"How do you find yourself, my love?" said Zenobia, lifting a corner of the gauze, and peeping beneath it with a mischievous smile.
Zenobia fed off of the fear that rippled through Priscilla. With the inclusion of the smirk, she was trying to play it off. However, when she saw that Priscilla was taking it harder than expected, there was a break in her powerful tone and a bit of weakness surrounding Priscilla shone through.
She was joyous now, and had a rose-bloom in her cheeks, and was one of the prettiest creatures, and seemed one of the happiest, that the world could show. But the lady stole noiselessly behind her and threw the veil over her head. As the slight, ethereal texture sank inevitably down over her figure, the poor girl strove to raise it, and met her dear friend's eyes with one glance of mortal terror, and deep, deep reproach. It could not change her purpose.
Another foreshadowing, but with Zenobia coming out on top instead. The first part of this reminds me of Priscilla first making an appearance and being shy. Then, she started to blossom into someone that everyone loved. Everyone lit up when she came around. There was no denying that she had contributed to the happiness in Blithedale. However, Zenobia sort of threw this in her face when she told this story with the veil being thrown over the girl's head. It's also interesting that she then places the cloth on Priscilla's head, as if to replicate the story.
"There is a certain maiden," replied the magician, "who has come out of the realm of mystery, and made herself your most intimate companion. Now, the fates have so ordained it, that, whether by her own will or no, this stranger is your deadliest enemy. In love, in worldly fortune, in all your pursuit of happiness, she is doomed to fling a blight over your prospects. There is but one possibility of thwarting her disastrous influence."
Perhaps a foreshadowing into the events that would follow concerning the love triangle between them. Priscilla would ultimately defeat Zenobia.
Among them was a lady to whom, more than to all the rest, this pale, mysterious girl attached herself.
Is this a reference about meek and shy Priscilla attaching herself to Zenobia?
"Then," said the Mystery, "there is no way save to lift my veil."
She tries to leave it at this, but being a man trying to prove himself, he pushes further. So, she gives him his options.
"Thou art here!" said a soft, low voice. "Come forth, Theodore!" Thus summoned by his name, Theodore, as a man of courage, had no choice. He emerged from his concealment, and presented himself before the Veiled Lady, with the wine-flush, it may be, quite gone out of his cheeks.
This brings up a question about how exactly she knew his name. Was it because she was disguised in daily life as they assumed? Or was she really an apparition?
Young men, I am told, boggle at nothing over their wine; so, after a little more talk, a wager of considerable amount was actually laid, the money staked, and Theodore left to choose his own method of settling the dispute.
They turned this into sort of a game. There are tons of movies out there that a man bets his friends that he can get a girl to fall for him before a certain deadline. It's one of those cliché movie storylines. Obviously, this stems a bit far from that, there is still this motive to sort of prove to his buddies that he is worthy of finding out her identity.
snaky locks, like Medusa's, and one great red eye in the centre of the forehead.
Their descriptions are very vivid and wild. They assume that she is hiding hideous features behind her veil, which would explain the need to cover it in the first place.
A party of young gentlemen, you are to understand, were enjoying themselves, one afternoon,
Was this at a theatre? Or a bar room? I picture it both ways, though it would make more sense in a theatre? Right?
Veiled Lady
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/534872893215584415/
This is a marble statue that was called "The Veiled Lady"
This, to be sure, was a great pity; but, nevertheless, we thought it a very bright idea of Zenobia's to bring her legend to so effective a conclusion.
An analysis written by Margaret Jay Jessee dives into the different types of 'veils' that each character possesses. "As several critics note, the main characters in The Blithedale Romance all wear some form of a disguise to conceal something more actual underneath. (1) Priscilla's veil literally hides her identity even while she is made a spectacle on stage. As Samuel Chase Coale argues, "Blithedale becomes a mere veil or disguise for Hollingsworth's schemes" (113). Old Moodies eye patch represents his disguise, covering his past, and Westervelt's false teeth "affect" Coverdale "very oddly," making him feel as if Westervelt's "beauty ... might be removable like a mask" (3:95). Coverdale's name connotes a disguise, and he spends much of the novel hiding from others so that he can observe them without being observed himself." This draws the conclusion that Hawthorne carefully depicted all of these characters to be one way, when in reality, they were hiding something. This seemingly perfect town was riddled with secrets. The fact that Zenobia killed herself when she lost her internal battle for Hollingsworth's love. She caves into defeat and breaks her feministic "I am powerful by myself" ideology and kills herself. She hid behind her femininity and let it get the best of her in the end.
You have heard, my dear friends, of the Veiled Lady, who grew suddenly so very famous, a few months ago
This line indicates that they have heard this story before. Perhaps it is a common story that people know of, and they present the story as a play often. Or, is she using this for storytelling purposes?
"I am getting weary of this," said she, after a moment's thought. "Our own features, and our own figures and airs, show a little too intrusively through all the characters we assume. We have so much familiarity with one another's realities, that we cannot remove ourselves, at pleasure, into an imaginary sphere. Let us have no more pictures to-night; but, to make you what poor amends I can, how would you like to have me trump up a wild, spectral legend, on the spur of the moment?"
Saying that they share too much with each other and that they should try to escape this reality of the familiarity suggests that she is trying to break out of the normal sway of things. Zenobia talks about this 'imaginary sphere' and the sphere contains a woman who holds more power than a male, which is unheard of. She once again is putting emphasis on feminism and females being in a more powerful role.
