Malva’s Notion of Love and her Promiscuity – Part 2

This is my second post in regards to Malva Christie. Here is my first post about her: Malva’s Wickedness and Her Notion of Love – Part 1. I decided to modify the name of this post since it will be concentrated mainly on what is the notion that Malva has not only of love but also of sex. My aim is to offer a possible explanation for her promiscuous behaviour.

Malva’s conception of love is partly based on the conservative and strict manner in which Tom raised her. Claire muses about what Christie’s notion of marriage is after he asked her whether she is aware of Jamie’s scarred back while fixing one of his hands.

I opened my mouth to reply tartly that I had been married to Jamie for nearly thirty years – when I realized that the question implied something about the nature of Mr. Christie’s own concept of marriage that I didn’t want to consider too closely (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 24).

Tom’s perception of sex seems not to be associated with love but with duty. His marriage was most likely arranged and loveless. His concept of sex and marriage is probably a typical one back in the 18th century though. Of course, some married couples probably grew to love each other, such as Jamie and Claire.

The readers perceive for the very first time Malva’s notion of love when Claire is explaining germ theory to her. Their conversation shifts from how germs are transmitted to a discussion about sex.

“Men, I mean. Like an animal! Whyever would a woman let a man do that to her?” (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 46).

The first impression that takes shape in the reader’s mind is that Malva seems to be naive. This is further supported by the conservative way in which Tom raised her. She also associates sex with either money or reproduction. She continues equating sex not with love but with lust.

“Lust,” she said thoughtfully. “That’s to want something sinful bad, is it not?” (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 46).

Obviously sex and love have a negative connotation in Malva’s mind. Malva describes lovemaking as sinful. However, this passage could be interpreted as Malva’s crave for power (she wanted Claire’s position). It seems that Tom did not want Malva to follow her mother’s footsteps. He probably tried to discourage her in getting into an “illicit” relationship with any men by teaching her negative things about sex.

He had tried to the best of his ability to save Malva, as well – to beat the wickedness out of her, to constrain the streak of wildness, above all, to keep her from working her wiles upon men (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 97).

One wonders whether Tom was strict with Allan too. Did he warn Allan about lust? What the reader knows for sure is that Tom dislikes Allan’s bellicose behaviour but does not interfere much every time his son becomes violent towards another character. Did he ever have a conversation with Allan regarding his temper? Did he see imperfections in Malva but not much in his son? There is evidence from Claire’s point of view that Tom did try to “fix” Malva’s behaviour. Did he try to fix his son’s violent behaviour?

Malva’s reaction to Claire’s explanation of sex being used to give pleasure to a loved one is revealing.

“Pleasure?” Her voice rose behind me, incredulous. “Ye mean some women like it?” (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 46)

From this comment the first-time reader of ABOSAA can deduce that she was told or heard that sex is painful. However, after Allan’s revelation at the end of the book, it seems that Malva has been experiencing sex not in a good way. She basically does not think that sex can be pleasurable based on her own experience. This comment may be a hint that she has been abused by her half-brother for a while, and that there is nothing joyful in the act. Roger’s description of Malva’s reaction when he went to ask her to help Claire in the operation of Aidan McCallum shows her as being scared, most likely of Allan. However, she could also be afraid of Tom who used to whip her.

. . . When he called her name more loudly, her head jerked up in alarm, and she raised the rush knife, gripped tightly in her hand.

The look of alarm faded when she saw who it was, though she kept a wary eye on him – and a good grip on the knife, he saw. . . (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 50).

This event takes place immediately after Roger’s discovery of Malva embracing Bobby Higgins. I will write more about the relationship between Allan and Malva in a later post. In the meantime what matters is that Malva has never been loved in a proper manner. Claire is the only character who cared and showed concern about Malva (especially after witnessing Tom whipping her). She is also the only one who appreciated Malva’s intelligence.

She was an apt pupil, observant and quick, with a good memory for plants. . . (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 32)

It is no wonder she refers to her former pupil as “my Malva” or “daughter of my heart” after her death. She also notices that Malva longs for her dead mother (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 62), a possible sign of her not being loved in a proper manner. This longing is associated with the lack of physical touch. According to Jamie, Malva wanted love.

“She was a lass who craved love, I think – and took it. But she didna ken how to give it back again.” (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 98)

The truth is that Malva was hardly loved. She missed the love that mothers provide their children by kissing, hugging, and holding them, the type of love that makes children feel safe and appreciated. She never experienced it so she could not give it back.

Throughout book 6, the author has put a lot of emphasis about people looking for love, specifically the need for human touch or human comfort (and she does this for a reason). Jamie remembers how some of the prisoners at Ardsmuir chose to have physical contact for comfort, and how he used to long for it.

“But it wasna the longing for a woman – though Christ knows, that was bad enough. It was only – I wanted the touch of a hand. Only that” (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 24).

The second instance is associated with the conversation between Jamie and Claire after Malva’s revelation of her baby’s father. Jamie confessed to Claire that he laid with Mary McNab after she went back to her time. Jamie mentions that Mary gave him tenderness, and that he hoped he gave her the same (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 79). Mary’s comments to Jamie are revealing.

“She said she’d seen me with ye, Claire – and that she kent the look of a true love when she saw it, for all she’d not had one herself . . . (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 80).

This passage details Mary’s need for love but also Jamie’s need for physical contact with another human being since he lived in a cave for seven years. After this confession, Claire realizes she has been in the same condition, and she thinks about her relationship with Frank. Mary was able to give tenderness to Jamie. However, Claire failed to give that to Frank, and she feels guilty about it.

For empty years, yearning for the touch of a hand. Hollow years, lying beside a man I had betrayed, for whom I had no tenderness. . . (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 80).

Similarly this topic of human comfort is brought up again when Claire is at the gaol in New Bern. The other inmate, Sadie Ferguson, is aware that Claire has plenty of concerns in her head. She tries to comfort Claire by touching her. Of course, Sadie has same-sex preferences but she was hoping to help Claire to forget about her worries. Claire refuses radically but allows her to grab her hand.

I understood the need of human comfort, the sheer hunger of touch. I had taken it, often, and given it, part of the fragile web of humanity, constantly torn, constantly made new. But there was that in Sadie Ferguson’s touch that spoke of more than simple warmth, or the need of company in the dark (A Breath of Snow and Ashes, ch. 90).

This case resembles those ones of the prisoners at Ardsmuir. Since Claire has experienced true love in her life and has been a healer for many, she has been able to give love to people. For example, she cures supporters of the English crown in An Echo in the Bone, and she gains respect and loyalty from them. She gives comfort and she gets appreciation from those whom she has cured.

When it comes to Malva it seems that she was looking for human comfort in the wrong way. Because she never experienced love from her family, she looked for it outside in the form of sex. This is probably the reason for her promiscuous sexual behaviour. She was engaging into sex with several partners not only to get a father for her baby. She was probably looking for comfort in the same manner of Sadie Ferguson. Overall Malva did not inherit her mother’s behaviour. She is the product of how Tom raised her. Tom probably did what he thought was best for her. However, his method of punishment did not work because of its abusive nature. Furthermore, Tom disliked Malva since she was little; he saw imperfections in her even at an early age (age 5). Because Malva is a constant reminder of his wife’s unfaithfulness, he could not provide Malva with the kind love that her real parents would have given her.

Next Outlander post will be about Malva’s mother and aunt, and it will be published two weeks from now.

Works cited

Gabaldon, Diana. A Breath of Snow and Ashes. 2005. New York: Bantam Dell. 2006. Print.

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