In the article we used for panel presentations, the author asks if Rezia’s name was significant, as it was “resonant with past murders.” As I was unsure of what the author was referring to, I did a bit of research on famous Lucrezias. The only Lucrezia that I found connected with murder was Lucrezia Borgia, an Italian Renaissance noblewoman. She was famous as a sister of Cesare Borgia (remember him from Mr. Butler's class?) and for possibly being behind her first husband's death. In popular portrayals, she is a femme fatale.
I saw very few similarities between our Rezia Warren Smith and Lucrezia Borgia. For one, they are both Italian. However, Rezia is really not that beautiful - she is described as having a "sallow pointed face" and "large eyes," and therefore cannot be described as a femme fatale. Furthermore, she is completely dedicated to Septimus, unlike Borgia, who reportedly had several affairs. But it is true that our Rezia and Lucrezia Borgia both may have had a hand in the death of their husbands.
I am not saying that Holmes was not the trigger of Septimus' suicide or denying that shell-shock was the base cause, but I think Rezia may have contributed to the onset of Septimus' depression and other shell-shock symptoms. Septimus married Rezia as Septimus wanted to be able to feel again, but he was still unable to feel anything although Rezia seemingly loves him. This is especially significant when Rezia cries when Septimus tells her that he does not want children. It is at this moment that Septimus really notices that he still cannot feel anything although his wife is sobbing, which pushes him further down the pit. In short, shell-shock is the illness that robs Septimus of his emotions, Rezia is the self-prescribed cure that ultimately fails to work and in fact hastens the illness, and Holmes is the immediate cause of death.
Thoughts?
I found this blog post very intriguing. Septimus tries to fix his problems by marrying Lucrezia, but it doesn't work, which made Septimus feel worse. So, I agree that Rezia might have contributed to Septimus's mental state. Also since you mentioned that Lucrezia's name might be significant, I wonder if Lucrezia's nickname Rezia is also significant in some way or if it's just a nickname.
ReplyDeleteIf we look at the story from Lucrezia's point of view, Septimus might be viewed as an "homme fatale": a foreign stranger in her country who lures her into a marriage (when in fact he doesn't love her, but only hopes to in order to "feel" again) and away from her home (where she seems pretty content with her sisters making hats) and to a strange, cold land where she remains isolated socially and has no friends except for her rather difficult husband. Hers is the life that is lured off course by a love affair--and while we know that Septimus's intentions are not harmful in any way, it does have the effect of profoundly displacing and isolating her. I think it's hard to make the case for her as a "temptress" in a parallel vein.
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