Reconsideration

With our review of Lionflower Hedge in class, I've decided that the story is not so much under-developed as over-restricted. While the plot points were sparse, I feel there is actually a lot of suggestive history and emotions behind them. Yet, the story is so short that one reaches the end before having a chance to consider all the implications or build the interest to do so. The kids apparently grew up under the care of governesses (who made them fear the Hedge). As adults they seemed to have little sentimental attachment to their childhood home, which they were preparing to sell. They hardly have a strong attachment to each other as they ultimately plan to disperse to their respective families and, so it seemed, rarely communicate with one another. So, there is something to the fact that their governess kept them from unleashing their imaginations within the mysterious confines of the hedge. They may never have been given the chance to run wild as children, since they apparently come from a wealthy family. If so, it makes sense that they could hear their own childhood fun being had, even when they were children. I was also struck, even during my first reading, by how tender the mother seemed as she plants a kiss on the girl's cheek. She asks, "You were good, weren't you, while I was gone?" Safe in their beds, the children perhaps get to then relive their childhood, not with disinterested governesses, but with a warm, affectionate mother. Unlike the Narnia kids, these characters didn't achieve greatness during adulthood, only a sense of jaded disinterest, but perhaps they can achieve happiness as children.