In our harkness today it was mentioned how Frederick makes decisions with his mind, and Catherine, with her heart. While I agree that Catherine acts based on her heart, I think that Frederick does as well. Frederick first begins talking to Catherine because he finds her attractive, then he kisses her and from then on they are sexually involved. If Frederick was thinking with his mind he wouldn't get Catherine pregnant in the middle of the war knowing he has to go back to the front and leave her alone to have the baby, especially in the early 1900s child birth was extremely dangerous and anything could go wrong. He could come back from the front (assuming he survives until the end of the war) and find her and his child dead. Being romantically involved with Catherine only benefits Frederick physically and romantically.
I've just spent an absolutely pathetic amount of time trying to figure out how to post to no avail. So for now, I guess I'll just comment then!
ReplyDeleteSam makes a very interesting point here, and I must say I agree. While Frederic often generally seems like a bit of an idiot, I think he really may not be all that 'calculating' as he is portrayed. (I always have inexplicable sympathy for authors' sub-par characters) Unless he's some kind of weird sadist (which I'm presuming he probably isn't...) he seems to have drawn the 'game' out for very long. He could have easily gotten what he wanted out of Catherine and left her long ago. And yet, he doesn't, which is so radically different from his prior experiences with sex. He just happens to enjoy sex as much as the next person, and while his mind may be occupied with it quite frequently, he's only human. Although he and Catherine's relationship is a bit co-dependent and somewhat unhealthy, I honestly believe that there's mutual love in there somewhere.