What Did Emma DO?

[augusta]

I think we have a fair picture of how Lizzie spent her time while living on Second Street. But I have no idea what Emma did.

Also, weren't most of her dresses black (maybe a few blue ones as well)? It makes me think of a person in mourning. Could she have been mourning all those years for her mother?

[snokkums]

Come to think of it, I don't ever remember reading anything that Emma did while living at the house.
But, you are right, every picture I have seen her in, it has been black or an occasional blue.

[hyacinth]

every picture I have seen her in, it has been black or an occasional blue.[/quote]

Are there color pictures of Lizzie and or Emma ?

[augusta]

No, there aren't color photos of Emma. Snokkums may be thinking of reading about the dressmaker coming to the Bordens and making Emma's dresses all in black, but a scant couple made in blue.

[DJ]

It's as if Emma were in permanent mourning for her Mother--
Perhaps a constant, passive-aggressive slap at Andrew for
remarrying? ("You may have forgotten our Mother, but I haven't.")

This is extrapolating a bit, but Emma probably felt displaced
as mistress of the Borden household when Andrew remarried,
and never got over it. It's as if Andrew gave her a vote of
"no confidence" in her ability to manage the household and
to raise Lizzie, even with the assistance of a live-in maid.

(At the time, it was not uncommon for older siblings to assist in the rearing of their younger brothers and sisters, particularly in larger families with more of an age spread. My grandmother considered her eldest sister, who was born in the early 1880s, her "second mother." Incidentally, this older sister-- who never wed-- ran a small store, did all the baking for the family, and planted an herb garden. Thus, it would not have been deemed out of the ordinary for Emma to have raised Lizzie.)

Also, too, Emma and Lizzie obviously felt Abby and her relations were beneath them, which must have rendered Andrew's remarriage a fiasco from all vantage points, as far as Emma was concerned.

And, to think, that Lizzie was reared in such a happy household ... .

[xyjw]

Maybe Emma was in permanent mourning for their mother, how old was she when her mother died? About 12 or 13? This was probably devastating for her especially if her parents were happy and the family was happy. This question opens an interesting look at Emma's personality. I never thought of this perspective before.

[patsy]

I wonder if there a form of etiquette that Emma may have followed. She may have tried to look as inconspicuous as much as possible, and maybe had some opinion that it was more tasteful to present a kind of quiet display.

On the other hand the "permanent mourning" idea might very well be it, but then to figure whether it was out of extreme grief or to spite father and Abby is another question.

How cool it would be to go back in time to see how they were in real life.

[hyacinth]

I think Emma probably prefered subdued colors because she was a subdued sort of personality and didn't want to stand out and call attention to herself .

[DJ]

I certainly believe Emma wished to give *the appearance* of being subdued and respectable, whatever her ancillary motives (if any) for "dressing down."

Nevertheless, she was right up there with Lizzie, wanting her "fair share" in property matters.

Bottom Line Up Front: Emma could have gone a long way toward ameliorating relations between Lizzie and Abby, as Lizzie grew up within the household. If Emma had scolded Lizzie, or later reprimanded her for her statements and/or actions, I wonder whether Lizzie would have developed such a lack of "cordiality" with Abby.

*Remember, it wasn't just Lizzie who entertained upstairs, who took meals apart from her parents.*

I strongly believe Emma was one thing on the surface, and quite another inside. As with Lizzie, she did not break down, did not shed a recorded tear, when her parents were murdered.

She was ultimately so desperate for the appearance of respectability that she disassociated herself from her own sister.

[augusta]

I think that Emma was 14 when Andrew re-married, and I think he re-married like 2 years after Sarah's death.

I think Emma's going away to school is a clew. Was there too much friction between Abby and the Little Mother (Emma)?

I think some of Emma's behavior may have stemmed from how they taught her to act in the school.

I remember reading that Lizzie and Abby got along swell when Lizzie was real little, and up until that property fiasco in 1887 she called her "Mother".

Well, I guess one thing Emma did was she liked to travel, since she went to Scotland at least once and sent someone back home a postcard. And she went visiting to the Brownells at least in August of 1892. She must have approved of the purchase of Maplecroft because she purchased half of it with Lizzie and lived in it. Or did she do it to make Lizzie happy? After she moved out, she chose no fine mansion of her own, but boarded with people.

I think she had a fur. It seems like I remember reading that one of the only times she went out was to put it in storage for the summer and get it out of storage for the winter. This might be Spiering talking, tho, and if so I wouldn't believe it unless I had a second source to it.

Gee, I don't even know if she liked to embroidery. Maybe by re-reading her testimonies from the case, we can spot something about her.

[Yooper]

I think the fur storage item was indeed from Spiering. It's difficult to say why Emma would have chosen to board rather than buy a house. Advancing age, a need for anonymity, guilt for ill-gotten gains, any are possibilities. I wonder if she traveled much after leaving Maplecroft?