Katherine MacInnes gave a scintillating talk on the women who were left behind in the aftermath of Scott’s fateful expedition to the South Pole – the eponymous ‘Snow Widows’ of her wonderfully detailed biography, three of whom were wives and two mothers who were already widowed.
The research and writing of Snow Widows took MacInnes ten years and it is believed to be the only biography written in the present tense. Initially, she tried to write in the past tense, but quickly found that the nature of the account demanded a more immediate treatment. The men’s story is, as she pointed out, very well known, but she wanted to concentrate on the women for the first time, using letters, diaries, new archive material and interviews with members of the women’s families to create an immersive, historical reconstruction. The five different experiences give a variety of perspectives on the events, working together rather like the instruments in an orchestra.
Often asked about the five dots beneath the title on the book’s front cover, MacInnes explained how this is a reference to Elgar’s enigmatic dedication on the score of his Violin Concerto in B Minor, the first performance of which took place in 1910. The speculation surrounding Elgar’s inscription was echoed by the public interest in Scott’s imminent expedition, the five members of whom were not announced until the last moment. Interestingly, MacInnes highlighted this connection by using the three-part arrangement of the concerto in structuring her book.
MacInnes introduced the five women to the audience with a slide show of contemporary photographs and a brief film clip. She emphasised how the women were often ‘miscaptioned’ in photographs, demonstrating their perceived insignificance in Edwardian society. The figurehead of the Terra Nova was indeed the only female allowed on the expedition. This attitude was exemplified by Lord Curzon, President of the Royal Geographical Society, whose uncompromising male chauvinism underpinned his assertion that women ‘will contribute nothing but their guineas to geography’. The audience found it satisfying that Kathleen Scott subsequently outmanoeuvred Curzon, who tried to insist that Scott’s diaries be left to the Royal Geographical Society, by donating them to the British Library instead.
As well as gender discrimination, MacInnes also highlighted the effects of the rigid class structure, which permeated Edwardian society, through the way Lois Evans was treated. Despite evidence that Taffy Evans, the only working class member of Scott’s polar team, had sustained a severe head injury, he was characterised by the press and the establishment as being mentally weak due to his class and was unfairly regarded as responsible for the disaster. The result was that after his death, Lois’s family was reduced to utter poverty and her children and even grandchildren were subjected to horrific bullying at school.
The audience was equally shocked to learn of the long delays in communication between the South Pole and the rest of the world. When positive, optimistic letters at last arrived, it transpires that the explorers were already dead and later Oriana, on her way to an expected reunion with her husband in New Zealand, heard of the discovery of the bodies from a news hawker on a train station. When the Terra Nova finally came into port at Cardiff, Kathleen Scott and Oriana Wilson insisted on being aboard to ensure that the expedition was portrayed as a triumph rather than a tragedy. It is telling that the other three ‘widows’ were not invited on board as it was felt they may appear too mournful. The government and press used the news of Scott’s expedition to deflect public attention from the funeral of suffragette, Emily Davison, which was taking place on the same day.
When asked to name her favourite ‘widow’, MacInnes chose Emily Bowers, because she was a self-made woman, who had a working class upbringing as a seamstress before determining to become a teacher, very quickly rising to the position of headteacher. She was lively, positive and highly intelligent. After Birdie’s death, she made the decision to celebrate his life and achievements, unlike Caroline Oates, who became reclusive and bitter, once pointing to Scott’s wife’s statue of her husband saying ‘that man killed my son’. It is partly the different reactions and interpretations of events that make this biography so enthralling.
Snow Widows is full of meticulously researched detail, which enables MacInnes to write with authority, but at the same time focus on the human aspect of the remarkable women whose story has finally been brought to the fore.
Mike Pitts at Marlborough LitFest 2022
