V (Ch 3) vii

[Paul Mackin]

Yes, seems to me Victoria as mistress is only the understandable but mistaken
speculation of one of one of the observers--don't  remember which one at the
moment. However what I was also thinking in reading the bierhalle scene was that
just moments before Hanne sees Victoria and Porpentine together she had seen
Porpentine and Varkunian (the pimp) conspiring about something. Are we to read
anything into this V correspondence? Are we led to ponder at this point whether
V is some kind of reality rather than a mere figment. In other words was an
essential V present at both sightings (by Hanne). Was Victoria there all the
time, as would have been Vaukunian? Wonder if anyone else was struck by the two
Vs. I better go back and read the scene one more time  May be misremembering
again.

                                P.

jbor wrote:

> The conversation between Porpy and Victoria is quite easy to follow imo.
>
> > "I followed you," the girl said. "Papa would die if he found out." Hanne
> > could see her face, half in shadow. "About Mr. Goodfellow."
>
> "I followed you (... here" i.e. She has followed Porpy to the bierhall).
>
> "Papa (i.e. my father, Sir Alastair) would die if he found out (...) about
> (my sexual dalliance with) Mr Goodfellow." (92.31-2)
>
> Victoria has followed Porpy to plead with him not to tell her father (Sir
> Alastair, Porpy's superior) about her extra-curricular activities with Gf.
>
> > We still don't really have it set down in stone whether Victoria is the
> > daughter or mistress of Sir Alastair Wren, do we.
>
> She refers to him as "Papa"(92.31); Porpy refers to Sir Alastair as "your
> father".(92.33)
>
> 92.33: "Your father was in a German church this afternoon." (i.e.
> Porpentine, and perhaps Goodfellow too, have been shadowing Sir Alastair;
> probably acting as bodyguards I would say, or perhaps spies: this is never
> quite spelled out. It struck him as unusual that Sir Alastair went into this
> church, which is why Porpy is remarking on it, and the coincidence that he
> and Victoria are now in a German bierhall.) ... "Sir Alastair was listening
> to someone play Bach. As if Bach were all that were left." (i.e. Sir
> Alastair appeared to be engrossed in the music, heedless of anything and
> everything else, quite forlorn or fatalistic in his general mien.) "So that
> he may know." (i.e. Sir Alastair might already know about his daughter and
> Goodfellow. i.e. Porpy is speculating on the cause of Sir Alastair's sudden
> bout of melancholy being due to his awareness of Victoria's loss of
> maidenhood.)
>
> hope this helps
>
> best