The Marquis - spoiler warning

[druien_wren]

Okay I decided to make my own discussion and see what everyone thinks of the Marquis.  For those of you that haven't read Treasure, this is pretty much all about Treasure, so be forewarned you may want to avoid this topic! :)

Do you like him now?  Is he forgiven?  Do you still hate him?  Do you worry about his motivations?  Share your thoughts! : )

Comments

[april_art]

Heheh... I've already rambled on about this on the YahooGroup! So to be brief: I want to like the Marquis. I think he's a monster for what he did to Gaston--not just the whipping, but throwing him to the wolves, so to speak, at the various schools and for leaving him in Doucette's hands (which weren't that bad until the end, but still!), and even for how he acts while in Port Royal (letting Vittese try to grab him, then trying to following them later, etc.). He's got flaws galore!

But he's not stupid... He sees that Will is good for Gaston and actually can relate to Will on some levels. And he seems genuinely interested in Gaston's welfare now that he has no hope of any other legitimate heirs, so... I'll trust him only that far!

[druien_wren]

Oh, you must be Avrileena? Gee, I should start a thread to see who's who on both boards. LOL! :)

[pocketroxy]

Heehee, maybe we should try to guess!

[druien_wren]

Pocketroxy, I have no idea who you are over on Yahoo! You've got me stumped. April = Avril I'm guessing, based on her handle, and mine is pretty obvious, too. Give us a hint? :D

[pocketroxy]

Hm. I think as someone mentioned on the yahoo group, the Marquis's madness seems very underrated and I wonder if it will show up in the future in some unpleasant way.

I think he is being truthful about being for Gaston & Will, but I think a large part of this is because he can see that Will follows Gaston and tends to do what Gaston wants. Also, he can help Gaston to shoulder the burdens the Marquis wants him to shoulder. This is self serving, but Gaston wants it too, so it serves them both. The other part is that I think he truly wants to be a good and kind man and this is one way he can he can make up for his foul treatment of Gaston in the past.

I like him and hope he can figure out a way to help our men in the ways he has promised. He has a tough job ahead of him, that's for sure.

[april_art]

You're right, the Marquis does think of himself as a good person. He's all about doing the right thing for his tenants/peasants and apologises for the bad examples his peers have set for Will to have such a poor impression. ... although... Gaston can't actually recall if the Marquis really IS that good, even though he talks a good game (and has brought up Gaston to believe that the aristocracy have a responsibility to behave well).

I'd like to think the Marquis has his good side. It's just too painful to believe that he can be saying all that and totally deceiving everyone. Will and Gaston need someone on their side!

[gaycrow]

I keep forgetting to check out the Yahoo Group. I don't get individual e-mails, but I never remember to actually log onto the group site to read what people are thinking. :/

I'm not sure about the Marquis. I'm re-reading Treasure again now, but my first impression was that he was too accepting of Gaston and Will being together. He's a strict Catholic, and my understanding is that sodomy would've been considered a huge sin in those days. I wonder if he's to be trusted. His attitude's a little too good to be true.

[pocketroxy]

The yahoo group is rocking like whoa. You might want to get the digests at the end of the day. You can change your preferences if you like.

The marquis does seem a little too good to be true. I just wonder if he can see that Gaston is a whole different person because of Will and knows where his bread is buttered if he wants Gaston as an heir.

[april_art]

True, it IS awfully progressive and enlightened of him!

I'm just hoping that it's due to desperation and pragmatism: He needs his heir, even though his heir is mad and sleeping with a guy.

I guess he can always tell himself that Gaston may leave will and come back to the Church and confess his sins and get back into the good graces and all that. (And you know, Gaston's had sex with his sister before killing her, so perhaps the sex with men thing is a step up???) O___o

[pocketroxy]

He needs his heir, even though his heir is mad and sleeping with a guy.

Heehee, just what every Nobleman dreams of for his heir, right? :)))

[mems_derynicat]

I actually quite liked him after he got over trying to get Gaston into custody by force. I think that was mostly a symptom of him not knowing his son very well and completely misreading the situation and the people Gaston is now involved with.

I also like to believe that perhaps he has mellowed with age and has realized now that he has had a chance to interact with Gaston as an equal (and as adults)that he understands that maybe Gaston is more stable and sane than he ever gave him credit for.

This is me, living in blissful hopefullness of a happy ending for this family dynamic as I am sure that isn't going to be the case for Will...

[pocketroxy]

This is me, living in blissful hopefullness of a happy ending for this family dynamic as I am sure that isn't going to be the case for Will...

Poor Will. But I think Will if forging new bonds (with the Brethren, and with Gaston and his father) so that he can create a whole new family for himself. It's just too bad that the damn Earl keeps trying to cause so much trouble. Hopefully that will be dealt with once and for all soon.

[druien_wren]

Sometimes your chosen family is a LOT better than the one you were born into. In Will's case, I definitely hold that to be true. I'm hoping that Gaston's father turns out to be what he seems in Treasure - and NOT do anything underhanded, malicious or not, that I might hate him for again - and then perhaps Will will have a quasi-father figure in his life that he can actually respect (and also see a noble that cares about his flock); instead of his rat bastard of a betraying, cold-hearted evil demon father. ^.~

The Earl = Satan; which makes Will + Sarah = Spawns of Satan? *snicker* :)

[pocketroxy]

Sometimes your chosen family is a LOT better than the one you were born into.

You said it sister.

I also hope that the Marquis doesn't do anything "for their best good" that Will and Gaston won't like. Hopefully he's learned his lesson with his own wife and seeing Gaston's alternate healing path after leaving his awful care at home.

The Earl = Satan; which makes Will + Sarah = Spawns of Satan?

Well, innocent little lamb-spawns maybe :))

[dyrmagnos]

Overall I think that I like the Marquis, but I can't trust him. One thing I can't get over is what he did to Gaston. He must be truly mad or just really daft to have done that to his son. Perhaps he just has a really bad temper. I really wish that Will and Gaston and the Marquis could just move to France and live peacefully and happy. I know it would probably make a boring book, but I would still read it!

[pocketroxy]

I too want a happy ending for all this. I'm sure Ms. Hoffman will oblige. Maybe being happy and settled is a little more boring, but still good. I don't know if life with Gaston and Will will ever be particularly boring tho.

[druien_wren]

I can't imagine that it would be boring, either!