Like Al, I also watched several hours of “Gone With The Wind” on Thanksgiving Eve (don't judge - there was a marathon!). GWTW has fascinated me for as long as I can remember, but this time, I was most struck by Scarlett's pitch perfect demonstration of the personality theory of property. This is evident throughout the film, and most notably in the last scene, where Scarlett hears the voices of her dearly departed father and Ashley Wilkes in her head. After Rhett abandons her, she asks aloud, "What is there to do? What is there that matters?" and the following exchange ensues:
Mr. O'HARA: You mean to tell me, Katie Scarlett O'Hara, that Tara doesn't mean anything to you? That land is the only thing that matters. It's the only thing that lasts.
ASHLEY: Something you love better than me, though you may not know it.
Mr. O'HARA: Tara - this is where you get your strength.
ASHLEY: Tara - the red earth of Tara.
Mr. O'HARA: That land's the only thing that matters, it's the only thing that lasts.
ASHLEY: Something you love better than me, though you may not know it, Tara.
Mr. O'HARA: ...From which you get your strength...
ASHLEY: ... the red earth of Tara.
Mr. O'HARA: Land's the only thing that matters...
ASHLEY: something you love better than me...
BOTH: Tara...Tara!... Tara!... Tara!
SCARLETT: Tara! Home. I'll go home.....
Tara is the place where Scarlett achieves self-realization. It is the place where her memories and ambitions are rooted. It is also the place over which Scarlett asserts an entitlement that is superior to that of either of her sisters (and fellow heirs) Suellen and Carreen (recall the great scene where Scarlett bosses the sisters around, forces them to pick cotton, and then slaps Suellen for yelling "I hate Tara" in the fields). I know there are some GWTW fans out there - what other theories of property are on full display in the film?
This is the first that I have heard of a "personality" theory of property. I'd like to say, though, that when I teach about the history of the South, I feel that I spend a lot of time teaching against Gone with the Wind. Among the things to teach against is the myth that southerners were as extreme in their attachment to the soil as depicted in the movie. Southern plantation owners, in particular, used up the soil and then moved themselves west in search of other lands. There are good studies of this, none of which I can site because I'm in Ireland getting ready to visit, of all places, the Hill of Tara--the site where ancient Kings of Ireland did something or other.
Posted by: Trussell | November 25, 2012 at 06:18 AM
If you like this "personality" theory, I recommend "Duddy Kravitz" by Mordecai Richler. I think it's a movie, too. About a Montreal jew and the traditional jewish belief that a man is nothing without land. Duddy is broke, and tries to become a land developer.
Posted by: Cestlamemechose | November 25, 2012 at 07:05 AM
"The traditional Jewish belief that a man is nothing without land"? That's Simcha Kravitz's belief, but not a traditional Jewish one.
Posted by: Jon Weinberg | November 25, 2012 at 08:22 PM
Coming back to the question, there is of course the slavery in the movie, which reflects a particular theory of property.
Posted by: Thomas NZ | November 26, 2012 at 06:53 PM