Voice in the Wind, pp. 472-477<\/strong><\/p>\n Oh boy. Today Marcus proposes marriage to Hadassah. The weird thing is that we were never given much insight into Marcus\u2019 thought process here. He\u2019s wanted to have sex with Hadassah for ages, and has sexually assaulted her and tried to rape her. She has told him several times that she can\u2019t have sex with him because she\u2019s not married to him. On his father\u2019s deathbed, his father put Hadassah\u2019s hand in his, signifying to all involved that he wanted them together (which is odd, because reasons).<\/p>\n I wanted to see Marcus actually work through all this; I wanted to be privy to his deliberations as he considered the implications of taking what then would have been the shocking<\/em> step of marrying his sister\u2019s slave. Rivers doesn\u2019t give us that.<\/p>\n You know how women sometimes turn guys down by saying they already have a boyfriend\u2014even if they don\u2019t? Many women feel that they must give some kind of excuse for saying no to a guy\u2019s advances\u2014that they can\u2019t just say they\u2019re not interested, because the guy would just keep going. In this case we\u2019re to believe (inexplicably) that Hadassah is<\/em> interested, but that doesn\u2019t make her statement that she can\u2019t have sex with Marcus because they\u2019re not married not misdirection.<\/p>\n See, when she said that she couldn\u2019t have sex with him because they weren\u2019t married, Marcus came away with the impression that she\u2019s marry him if he asked. And that\u2019s about to become a very big problem.<\/p>\n Hadassah had known that Marcus would come for her. She had known it from the moment Decimus had taken her hand and joined it with his son\u2019s, from the moment Marcus had looked at her. Every time he was near she trembled, torn between her love for him and her knowledge that they couldn\u2019t be together, not as things were know.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Hadassah has watched Julia go from abusive man to abusive man. She knows that Marcus frequently manhandles the women in his life, that he has a temper and that he tried to rape her. And yet her objection to marrying him has nothing to do with any of that. We\u2019re given to believe that she would marry him in a heartbeat<\/em> if she could. The issue, of course, is that he is not a Christian. That he is controlling, manipulative (remember the gaslighting?), and abusive does not matter.<\/p>\n Many girls growing up in Christian homes get the impression that the only qualification for a future husband is that he be a strong Christian, a man of God. And consider how Rivers is portraying this, to her readership of teenage girls\u2014the problem with Marcus is not that he\u2019s an abusive lout. The problem is that he\u2019s not a Christian. If he would only become a Christian she could marry him. That other stuff\u2014the sexual assaulting and the raping\u2014it doesn\u2019t matter or effect her decision at all.<\/p>\n He came to her and cupped her face, his hands shaking. Gently, he kissed her, and his touch made a sweet longing sweep through her body. \u201cYou\u2019re mine now,\u201d he said, his voice low with emotion. \u201cJulia has released you. As soon as the documents can be drawn up, you\u2019ll be free, and I can marry you.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Ok, Marcus, protip. Have the documents drawn up first. Be 100% sure that Hadassah is truly free (and that Julia won\u2019t change her mind). Then, after that, tell her that you would like to marry her and give her a choice<\/em>. Right now, she\u2019s still a slave. You\u2019re basically saying, I\u2019ll free you, but only if you marry me. I mean, what else is \u201cYou\u2019re mine now\u201d supposed to mean in this context? Asking her under these circumstances is coercive, it\u2019s manipulative, and it\u2019s BS.<\/p>\n Also. If your last intimate encounter with someone was to try to rape them,<\/em>\u00a0do not under any circumstances walk up to them and start kissing them without a by your leave. This is so beyond gross and terrifying.<\/p>\n She uttered a soft gasp, her heart crying out to God.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d Marcus said huskily. \u201cI love you so much.\u201d He dug his fingers into her hair and kissed her again.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This goes on for a while. No really\u2014we\u2019re told that he kisses her until he is out of breath, that she can feel \u201cthe strength of his arms around her,\u201d that he explores her face with his hands. Hadassah doesn\u2019t stop him because she is quickly \u201cdrowning in sensation.\u201d You know, all that stuff that Rivers copy and pasted from her former career as a regular romance novel writer.