Does Rowan get paid?

[tobimkcb.livejournal.com]

I've often wondered whether or what Rowan gets paid for her toil on the farm. When she first takes over, Mr Tranter is still Farm Manager and she doesn't really have a defined role. Captain Marlow is still the boss (when Karen wants Mrs Tranter to move out of the farmhouse in RAH, Rowan reminds her that it is only their father who can give the Tranters notice) so I hope he's set up some kind of salary for her, though if the impecunious Pam is reduced to selling the Last Ditch (in Peter's Room) to pay for Chocbar and just over a term later they can't afford the school fees for all 4 girls at Kingscote, I wonder what their finances are like. Maybe Rowan just gets pocket money, which is another reason her social life is so poor.

Comments

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

Um - but social life surely didn't depend on cash at that time.
(Er - I know, what time?)
My (possibly mistaken) recollection is that no-one who was single under about 30 expected social life to cost anything until about 1960 - because you either went to theirs or invited them to yours - in either case paretns footed the bill
More likely that she was too busy/tired for socila life?

[penguineggs.livejournal.com]

Social life implies reasonable clothes and make-up, either of which don't come free (and I personally assume she's being shamefully exploited by her family and cherish dreams of her eloping to a life of urban bliss with a passing millionaire).

[oursin.livejournal.com]

The contents of Mother's old dress-trunk, restyled by Doris, seems to be going on and on providing the younger generation with party frocks.

Perhaps Rowan ought be diversifying into traditionally-made cosmetics from local ingredients...

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

Depends what you mean by reasonable
Was quite reasonable in 1950s - 1970s to rely on inherited clothes - and make-up was very inexpensive then

[ethelmay.livejournal.com]

She goes to the pub, no?

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

Thank you - yes, she comes home after drinking whiskywith the colleague, doesn't she? For some reason, I've always pictured that as in his home rather than at the pub, but am sure that you are right.

[rekraft.livejournal.com]

Well Giles does ask Rowan to introduce him to the regulars at the pub...

[(Anonymous)]

Intriguing, isn't it? I guess as Rowan's bed and board are all included, they don't have to pay her much to begin with, especially as she is in a trainee role. But there do seem to be some real problems storing up for the future - especially when they let Karen's lot take the farm manager's house. Even if the Dodds are paying rent it's going to be harder to find accomodation for Rowan when/if she wants to be independent.

No wonder she seems to be getting cold feet (Peter's Room) and is dreaming up ways to make Trennels more profitable (Ready Made Family/RAH).

And what happens if Giles comes home/inherits?

[antfan.livejournal.com]

that was me forgetting to log in.

I suppose, looking from a different perspective, when the remaining four girls leave Kingscote that will free up a lot of money, and as the twins are fourteen there are only another four years to go. (And however the peculiar Marlow time-line works I think we can take it they are all pre university fees/student loans!)

And if Rowan wants the Tranter house maybe they will chuck the Dodds out - although Karen might put up a good fight.

Also, seventeen year olds rarely do have much money do they? Even if they should do - working a full-time job. Rowan's position is really unusual.

[jackmerlin.livejournal.com]

I imagine them converting Peter's room to a self-contained flat at some point.
I don't think farm workers were paid that much then (or now) and the owner's son/daughter working on the farm quite often got paid even less than regular employees, however I'd have thought Rowan must have been getting paid some sort of salary.

[jackmerlin.livejournal.com]

Apart from being tired from a hard day's farming and having to get up at crack of dawn all the time, I should imagine her lack of social life was down to being in a slightly odd position socially. Running the farm would put her in a different position from the other people her age who would be coming home from school, university, agricultural college, whatever, for holidays only. And being private school educated, part of the landowning family would set her apart from others of her age who were already working. Plus it is very hard to get to know people in the country, I worked for years in the country and social life really came down to whoever you were working with. Rowan would have met people out hunting and that would have been it really.

[tobimkcb.livejournal.com]

Good point re her slightly odd social position. I've always liked Rowan but I also find it hard to imagine the type of person she would be friendly/socialise with. She doesn't seem to have a particular friendship group at Kingscote (Ann doesn't seem to have any friends either for that matter, although she seems to be liked and respected in Guides). Rowan must have been friendly enough with the aloof Jan Scott to know something about Jan's family circumstances, lack of mother etc, but Rowan always seems a bit unbothered with relationships herself - affable enough and takes people as they come but not really engaging wih them and with that slightly cynical strain running underneath.

[antfan.livejournal.com]

Of course Rowan hasn't actually been at home that long - just over a year - and quite a lot has been going on - so it might take her a while to build up a social life, especially as they are all new to Trennels.

But at least I think she will have a clear route through hunting, horses and the agricultural set. What about Karen? Who is she going to mix with? The Westbridge mums?

As a nineteen year old step mum and former classics student she is surely going to be a real fish out of water...

[ankaret.livejournal.com]

That's a really interesting point, and one I'd never thought of! I wonder what Rowan does when she needs a new lipstick to fool the police with or whatever - I can see her being too principled to take it out of the farm petty cash.

Does Rowan get paid?

[tobimkcb.livejournal.com]

And who pays for the fuel for the Land Rover?

Rowan probably rides if she's out with the horsey/hunting set and no doubt walks to the pub, but to go any further afield than Westbridge they seem to go by train or Pam's car (does anyone know what make that is? In EoT Nicola sits on the running board and fingers the horse ornament while she's waiting for Rowan to finish her conflab with Miss Craven about the netball team huha).

I would *love* to see a bit of Karen getting to know the Westbridge mums... Maybe she bonded with them over sewing costumes for the Christmas Play in RAH.

[geebengrrl.livejournal.com]

At the time of the books, it would have been quite likely that a local landowning family like the Marlows would have accounts with local traders, which would be settled up by cheque once a month or once a quarter. So should Rowan need fuel for the Land Rover or a new lipstick, it would just go on the Trennels account, and it would be Mrs Marlow writing cheques for these when the accounts fell due.

So Rowan would have needed very little cash at all - she may even have had her drinks at the pub on tick.

Rowan

[charverz.livejournal.com]

It might well be that Captain Marlow, conscious that Rowan saved him from having to give up his career, provides her with an allowance out of his pay.

Rowan might get to the pub once a week (possibly less).