Till We Have Voices

Still thinking much about Till We Have Faces in preparation for the conference on the 11th.

When the main character chooses to veil herself because of her ugliness, and the god who weds her beautiful sister hides his appearance as well, you can expect that all mention of faces should be noted, even when the faces are not theirs. But when faces are hidden, voices take on greater importance.  Orual finds that her voice is attractive.  A suppliant prince even flirts with her in the dim light. The God of the Mountain, the Shadowbrute, is revealed to have a voice of great beauty and majesty. The shouts of crowds or the murmurs of them in the distance express a great deal. 

I noticed it from two poignant, connected passages, and was able to double back and see the subtle reference to voices, or natural sounds that seemed like voices, throughout the book. I hope to notice more on further readings.

I never heard weeping like that before, not from a child, nor a man wounded on the palm, nor a tortured man, nor a girl dragged off to slavery from a taken city. If you heard the woman you most hate in the world weep so, you would go to comfort her. You would fight your way through fire and spear to reach her. (Orual, speaking of Psyche) Pt 1 Ch. XV

But the situation reverses, or seems to, in the end.

The woman held out her hands to Psyche, and I saw that her left arm dripped with blood. Then came her voice, and what a voice it was! So deep, yet so woman-like, so full of passion, it would have moved you even if it spoke happy or careless things.  But now (who could resist it?) it would have broken a heart of iron.

'Oh Psyche,' it wailed. 'Oh, my own child,my only love. Come back. Come back. Back to the old world where we were happy together. Come back to Maia.'

Psyche bit her lip till the blood came and wept bitterly. (Orual, in Pt. 2 Ch IV)

If you notice similarities in this story of Orual to elements of Beauty and the Beast, it is because both are based on the Cupid and Psyche myth.  Orual would be one of the jealous sisters. 

Also, whenever you hear a bird sing in Lewis's fiction, pay attention.  The plot is about to move in a different direction.