Who Would Have Thought It?

Who Would Have Thought It?, a novel by Maria Amparo Ruiz de Burton has as its kernel the Cinderella story. The Cinderella is Lola Medina, daughter of a prominent Spanish-Mexican family, whose mother had been abducted by Indians shortly before she gave birth. Before dying, the mother handed her daughter over to the care of Dr. James Norval, and appointed him trustee over a fortune that had come into her possession. Dr. Norval would be the kind stepfather in the tale, while the evil stepmother is his wife Jemima Norval, hypocritical upholder of Puritan morality. As Lola's skin had been dyed by the Indians she bore the stigma of being of mixed blood which intensified the hostility with which she was treated by her New England guardians.By using irony and satire, the author created a wide contrast between the merits of beautiful (but passive) Lola, with whom she identified herself, and the demerits of greedy Anglo-American social climbers. The most offensive of these are the cynical Rev. Hackwell and Mrs. Norval, the covetous stepmother. Upon receiving a false report of the death of her husband, Mrs. Norval entered into a clandestine marriage (so she believed) with the sexually appealing Hackwell. To show the inner life of these conniving people, the author used a simple analogy. Beneath their apparently unruffled services, devils of passion and greed, also called imps, clamored to be released. The novel is set during the Civil War and ends with a glance at matters during the Reconstruction. The two heroes Issac Sprig and Julian Norval, brother and son respectively of Mrs. Norval, fight in the Union cause. Issac was confined to a Confederate prison from which he was released through the intercession of a kindly Confederate office. Julian was wounded at the battles of Bull Run and Chancellorsville, was falsely accused of treason, and received a pardon and promotion after defending himself before President Lincoln. Before joining the Union cause, Isaac had learned of the existence of a Mexican heiress, who had escaped from Indians, but did not know that this person was Lola. Isaac acted the role of the fairy godmother in the story and, as such, his interferences defy reality. Julian, the prince in the story, was in love with Lola but could not marry her until she reached legal age. Ruiz de Burton had read many works, in both English and Spanish. Allusions and borrowings from them occur in the novel . . . Greek mythology, Roman history, Shakespeare, Thackeray and Cervantes are conspicuous. Partial to her Mexican origin, she was critical of the provincialism of upper class people on the East Coast. Her political sentiments were based on reactions of the moment rather than on learned perceptions. She disliked republicanism (both as an institutional practice and as a political party) and this dislike encompassed Mexico as well as the United States; she thought women could do a better job in managing public

Who Would Have Thought It? by Maria Amparo Ruiz de Burton, re-released by Arte Publico Press in 1995, is an entertaining examination of the Civil War, gender and class conflicts during the 1860's in the United States. The story begins when Lola, a young Spanish girl whose mother has recently died, comes to live in New England with the Norval family. While Mrs. Norval is not interested in the young "black" girl, she is interested in the gold and precious stones that were left to the girl by her dying mother. While her husband tries to find Lola's father, Mrs Norval schemes to get rich, as do the local "ministers." Meantime, the Civil Wat complicates matters for everyone, leading all the characters through a plot of treachery, lust, and intrigue. Who Would Have Thought It? is a delightful commentary on the American social culture of the 1860's