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Edmund Jordan
An enigmatic woman who arrives in the village with her father and husband at the beginning of the novel. Her real name is never known; Master Kent nicknames her Mistress Beldam, and Walter explains that he’s referencing the word “beldam,” meaning a female sorceress, and the phrase “Belle Dame,” meaning a beautiful woman. It’s a powerful name, and Mistress Beldam is associated with the power of the natural world, which inspires both attraction and wariness in the villagers. When she first arrives, the villagers note her youth and fertility and see her as a mate for their sons, a means by which they can shore up the village’s declining population. Walter often compares her to an animal and she survives in the forest for long periods of time, showing her close connection to an abundant nature. However, she’s also a highly destructive force, especially after the death of her father; she commits senseless acts of violence, like killing Master Kent’s horse and likely murdering Mr. Quill, and she puts the final seal on the village’s demise by burning all the cottages. In this sense, she represents the natural world’s promise of strength and regeneration and, at the same time, its destructive and anarchic potential.
Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman Quotes in Harvest
The Harvest quotes below are all either spoken by Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman or refer to Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
We know we ought to make amends for shearing her. That’s why she’s standing there, awaiting us. She’s asking us to witness what we’ve done […] For a moment, the temper of the barn is not that she has shamed our evening but that we’ve found our Gleaning Queen.
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Chapter 7
Quotes
It feels as if some impish force has come out of the forest in the past few days to see what pleasure it can take in causing turmoil in a tranquil place.
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Chapter 14
Quotes
The plowing’s done. The seed is spread. The weather is reminding me that, rain or shine, the earth abides, the land endures, the soil will persevere forever and a day. Its smell is pungent and high-seasoned. This is happiness.
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Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman Quotes in Harvest
The Harvest quotes below are all either spoken by Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman or refer to Mistress Beldam/Stranger Woman. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
We know we ought to make amends for shearing her. That’s why she’s standing there, awaiting us. She’s asking us to witness what we’ve done […] For a moment, the temper of the barn is not that she has shamed our evening but that we’ve found our Gleaning Queen.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7
Quotes
It feels as if some impish force has come out of the forest in the past few days to see what pleasure it can take in causing turmoil in a tranquil place.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 14
Quotes
The plowing’s done. The seed is spread. The weather is reminding me that, rain or shine, the earth abides, the land endures, the soil will persevere forever and a day. Its smell is pungent and high-seasoned. This is happiness.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