<\/p>\n \u201cI want you,\u201d he said again huskily, putting her away from him. \u201cSo much that I hurt. But i remember the last time I let myself lose control with you, and I won\u2019t let it happen again. Not like that.\u201d<\/p>\n At his words, Hadassah gave a small, broken gasp, the fog of his passion washed away in the clarity of what she faced. Trembling, she went back into his arms.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Interesting reaction, that. Ugh, all of this. Just ugh.<\/p>\n Marcus misunderstood. \u201cIf we made love now, I\u2019d never regret it,\u201d he told her, holding her away from him. \u201cBut you would. Purity until marriage. Isn\u2019t that one of your god\u2019s laws? Religion doesn\u2019t matter to me. It never has. But it matters to you, and because of that, I\u2019ll wait. All that matters to me is that I love you. I want no regrets between us.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Ok, I don\u2019t buy that. That whole \u201cregrets\u201d thing is Christian lingo. I\u2019m fairly certain that if Hadassah were to change her mind and be all \u201cMarcus, let\u2019s have sex right this second,\u201d he wouldn\u2019t object. Besides, many cultures have considered an engagement close enough to marriage to sanction sexual contact; Marcus might just assume that that is what was going on.<\/p>\n Of course, Hadassah hasn\u2019t<\/em> changed her mind.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, Marcus . . .\u201d Her eyes blurred with tears. \u201cI can\u2019t marry you.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n So there\u2019s that. Marcus gets all explainy\u2014yes you can, I cleared it with everyone, you totally can, even Julia said okay. Then he thinks maybe she\u2019s worried because of what his peers will think of it, so he assures her that he doesn\u2019t care.<\/p>\n Marcus knew he had been contemptuous of a man once who had freed his slave in order to marry her, but he hadn\u2019t known then how love could break down the barriers between master and slave. He hadn\u2019t known then how much a woman could matter to a man.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n First, I wonder how often this actually did happen. Second, I call bull on this idea of breaking down barriers. It was extremely common for men to have sexual relations with their slaves in Ancient Rome to the point of being almost expected. The issue was that they didn\u2019t view sex the way we do. Sex wasn\u2019t a mutual act between two equals. It was an act of domination and taking one one side. and submission and giving on the other. It wasn\u2019t the kind of thing that would generally lead to a relationship.<\/p>\n This is one issue I have with much historical fiction. You can\u2019t assume that people in the past looked at any particular thing or issue in the same way we do today. To do historical fiction well, you need to research not just historical events and historical clothing, homes, and accouterments, you also have to research historical attitudes<\/em>. Understanding how the Romans like Marcus would have viewed sex ought to be central to this plot line; instead, Rivers just reads a modern playboy attitude onto him.<\/p>\n From here, things only get worse. Hadassah tries to explain that she can\u2019t marry him because he does not \u201cbelieve in the Lord.\u201d Marcus says that\u2019 nothing to worry about, that \u201cit\u2019s a matter of tolerance and understanding\u201d and about \u201cloving one another and allowing there to be freedom within a relationship.\u201d His father didn\u2019t believe in any of the gods, he tells her, but his father never had a problem with his mother\u2019s devotion to the gods, and her careful worship of them.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd what of you, Marcus? Whom will you worship?\u201d<\/p>\n He lifted her face and kissed her. \u201cYou, beloved. Only you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo!\u201d she cried, struggling free. She turned from him, tears spilling down her cheeks.<\/p>\n Marcus put his hands on her shoulders and kissed the curve of her neck. He felt her racing pulse beneath his lips. \u201cWhat can I say to assure you that it will be all right? I love you enough to tolerate your religion.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n See and here,<\/em> understanding how Romans understood religion ought to matter. It\u2019s true that the Romans had religious tolerance, but this reads as how Rivers thinks<\/em> a person who believes in religious tolerance would speak than how they would actually do so. How would a Roman talk about this, at the time? Did Rivers look up any Roman sources, and read how the Romans talked about different religions, or religious difference?