Silence
Silence Marsh is a Separatist woman in an 18th-century Massachusetts community who recounts her difficult and powerful story in this intense novel. Her life moves from happiness and security to abysmal loss when, in a short time, she loses her mother, her adored husband, and her baby. Overwhelmed with grief, she dares to question God and is severely punished and persecuted by her religious community, who condemn her as a blasphemer. Among her punishments is a year-long sentence to silence.
Tracey describes Silence’s journey of despair, alienation, loneliness, and physical and psychological weakness in careful detail, building an intimate portrait of her heroine during this year of solitude. She likewise paints a detailed portrait of this religious community with its strict observances and frightening superstitions, among them looming suspicions of witchcraft. Silence’s only friend is a young girl to whom she teaches the art of beekeeping. This friendship provides some respite to the widow—and to the novel, which at times becomes difficult to read.
Another thread in this plot is the development of Silence’s friendship with a Boston doctor, Daniel Greenleaf, and his mother, a wise medicine woman herself. Unlike the popular physicians of the time, Mistress Greenleaf, and especially her son, prescribe fresh air, long walks, healing herbs, and reading to mend the broken widow. The development of this subplot brings welcome relief. Silence speaks for all women who have faced prejudice and censure in any society, whether at the hands of a patriarchal authority or from similarly threatened, but deluded women. It is a heavy novel to read, but still an enlightening experience.
