True, but being married to Mark should not have been all that bad for her. He truly loved her. It was nothing, for example, like Morwenna's marriage to Ossie.
I'm afraid that it doesn't really matter whether Mark loved Keren or not. If she was unhappy with him as a husband, then they were not suited for one another. Some women were able to live with the disappointment. Some were not. Keren could not live with her disappointment with Mark. She was wrong to cheat on him. But her infidelity did not justify the manner in which he killed her. Nor did this justify Ross helping him to evade justice.
-- Edited by LJones41 on Monday 5th of June 2017 08:39:41 PM
Yes.....and at least he was fairly easy on the eye! (if that means anything) ......unlike Ossie!
The way Ossie was portrayed in the TV series, though, it seems like he was someone who could have been handsome, if he only lost some weight. But he was a glutton, and was in denial about the fact that he had a weight problem, which was why the doctor told him to abstain from intercourse with Morwenna during and immediately after her pregnancy. Ossie was too arrogant to listen to the doctor's advice if it meant making any changes in his lifestyle.
I also saw the foreshaddowing that their marriage was not going to work out. They were not right for each other, no matter how much Mark may have idealised her.
I guess I feel sorry for her because she was in one sense a victim of the age she was living in - how many women in the 18th century ended up in bad marriages because they simply had to find a way of surviving? Her marrying Mark was a means of having a roof over her head, meagre as it was, and getting away from her acting life. She was never going to be satisfied though.
True, but being married to Mark should not have been all that bad for her. He truly loved her. It was nothing, for example, like Morwenna's marriage to Ossie.
I also saw the foreshaddowing that their marriage was not going to work out. They were not right for each other, no matter how much Mark may have idealised her.
I guess I feel sorry for her because she was in one sense a victim of the age she was living in - how many women in the 18th century ended up in bad marriages because they simply had to find a way of surviving? Her marrying Mark was a means of having a roof over her head, meagre as it was, and getting away from her acting life. She was never going to be satisfied though.
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Demelza
A passionate child rolling in the dust with her ugly dog; a girl driving oxen; a woman....Did anything else matter?
Not sure why you feel sorry for Keren. I reckon she was a scheming little minx. Bronny, when you have read your first edition 'Demelza', you might agree. There is much more about her and Mark in this book and it is not at all pretty.
Oh thanks Jane I shall look forward to it very much!
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Demelza
A passionate child rolling in the dust with her ugly dog; a girl driving oxen; a woman....Did anything else matter?
Not sure why you feel sorry for Keren. I reckon she was a scheming little minx. Bronny, when you have read your first edition 'Demelza', you might agree. There is much more about her and Mark in this book and it is not at all pretty. Mark was so much overawed by her fragility and the fact that she was very different from anything he had known before, you could see their marriage was going to be a disaster. She was much the quicker brained, able to think ahead whereas poor old Mark was steady, reliable and unable to work out that she really was not for him.
I was always struck by Ross' assessment of Mark when he went to the Scillies to meet him and found a shell of a man, haunted by his actions. Ross suddenly wondered if he was as untouched by time as he had supposed.
I also saw the foreshaddowing that their marriage was not going to work out. They were not right for each other, no matter how much Mark may have idealised her. Dwight would not have been any better for her, because he could not give her the life of excitement she wanted or further her acting career. It wasn't surprising that Mark was forever haunted by the event, he of course felt remorse for killing her, and was also unable to have a relationship with a woman ever again.
Not sure why you feel sorry for Keren. I reckon she was a scheming little minx. Bronny, when you have read your first edition 'Demelza', you might agree. There is much more about her and Mark in this book and it is not at all pretty. Mark was so much overawed by her fragility and the fact that she was very different from anything he had known before, you could see their marriage was going to be a disaster. She was much the quicker brained, able to think ahead whereas poor old Mark was steady, reliable and unable to work out that she really was not for him.
I was always struck by Ross' assessment of Mark when he went to the Scillies to meet him and found a shell of a man, haunted by his actions. Ross suddenly wondered if he was as untouched by time as he had supposed.
By the way, I always liked her full name 'Kerenhappech' (sp?) - very pretty.
Keren-happuch
Keren-happuch, sometimes spelled Kerenhappuch[14] ("horn of the face-paint" or "cosmetic-box"), is the name of Job's third daughter (Job42:14), who was born after prosperity had returned to him.[15]
I feel sorry for her too....if only she'd hooked up with Dwight earlier instead of Mark.....but would that have happened? Socially it probably wouldn't have been appropriate for Dwight....but I still reckon she would have become bored being a doctor's wife. Poor Keren was never going to be satisfied.
I believe that's true. She would have become bored as a doctor's wife and would still have looked for greener pastures elsewhere
I feel sorry for her too....if only she'd hooked up with Dwight earlier instead of Mark.....but would that have happened? Socially it probably wouldn't have been appropriate for Dwight....but I still reckon she would have become bored being a doctor's wife. Poor Keren was never going to be satisfied.
