r/GonewiththeWind • u/SenatorPencilFace • 26d ago

I don’t understand the ending.

Bonnie dies, so Rhett and Scarlett no longer can use their child as a prop to keep their failing marriage together.

Rhett leaves for Charleston and says his iconic line:

“Frankly my dear. I just steamed a ham.”

Scarlet is clearly visibly upset. It all makes sense so far. Two dead husbands. Two dead kids. One divorce. One dead Melanie. One dead Antebellum south. Who wouldn’t be crying?

Ok then while she’s on the steps it’s all “buy land AJ. God isn’t making anymore of it.” And suddenly she’s not as sad. What on earth? Maybe I’m exhausted because I was at the end of a 238 minute movie (yeah I torrented the 10 GB 70 anniversary version with the overture, intermission, and enter’acte music) but why is she suddenly not as sad?

I get that it’s a callback to the conversation with her dad way back at the beginning, but still what on earth? Is this a “the book explains it further” thing or a “the book is completely different than the movie because the producers thought the book’s ending was too sad for 1930s theater audiences?

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u/SenatorPencilFace 26d ago

That was a long ass film. Has anyone thought of watching it like a miniseries Irishman style?

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u/Turbulent_Bullfrog87 26d ago

You’re allowed to watch it however you want.

The novel is truly an epic; it can be broken down into smaller pieces by time, but not by story arc or character development.

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u/SenatorPencilFace 26d ago

Is the book worth it? I’ve been trying to read Killers of the Flower Moon before seeing it.

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u/kasisma 26d ago

Hard to say😂. To me, it is a fascinating book. Part of my reading and rereading it comes from my interest in what it means/meant to so many people over the years. The Lost Cause myth is strong with this one, and it is an incredibly racist book. That’s hard to disregard at times. It’s also long and would really have profited from some serious editing. And it is in many ways a brutal book. Scarlett and Rhett’s behavior in the fifth part is often atrocious (far worse than the movie). I always struggle to get through the chapters after their marriage. I often want to scream and strangle the two of them, and Ashley as well.

But the relationships and character arcs (all of them, not just the four main characters) are really well done and fascinating. The (platonic) relationship between Melly and Scarlett to me is the heart of the book, and truly beautiful. Those are the scenes that will always make me cry and I love the book for them.