5. Why do you think Margaret and the children receive such a chilly welcome when they finally return to the village from the Maori camp?
6. Several matches proposed in this book seem made for convenience: Portia and Henry, Margaret and Captain Fisk of the Sacramento, and even Nancy and Henry, at least in the beginning. Do you agree? If so, why do you think that is?
7. At what point do Margaret and Nancy start to get along? What sparks their friendship?
8. Though it's a wretched situation for everyone involved, which Mrs. Oades do you think suffers most? Which of the two do you most identify with?
9. Was there a better solution for Mr. Oades and his non-traditional family? Or did they make the best possible choice? Would there be a better solution today? What would it be?
10. The claims of the Daughters of Decency seem ridiculous to modern ears. Can you think of any recent court battles that might seem as hysteric and unnecessary a century from now?
11. What, in the end, do you think was the main theme of this book? Were you surprised?
12. What part of the book do you think you'll long remember?
2 comments:
I have posted the second set of discussion questions for The Wives of Henry Oades.
It's time to get a copy of our book for September, which is The Postmistress by Sarah Blake, 2010
5. Why do you think Margaret and the children receive such a chilly welcome when they finally return to the village from the Maori camp?
They no longer were part of the community and the people who remembered them had gone on with their lives.
6. Several matches proposed in this book seem made for convenience: Portia and Henry, Margaret and Captain Fisk of the Sacramento, and even Nancy and Henry, at least in the beginning. Do you agree? If so, why do you think that is?
I felt saddened for Portia. I thought it was a literary convenience that Nancy became available just when Henry was beginning to need to expand his social life.
7. At what point do Margaret and Nancy start to get along? What sparks their friendship?
Although there was jealousy and bitterness, I thought that even at their low times they did remarkably well. If I remember right, I think that when Nancy lost her baby they became closer (but the facts are not that clear). The dental appointment with Nancy getting drunk was quite a bonding experience as well.
8. Though it's a wretched situation for everyone involved, which Mrs. Oades do you think suffers most? Which of the two do you most identify with?
I felt most for Margaret. She had been true to Henry through everything and had always loved him. Nancy had been reluctant to love Henry from the beginning. However, I thought both women suffered a lot both with their experiences (the kidnapping and the fire) and having to cope not only with their situation with Henry, but with the community's self-righteous determination to blame them for their situation rather than accept what happened as a unique set of circumstances.
9. Was there a better solution for Mr. Oades and his non-traditional family? Or did they make the best possible choice? Would there be a better solution today? What would it be?
Given the difficulty of women to support themselves financially as well as the social stigma of divorce as well as the desire of the family to have Henry be a father to the children, I think that they made admirable choices. In today's society, women have more economic opportunity and divorce is more accepted, but the complication was that both women still loved Henry and he also felt that he should be true to his marriage vows. There is no easy answer for such an unusual family situation regardless of the time period.
10. The claims of the Daughters of Decency seem ridiculous to modern ears. Can you think of any recent court battles that might seem as hysteric and unnecessary a century from now?
I agree that the Daughters of Decency claims were ridiculous. I'm drawing a blank of recent court battles that will later seem as ridiculous.
11. What, in the end, do you think was the main theme of this book? Were you surprised?
I think the friendship between the wives was the main theme of the book. I was surprised that this was what kept Margaret in the family even after she could have left.
12. What part of the book do you think you'll long remember?
Probably the theme of the book.
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