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Demelza
A passionate child rolling in the dust with her ugly dog; a girl driving oxen; a woman....Did anything else matter?
I have a wee bit of sympathy for Keren; yeah I know, she was a self centred manipulative cow & caused so much unhappiness, but she was trying to survive in a harsh world & using her assets to 'get ahead'. Her relationship with her former boss is evidence of this.
She was jealous of Demelza, yes, and bitter. I suspect I would be a bit bitter too in her shoes... Good looking, young, talented, & clever, but not clever enough -she misjudged her control over men and this was her undoing. Women at court behaved this way, unscrupulously; Keren was not in their league, and this was a Cornish mining village, so her fantasies couldn't be realised. She died unmourned, and I feel a wee bit of pity for her.
I guess I feel a wee bit of pity for her too. But I just don't like it when people manipulate other people to get what they want. I see what you mean about the double standard with regard to class status though, and her disapointment that her fantasies couldn't be realized.
I have a wee bit of sympathy for Keren; yeah I know, she was a self centred manipulative cow & caused so much unhappiness, but she was trying to survive in a harsh world & using her assets to 'get ahead'. Her relationship with her former boss is evidence of this.
She was jealous of Demelza, yes, and bitter. I suspect I would be a bit bitter too in her shoes... Good looking, young, talented, & clever, but not clever enough -she misjudged her control over men and this was her undoing. Women at court behaved this way, unscrupulously; Keren was not in their league, and this was a Cornish mining village, so her fantasies couldn't be realised. She died unmourned, and I feel a wee bit of pity for her.
I agree, it is easy to have a lot of sympathy for Mark. He put Keren on a pedastal when he first met her without getting to know the kind of person she really was.
Yes and you can see why - she would have appeared so interesting and 'exotic' to him - an actress wow! Compared to all the local girls....and similarly she would have missed all that attention after she married him. So you can kind of see her point of view too. Bad decision on both their parts.....and Dwight's too. He was luckily to have got out of that relatively easily and to have retained the trust of the locals.
True, I guess she would have missed her acting career and all of the attention after she married Mark. But then, what did she expect? Dwight seemed lonely for female companionship at that time, although I'm not exactly sure why, I would have thought he would have had a lot of pretty women to choose from. Thank God he finally met Caroline. As for Mark, he had to flee the country, and I think later died without ever having re-married, very sad.
I agree, it is easy to have a lot of sympathy for Mark. He put Keren on a pedastal when he first met her without getting to know the kind of person she really was.
Yes and you can see why - she would have appeared so interesting and 'exotic' to him - an actress wow! Compared to all the local girls....and similarly she would have missed all that attention after she married him. So you can kind of see her point of view too. Bad decision on both their parts.....and Dwight's too. He was luckily to have got out of that relatively easily and to have retained the trust of the locals.
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Demelza
A passionate child rolling in the dust with her ugly dog; a girl driving oxen; a woman....Did anything else matter?
I think the main difference between Demelza and Keren was Demelza never expected more than she was given and so she appreciated the different lifestyle she so unexpectedly was offered even as a servant to Ross whereas keren thought the world owed her big time!
Its strange that in the case of Keren Daniel , i believe most readers and viewers hold most sympathy for Mark, he never really knew what hit him! and his life was ruined thereafter.
I agree, it is easy to have a lot of sympathy for Mark. He put Keren on a pedastal when he first met her without getting to know the kind of person she really was.
I think the main difference between Demelza and Keren was Demelza never expected more than she was given and so she appreciated the different lifestyle she so unexpectedly was offered even as a servant to Ross whereas keren thought the world owed her big time!
Its strange that in the case of Keren Daniel , i believe most readers and viewers hold most sympathy for Mark, he never really knew what hit him! and his life was ruined thereafter.
She was not a sympathetic character yet had a similar background to demelza so why she was quite so ambitious and soulless, was never really explained. She was unable to relate to anyone really, and would probably have met a sticky end at some point as she seemed unable to understand other peoples emotions or characters.
I believe you are right. She thought the whole world revolved around her and her desires.
She was not a sympathetic character yet had a similar background to demelza so why she was quite so ambitious and soulless, was never really explained. She was unable to relate to anyone really, and would probably have met a sticky end at some point as she seemed unable to understand other peoples emotions or characters.
Oh, Keren! How I longed to give her a slap! I was willing Mark not to marry her all along (see how I treat these wonderful characters like real people??)
I know, I definiitely would have advised him not to marry her!
Oh, Keren! How I longed to give her a slap! I was willing Mark not to marry her all along (see how I treat these wonderful characters like real people??)
I did not like this character. She was a manipulator who used both her husband Mark and Dr. Enys. It was tragic the way she died, but it was no wonder that few people had much sympathy for her.