She stood with a meditative air, holding a large piece of gauze, or some such ethereal stuff, as if considering what picture should next occupy the frame; while at her feet lay a heap of many-colored garments, which her quick fancy and magic skill could so easily convert into gorgeous draperies for heroes and princesses.
In this town, little re-enactments and plays were performed for their own entertainment, which made these objects readily available for storytelling.
The illustrious Society of Blithedale
Blithedale is filled with idealists who share a consensus that they are all cohabitants of this wonderfully compatible neighborhood. They all share their harvested and farmed goods communally. There is a façade that cloaks the town, though. Not everyone is honest with each other. "According to Nina Baym in “A Radical Reading,” Zenobia “is a depiction of the eternal feminine as earthy, maternal, domestic, natural, sensual, brilliant, loving, and demanding, and is described mainly in images of softness, radiance, warmth, and health, none of which are even slightly ambivalent or ambiguous in their emotional import." Although an outspoke feminist, Zenobia can only be a “female pamphleteer…[because] it is the best she can do in a society that offers woman no worthy roles at all." Zenobia has this aura around her that suggests she is part of this greater good, but she hides a lot behind her own 'veil.' She demands to be heard and respected, and when Priscilla eventually fights against her, Zenobia loses her sense of who she is. In this section of the story, her push towards Priscilla gives clues about a deeper meaning.
Grasping at the veil, he flung it upward, and caught a glimpse of a pale, lovely face beneath; just one momentary glimpse, and then the apparition vanished, and the silvery veil fluttered slowly down and lay upon the floor. Theodore was alone. Our legend leaves him there. His retribution was, to pine forever and ever for another sight of that dim, mournful face,—which might have been his life-long household fireside joy,—to desire, and waste life in a feverish quest, and never meet it more.
There is a Hispanic story which is very similar to this one. A man, named Carlos, meets a woman walking by a cemetery. He instantly has an infatuation, and wants to go on a date with her. She tells him to meet her at the same time the following night and she will think about it. Carlos returns the next evening. They spend a lot of time together that evening, and she tells Carlos she will send him a letter with a new place to meet the following night. The next day, Carlos finds the letter in his mailbox (he never gave her his address but he doesn't think of this) and shows his cousin the letter. The cousin is in shock, because the signature reads, Rosa Gonzale, who is a woman who died in a car accident the year prior. Carlos ignores his cousin's warnings, and goes to meet Rosa.
"That night as Carlos hurried to the cemetery Diego followed, certain that his cousin was in over his head. Carlos bounded over to Rosa. “At last, we go out!” he cried to her. “But first, my love, show me your face!”
At his words, Rosa pulled aside the veil. Back at the gate, Diego gave a gasp of shock, for she had the desiccated face of a skeleton. He was frozen to the spot by the power of the evil specter, unable to warn Carlos. Looking down, Carlos only saw the glamour the ghost was projecting. As the skeleton’s withered arms trapped him, the veil on his eyes was lifted and he realized in one heart-stopping moment the abomination he was kissing. The ground opened up, and with a laugh of triumph, the specter pulled him down and down into her tomb. The earth closed over Carlos and Rosa.
Diego, freed from the ghost’s spell, ran into the cemetery, shouting his cousin’s name in terror. But it was too late. Carlos was dead—locked for all time in Rosa’s arms."
Rosa took off her veil and instantly Carlos was under her spell and taken into the grave with her. While Zenobia's story does not quite follow the exactly storyline, it is very similar. The Veiled Lady cursed Theodore with the inability to be happy for the remainder of his life. He could have had a beautiful bride, but did not trust her. Carlos was eager to meet his bride, but it resulted in his death.
Still, thou mayest lift the veil! But, from that instant, Theodore, I am doomed to be thy evil fate; nor wilt thou ever taste another breath of happiness!"
Theodore is presented with two options here: to kiss the woman through her veil, and be blessed with fulfilment, or to take off the veil and be unhappy forever.
And just look at the thing:
The men are discussing the idea that a woman who sits amongst them is the 'Veiled Lady,' since she always slips away before the performances. They joke around about the possibilities of it being this woman and how even her own brother has to have some sort of idea about her.
And, Priscilla, stand you before me, where I may look at you, and get my inspiration out of your eyes.
Zenobia tells the story with Priscilla seated directly in front of her. She says that she is pulling inspiration from the young girl's eyes. The story seems to be directly intended for Priscilla herself, though the intention is not entirely clear at this point. Though, it is interesting that Priscilla is very clearly the highlight in this story, as there is special attention placed on her and the experiences (with the gauze later on) as well.
Tableaux vivants
French for "living picture"
equanimity
mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation
Hearken
listen
felicity
intense happiness
presentiment
an intuitive feeling about the future, especially one of foreboding
sibylline
relating to or characteristic of a sibyl; prophetic and mysterious
contrived
deliberately created rather than arising naturally or spontaneously
veracious
speaking or representing the truth
visage
a person's face, with reference to the form or proportions of the features
countenance
face
timorous
showing or suffering from nervousness, fear, or a lack of confidence
acclamation.
loud and enthusiastic approval, typically to welcome or honor someone or something
XIII. ZENOBIA'S LEGEND
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