<\/p>\n Also, just in general, this dialog sounds off. \u201cI love you enough to tolerate your religion,\u201d said no one ever<\/em>. \u201cI don\u2019t care what you believe,\u201d perhaps. \u201cYou can believe what you want, it doesn\u2019t bother me,\u201d maybe. \u201cReligion isn\u2019t important to me but I now it\u2019s meaningful to you, and that\u2019s fine with me,\u201d perhaps. \u201cI love you enough to tolerate your religion,\u201d no<\/em>.<\/p>\n And then there\u2019s the whole grabbing and struggling thing<\/em>. Really?!<\/p>\n The conversation continues, but Marcus doesn\u2019t get any better at the power of persuasion. In fact, he rather starts to lose it altogether. Hadassah draws up the oxen analogy, pointing out that if two oxen are yoked together, the strongest ends up determining which direction they go. Marcus doesn\u2019t see the problem.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd isn\u2019t that as it should be? The husband leads and the wife follows.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou would pull me away from the Lord,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The Lord,<\/em> he thought, anger rising up against her unseen god. The Lord. The Lord.<\/em> \u201cI just said you could worship whatever god you chose.\u201d<\/p>\n She saw his anger, and it only confirmed her fear.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Is Hadassah finally recognizing his anger problem?! This is exciting!<\/p>\n \u201cAt first, you\u2019d allow it. And then it would change. You wouldn\u2019t even know when or how. Nor would I. I t would just happen in small ways that seem unimportant and, little by little, day by day, you\u2019d pull at me until I was walking in step with you and not following the Lord.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Oh. Oh ok. That<\/em> fear. Her fear of him leading her away from God, not<\/em> her fear of his explosive and often violent anger. That\u2019s cool, I guess.<\/p>\n \u201cWould that be so wrong? Shouldn\u2019t a wife put her husband above all else?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Marcus. Marcus<\/em>. You fail at persuasive speaking.<\/p>\n At this point the conversation changes completely. Now it\u2019s all about Marcus trying to convince Hadassah that her god has done nothing for her, that her god left her in slavery and alone, and that what he has to offer her\u2014\u201cfreedom, my love, my children, my passion<\/em>\u201c\u2014is far superior to anything her god could ever offer her. Hadassah refuses to listen.<\/p>\n Marcus let her go.<\/p>\n Hadassah saw the look on his face: hope gone, pride shattered, defensive rage rising. She wanted to reach out to him. \u201cOh, Marcus,\u201d she whispered brokenly, hurting and afraid for him. \u2026<\/p>\n \u201cit\u2019s a pity, Hadassah,\u201d he said sardonically, fighting the emotions choking him: love for her, hate for her god. \u201cYou\u2019ll never know what you threw away, will you?\u201d He turned from her and strode out of the room.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And that\u2019s it. The end. He walks out of the house without saying a word. He goes home to his mother, in a black rage. \u201cI forsook my pride and she threw it back in my face,\u201d he tells Phoebe angrily. \u201cThere\u2019s no reasoning with a faith like hers.\u201d When Phoebe tries to reach out to him, Marcus jerks his hand away. \u201cOne god! One god above all else! So be it. Her god can have her.\u201d And with that, he leaves Hadassah a slave in Julia\u2019s household.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve had some interesting conversations about love with a number of individuals in recent months. I\u2019ve sometimes argued that if one claims to love a person but cares only about themselves and not about the other person\u2019s needs, they don\u2019t actually love them. By that line of reasoning, Marcus doesn\u2019t love Hadassah. If he loved her, he would at least see her freed before cutting off contact with her\u2014he would be upset and hurt, but he would give her something to get her started and wish her well and happy.<\/p>\n One friend in particular has argued an opposing view. She argued, as I understand it, that we need to stop assuming that love is always good or kind. Love, she said, can be selfish and self-serving and all about oneself. Love, then, is simply a feeling of affection for a person, an attraction to them. A person can love someone and still do horrible things to them. In our society we tend to view love as a universally positive, good thing. My friend argued that we need to complicate that.<\/p>\n