Books 1 & 2:
Bahahahaha! Didn't you think it was funny when the old woman on Lujon's ranch determines that Father Vaillant is so ugly that "he must be very holy" (Book 2, Chapter 1)?Cather does seem to make a connection between appearance and spirituality. Despite the old woman's contention that holiness is next to ugliness, Cather draws a more traditional line between goodness/beauty and evil/ugliness. A case for both can be found in Book 2, Chapter 2 with Buck Scales and his wife, Magdalena. The murderer Scales is described as an "ugly, evil-looking fellow... ill-formed." On the other hand, after Magdalena devotes her life to service in the church "she became beautiful... she seemed to bloom again in the household of God."
One of my favorite parts of the book so far is the idea put forth by Bishop Latour that divine love corrects human vision. Bishop Latour tells Father Vaillant, "I do not see you as you really are, Joseph; I see you through my affection for you" (Book 1, Chapter 4). So later, when the Bishop sees Magdalena again and says that she "became beautiful", I doubt that she had changed all that much physically. I believe the Bishop just saw her more this time with divine love.
And isn't that just totally awesome?
I thought it was hilarious that Scales "seemed not more than half human." Ouch! Cather really knows how to pack a punch with her descriptions.
ReplyDeleteMaybe this is too obvious to even point out, but the inside can be reflected on the outside. To truly receive God's image in your countenance has to have a powerful impact on the way you look. I think Magdalena in particular had this going for her in the end.
And I agree that your feelings about someone can completely alter the way you see that person. At least this explains the delusional way my husband looks at me.