come trailing in, begging for water and aide.  He is clearly frightened by what is happening around him and yet no one seems to care, not even his own mother.  Only Melanie and Rhett have shown true affection for this child, when he's mentioned at all.  I can't even begin to comprehend living in any city while it's under siege, but Mitchell does an excellent job of conveying the panic and destruction.

Gone With the Wind: Chapter 17

Chapter 17 Summary:  May of 1864, the Yankees are in Georgia again though the people of Atlanta are confident General Johnston will repulse them yet again.  Aunt Pittypat decides to have a dinner party to share the last of her chickens with those less fortunate and Rhett Butler arrives just in time to wrangle a last minute invitation.  He is quiet all through the dinner but can't help but speak against Dr. Meade once they alight to the front porch.  In the meantime, the Yankees are leading "Old Joe" in a type of retreat, attempting to outflank him and causing him to pull his army back to protect the railroads.  The fighting is now as close as the Kennesaw Mountain, only 22 miles from Atlanta.  The people are concerned and complain bitterly about General Joe Johnston.  Scarlett tries to get out of nursing but is forced to stay in Atlanta.  One day she has had enough and manuevers her way out of the hospital to find Rhett Butler in a carriage.  She persuades him to drive her away from the hospital and they proceed to talk of the war.  On their journey they come across a bunch of slaves marching to the outskirts of the town.  Among these slaves, Scarlett recognizes Big Sam, Elijah, Apostle, and Prophet from Tara.  They were recruited to help dig trenches outside of the city in case of a siege.  Scarlett's concern over a possible siege is renewed and proceeds to occupy her thoughts until Rhett bets her a kiss that the Yankees will be in Atlanta within the month.  Rhett reveals that he has been waiting for Scarlett to grow up and forget Ashley before pursuing her properly.



from VintageWorks, LTD

 KatieBug's Response:  We finally see that famous line about how Scarlett needs to be kissed, though the movie has this reveal when he gifts the Green Hat.  It's worded a little bit differently than the movie but you get the idea:

But, Scarlett, you need kissing badly.  That's what's wrong with you.  All your beaux have respected you too much, though God knows why, or they have been too afraid of you to really do right by you.  The result is that you are unedurably uppity.  You should be kissed and by someone who knows how.

We are starting to see the desolation of the South during this war.  The people are still fighting but it's nearly a lost cause.  They don't have the resources to properly man and supply their army.

Reading List - June 2011

Just to make sure I keep track of everything here's what's on my plate right now -

For the Blog:
Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell - Started 05/04/11

Possible Choices for the Blog:
Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

Personal Reading that could make its way to the blog:
The Writer's Tale: The Final Chapter by Russell T. Davies & Benjamin Cook (11/14/10) - Started 11/15/10
Changeless by Gail Carriger (10/16/10) - Started 10/24/10
Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas (6/01/10) -Started
A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin (08/01/10) - Started 10/25/10
Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach

If there's anything you would like to see on this blog, please let me know and I'll consider adding it to my list.

Gone With The Wind: Chapter 16

Chapter 16 Summary: Rhett Butler made good on his word and sold all his boats when blockading becomes to hazardous.  His current profession as a food speculator has not gone over well with his former friends and neighbors.  Scarlett survives on the memory of her kiss with Ashley and dreams of how things will work out for them once the war is over until Melanie reveals that she is pregnant.  It is only the news that Ashley is missing, presumed dead, that brings the two women back together.  Melanie neglects her delicate condition, in search of news about Ashley, and Rhett Butler must escort her home after she faints in the telegraph office.  It is only with the promise to take care of herself and Ashley's unborn child that Rhett is willing to pull some strings to discover Ashley's fate which reveals that Ashley is alive but has been sent to Rock Island, Illinois, a Northern prison camp.  Abraham Lincoln refuses to allow prisoner exchanges, so there is no hope that Ashley will return before the end of the war.  Rhett tells Melanie that Ashley had an opportunity to escape the cruel treatment at the prison camp if only he'd agreed to denounce the Confederacy and join the Union in defending its Western border from Indians.  Of course, Ashley refused this offer and Melanie's heart is ready to burst with pride at her husband's choice even if it means he could die in prison before the war is over.

KatieBug's Response:  I would like to draw some attention to a specific paragraph in this chapter.  It's when Melanie and Scarlett learn that Ashley is missing and possibly dead.

