Having read your response, I suppose I should clarify that I completely agree that Elizabeth was the victim of her stepfather's sexual abuses and it definitely had an impact on her and probably contributed toward her aversion toward physical intimacy.
However, what I disagree with is Weir's assertion that any such metaphor would have been that clearly delineated in Elizabeth's mind or that she would have come to the conclusion that sex and marriage lead to death. I think her aversion was not so much based in fear for her life as in a repulsion for the physical act and the desire not to vest too much power in any one man by giving herself to him.
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Date: 2009-12-24 02:44 am (UTC)However, what I disagree with is Weir's assertion that any such metaphor would have been that clearly delineated in Elizabeth's mind or that she would have come to the conclusion that sex and marriage lead to death. I think her aversion was not so much based in fear for her life as in a repulsion for the physical act and the desire not to vest too much power in any one man by giving herself to him.