I agree that the decision about where Edward lives as an 11-year-old should be about what's best for Edward, and not about rewarding/punishing either of his parents - both of whom have behaved appallingly at different times, but neither of whom are actually monsters. There is no 'right side' here to pick, unless it's Edward's side.
I think you're being kinder about the Marlows' motives than I was in my earlier post. I'd love to think that they only have Edward's wellbeing as a motive. Last time I read the book, I felt that they got carried away with the romance of 'Doing the Right Thing', combined with a conviction that of course they know the Right Thing when they see it, plus a side order of very one-sided judgment, all applied to an extremely messy situation full of real people. I'll try to be more generous and open-minded this time...
Does it matter what their underlying motives were, if the outcome is a good one for Edward? I think that's one of the interesting questions of the book.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2015-03-13 07:40 pm (UTC)I think you're being kinder about the Marlows' motives than I was in my earlier post. I'd love to think that they only have Edward's wellbeing as a motive. Last time I read the book, I felt that they got carried away with the romance of 'Doing the Right Thing', combined with a conviction that of course they know the Right Thing when they see it, plus a side order of very one-sided judgment, all applied to an extremely messy situation full of real people. I'll try to be more generous and open-minded this time...
Does it matter what their underlying motives were, if the outcome is a good one for Edward? I think that's one of the interesting questions of the book.
jss