Somehow, she was in Scarlett's arms, her small breasts heaving sobs, and somehow they were lying on the bed, holding each other close, and Scarlett was crying too, crying with her face pressed close to against Melanie's, the tears of one wetting the cheeks of the other.  It hurt so terribly to cry, but not so much as not being able to cry.  Ashley is dead - dead, she thought, and I have killed him by loving him!  Fresh sobs broke from her, and Melanie somehow feeling comfort in her tears tightened her arms about her neck.

In today's world, this scene could end up very differently.  After seeing the film, I do believe that it's really about the incredible friendship between Scarlett and Melanie more so than the romance between Scarlett and Rhett.  This paragraph really supports that theory and then some.   Maybe it's just me, but I find this scene far more entertaining than all the hats Rhett Butler could possibly buy.

We also start to see the differences between Rhett and Ashley as well as Scarlett and Melanie.  Rhett and Scarlett are opportunists and survivors and therefore, MFEO.  Melanie and Ashley are tied to their honor and duty before anything else.  One wonders how honor and duty will feed the children and keep a roof over their heads when the Yankees win.  Also, does Scarlett realize what Ashley's duty-bound personality means for her imagined future with him? No matter how many hearts, with their initials in it, she draws on her Trapper Keeper he is never going to leave Melanie.  Regardless of what he feels, if he feels what she thinks he feels, he made a commitment to Melanie and will stand by it til death they do part.

Gone With The Wind: Chapter 15

Chapter 15 Summary: Ashley comes home to the open arms of his family for Christmas.  Scarlett completely changes her holiday plans so she can stay in Atlanta and get a moment alone with her heart's desire.  She begs a hat off of Rhett Butler and turns it into a gift for Ashley, as well as repurposing a scarf so Ashley can have a sash.  He accepts these gifts with grace and enthusiasm before asking Scarlett to take care of Melanie.  She isn't able to let him go so easily and after promising to look after his wife declares she still has feelings for him.  Scarlett can't let him leave without a kiss goodbye and he obliges.

KatieBug's Response: We see that Scarlett doesn't quite understand Melanie is Ashley's wife until they go into their room that first night and shut the door.  It's also sad to see that Scarlett hasn't moved on from this heartbreak just yet.   I am quite angry with Ashley for kissing Scarlett at all.  He is sending her terribly mixes signals and even if he thought he was going off to die that is no reason to string her along like this.  On the other hand, Scarlett is doing what a typical young girl in love would do and is filling in the blanks of everything Ashley doesn't say to her.  If he were to tell her that he is absolutely in love with his wife and has no feelings for her whatsoever, Scarlett might be able to eventually move on.  But kissing her like that is all the proof she needs that he's married to the wrong person.  God, and then to ask her to "take care of" Melanie.  That is an awful lot of advantage he's taking right there.  Scarlett, you can do better.

Gone With The Wind: Chapter 14

Chapter 14 Summary: Summer of 1863, Atlanta is riding high on the victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorville and they expect another one at Gettysburg on the Yankee's home turf in Pennsylvania.  Letters home from Darcy Meade reveal that General Lee forbade looting and destruction of Yankee lands, which is more than the Union Army did for the Confederacy and has left the Confederate army without basic essentials.  Darcy begs for a new pair of boots and gives a few more details of the march north.  Then on July 3rd, Atlanta is left without any news whatsoever.  The citizens are in a panic to hear about their loved ones and the Wilkes/Hamilton family is no different.  Scarlett, Melanie, and Aunt PittyPat wait outside the Daily Examiner office for the printed lists of the Gettysburg dead.  Rhett Butler is able to provide a little more information and a list hot off the presses.  Even though Ashley is safe, Scarlett finds the names of all three Tarleton boys as well aws Raif Calvert, Joe Fontaine, and Lafe Munroe - all boys that she grew up with in the county.  It's then that Mrs. Meade discover's her son, Darcy's name on the list and has to make a quick exit.  Melanie and Scarlett head over to the Meade's residence to sit with the family and Melanie reveals that she's jealous of Scarlett's son, Wade.  She imagines what it would be like to lose Ashley in the war without some sort of child left to comfort her and tells Scarlett that she sometimes pretends little Wade is her own child.  Scarlett chides her for her tears and then sends her out to tend to the remaining Meade son, Phil.

KatieBug's Response: Remember that child that Scarlett and Charles had? No? Me either.  I had quite forgotten him, just as Scarlett seems to, until Melanie brings him up in conversation.   I can understand why the script writer's decided to leave him out of the movie entirely.  That being said, this reads pretty closely to the movie and we see Scarlett realize the true consequences of war.  She's lost friends, boys she grew up with, and she doesn't agree with any of it.

