I don’t mind Miss Bunting. I see her as a partial replacement for Sybil in the story development. Rose is the main replacement - an impetuous, upper class, young woman who gets herself into scrapes and adventures. But it wouldn’t fit to have the shallow Rose also be a socialist firebrand, so Miss Bunting conveniently comes along to fill that role - and to provide a love interest for Tom, again just as did Sybil.
I think the reason why some people hate Miss Bunting so much more than they did Sybil, for engaging in much of the same social misbehavior, is that she does not come to her socialism from an artistocratic noblesse oblige point of view. Rather she comes at it from a lower-middle class rank - demanding and pushing up from below rather than condescending from on high. Which makes her behavior seem ruder, pushier, and less generous than Sybil’s was, even though they share many of the same social/political goals. Plus her rudeness is not softened by a personal sweetness as Subil’s was.
Add me to the list of people who hope Michael Gregson escapes from the SA (forerunner of the Nazis) and comes back to Edith and Marigold. And when he does, I hope Mary has to eat a great big ****burger for the way she’s treated Edith.
Yes, I saw it; was very interesting. Talk about a cool job for a historian to get! All of the cast that they interviewed seemed really grateful to have his input so they could put things in context.
@Cardinal Fang - As an adoptee myself 1) Edith and Michael are Marigold’s parents. 2) As for “snatching” her away from her foster family, one’s birthparents coming back to them is a cherished fantasy among many adoptees. Human beings are not interchangeabe. Even if Marigold is never told the truth, she’ll know there is a special bond with Edith and she’ll also probably have a feeling that something with her family is “off” … Late discovery adoptees usually know something is different for them and when they find out they are adopted, a lot of stuff that didn’t make sense before falls into place. That’s not to say the experience isn’t painful. One of the few things related to adoption for which I’ve always been thankful is the fact that I’ve never known anything different.
What is the arrangement for Marigold, exactly? Was it represented to the farm family as permanent? It sure sounds like the farm mom thinks Marigold is her daughter now. Since the adoptive (or foster?) mother is talking openly about not being Marigold’s bio-mom, it doesn’t sound like Marigold will be raised to think she was born into the farm family, if she ends up staying with them.
I don’t quite understand the Marigold arrangement (Marigold seems like such a strange name to me for some reason). I’m hoping that will unfold and the season moves on. I think my problem with Bunting is that she seems to have a chip on her shoulder - she’s made some pretty nasty comments. I’m sure that’s part of her charm :))
Didn’t Violet make a remark about Marigold to suggest that they find a way to have her with them, while not seeming to flaunt the fact that she is Edith’s child? My guess is that they will invent a reason why she has to be taken in to be raised by the family, while not revealing her identity.
According to this, Marigold was a popular name in English novels and with the aristocracy. Also, Violet, Rose and Daisy are other DA characters with flower names.
My problem with Miss Bunting is that she’s rude while in someone else’s home. I don’t mind her expressing her opinion (rather enjoy it) when she’s out of DA but, sitting as a guest at the dinner table is not the time to speak your mind when you know it’s in direct contrast to intensely held views of your host.