Janice Harayda
Sep 14, 2021

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The "Virginia Reel" in "Gone With the Wind." Scarlett scandalizes Atlanta society by getting up to do the reel with Rhett after he bids on her as a dance partner for it. If you wanted to make the case for Scarlett as a feminist, you could begin with this act of defiance, a great example of how women whose voices were silenced had to express themselves by other means, such as dancing with a blockade runner. Here's a portion of their Virginia reel (done to the classic tune "Irish Washerwoman," which is also perfect given that Scarlett's ancestry is Irish). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGnHNAs_Fno

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Janice Harayda
Janice Harayda

Written by Janice Harayda

Critic, novelist, award-winning journalist. Former book editor of the Plain Dealer and book columnist for Glamour. Words in NYT, WSJ, and other major media.

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