Gone With the Wind: Chapter 13

Chapter 13 Summary:  Dr. Meade is inspired to write a letter to the editor, at the insistence of Mrs. Merriweather, regarding the food speculators and blockaders who are taking advantage of their fellow Southerners.  The letter describes Rhett's actions to the letter and, without mentioning his name, lets the rest of society know Rhett is no longer welcome in Atlanta.  Scarlett and Melanie both continue to receive Rhett despite this.  Melanie because she genuinely believes Rhett has done nothing to deserve this treatment and Scarlett because she likes the gifts Rhett brings her.  Rhett tempts Scarlett to further abandon her mourning with the gift of a beautiful hat.  Melanie comes home very agitated because Belle Watling, a local prostitute, cornered her in the street.  Normally proper ladies do not converse with those of Belle's ill repute, but Belle wanted to donate money to the hospital and no one else would accept it.  Melanie, of course, does but is caught talking by Uncle Peter.  She goes to Scarlett for help and it's discovered that Belle's donation is wrapped up in one of Rhett Butler's handkerchiefs.  Scarlett bristles at the idea that Rhett's been visiting Belle as often as he's visited her and burns the handkerchief in the stove.

KatieBug's Response: ***Different from the movie: Rhett does kiss Scarlett after giving her the hat, but only on the cheek.  Melanie meets up with Belle Watling on a walk home from the hospital but without anyone else around.***  First of all, I was upset that Rhett chides Scarlett for reading the newspaper.  She is trying to argue on his level and he tells her that reading newspapers "addles women's brains."  It was really difficult to read that as a modern woman.

Gone With The Wind: Chapter 12

Chapter 12 Summary: Scarlett looks forward to a life without the bonds of widowhood.  We learn that Rhett calls on Scarlett quite regularly and even looks forward to his visits.  We get a quick description of the economic landscape in Atlanta at the time of the Civil War and a history of Rhett Butler's rise and subsequent decline in popularity amongst the gentry.  At first he is described as scandalous but able to get the things a person wants in these difficult times, thus giving him the romantic air of a pirate.  Then, as if growing bored, he stops courting their favor and proceeds to tell the most truthful things about the war.  It all comes to a head at Mrs. Elsing's party when he, once again, tells the truth behind the war.  The Southerners feel that Rhett is a traitor and the only home willing to accept him, after the party, is the Wilkes' residence.  Melanie refuses to exclude a man who expresses the same sentiments her husband expresses in his letters.  Scarlett finds it odd that a man like Ashley and a scoundrel like Rhett could have anything in common, then she realizes that Rhett isn't willing to die for something in which he doesn't believe.

Katiebug's Response: This entire section is omitted from the movie - We finally see the payoff for Scarlett reading Ashley's letters.  It was necessary for us to know what was in them in order for us to understand why Melanie would go against the rest of society.   Scarlett and Rhett's relationship develops, though Scarlett is not ready to admit that maybe she loves him.

Gone With The Wind: Chapter 11

Chapter 11 Summary: Remaining safely in Atlanta, we discover that Scarlett secretly reads Ashley's letters to his wife. The parts that Melanie keeps to herself were too much torment to Scarlett and she is intent upon learning if Ashley is in love with his wife. So far, her secret readings have not met Scarlett's definition of love and devotion. She is content that Ashley thinks of his wife as nothing more than a sister even though he unburdens his very soul to her. Ashley writes about his distaste for the war and how, even if they win, they'll still lose. Scarlett knows there is something she's missing in his letters and it's this quality that prevented her from landing him as a husband, but she has not yet figured out what that something is.

KatieBug's Response: This entire chapter is omitted from the movie.  I think this is an important part of Scarlett's character, we start to see her "put things off until tomorrow," as well as go to any length to buouy up her own theories.  It's also an excellent opportunity for the author to throw in some commentary about the Civil War.  She puts these words into Ashley's mouth, or rather letters, and has him lament the loss of their bucolic life.  He knows that winning the war will change civilization as they knew it just as much as losing will and life can never be the same.  Scarlett doesn't even finish reading the letter because she finds it boring and yet she is unable to understand why Ashley didn't choose her as a wife.  He wasn't lying when he told her that they were too different.  Here is the evidence for everyone, including Scarlett, to see and yet she is still blinded by her own fantasy.