Margot Cleary Character Analysis

The shape of power is always the same; it is the shape of a tree. Root to tip, central trunk branching and re-branching, spreading wider in ever-thinner, searching fingers.

Already there are parents telling their boys not to go out alone, not to stray too far. “Once you’ve seen it happen,” says a gray-faced woman on TV. “I saw a girl in the park doing that to a boy for no reason, he was bleeding from the eyes. The eyes. Once you’ve seen that happen, no mom would let her boys out of her sight.”

Nothing that either of these men says is really of any great significance, because she could kill them in three moves before they stirred in their comfortably padded chairs.

It doesn’t matter that she shouldn’t, that she never would. What matters is that she could, if she wanted. The power to hurt is a kind of wealth.

She speaks quite suddenly, across Daniel, sharp like the knock at a door. “Don’t waste my time with this, Daniel,” she says.

“You want to employ NorthStar girls yourself.”
“As my private army, here and on the border.”
It’s worth a lot of money. […] The board would be very happy to continue their association with Margot Cleary until the end of time if she could pull this off.
“And, in exchange, you want...”
“We are going to alter our laws a little. During this time of trouble. To prevent more traitors giving away our secrets to the North. We want you to stand by us.”

Thus, we institute today this law, that each man in the country must have his passport and other official documents stamped with the name of his female guardian. Her written permission will be needed for any journey he undertakes. We know that men have their tricks and we cannot allow them to band together.

There is a voice in Margot’s head. It says; You can’t get there from here.
She sees it all in that instant, the shape of the tree of power. Root to tip, branching and re-branching. Of course, the old tree still stands. There is only one way, and that is to blast it entirely to pieces.

When the historians talk of this moment they talk about “tensions’’ and “global instability.” They posit the “resurgence of old structures” and the “inflexibility of existing belief patterns.” Power has her ways. She acts on people, and people act on her.
When does power exist? Only in the moment it is exercised. To the woman with a skein, everything looks like a fight.
UrbanDox says: Do it.
Margot says: Do it.
Awadi-Atif says: Do it.
Mother Eve says: Do it.
And can you call back the lightning? Or does it return to your hand?

The shape of power is always the same; it is the shape of a tree. Root to tip, central trunk branching and re-branching, spreading wider in ever-thinner, searching fingers.

Already there are parents telling their boys not to go out alone, not to stray too far. “Once you’ve seen it happen,” says a gray-faced woman on TV. “I saw a girl in the park doing that to a boy for no reason, he was bleeding from the eyes. The eyes. Once you’ve seen that happen, no mom would let her boys out of her sight.”

Nothing that either of these men says is really of any great significance, because she could kill them in three moves before they stirred in their comfortably padded chairs.

It doesn’t matter that she shouldn’t, that she never would. What matters is that she could, if she wanted. The power to hurt is a kind of wealth.

She speaks quite suddenly, across Daniel, sharp like the knock at a door. “Don’t waste my time with this, Daniel,” she says.

“You want to employ NorthStar girls yourself.”
“As my private army, here and on the border.”
It’s worth a lot of money. […] The board would be very happy to continue their association with Margot Cleary until the end of time if she could pull this off.
“And, in exchange, you want...”
“We are going to alter our laws a little. During this time of trouble. To prevent more traitors giving away our secrets to the North. We want you to stand by us.”

Thus, we institute today this law, that each man in the country must have his passport and other official documents stamped with the name of his female guardian. Her written permission will be needed for any journey he undertakes. We know that men have their tricks and we cannot allow them to band together.

There is a voice in Margot’s head. It says; You can’t get there from here.
She sees it all in that instant, the shape of the tree of power. Root to tip, branching and re-branching. Of course, the old tree still stands. There is only one way, and that is to blast it entirely to pieces.

When the historians talk of this moment they talk about “tensions’’ and “global instability.” They posit the “resurgence of old structures” and the “inflexibility of existing belief patterns.” Power has her ways. She acts on people, and people act on her.
When does power exist? Only in the moment it is exercised. To the woman with a skein, everything looks like a fight.
UrbanDox says: Do it.
Margot says: Do it.
Awadi-Atif says: Do it.
Mother Eve says: Do it.
And can you call back the lightning? Or does it return to your hand?