Women have always struggled with living in a patriarchal world, constantly being told what to do and how to live. In “The Revenge of the Faery Melusine”, André LeBey uses the character of Raymondin in his distressed ascent to Melusine to highlight how femininity is adjusted through the male gaze of mistrust and domination. Raymondin’s suspicion exposes how male imagination defines a woman’s reality rather than through female actions. These thoughts in Raymondin’s head portray the patriarchal impulse to see female freedom as wrongdoing, inevitably forcing women, like Melusine, to live within a narrative constructed from male fear over veracity.
From the moment they got married, Raymondin and Melusine had agreed on one thing: that Raymondin must never disturb her on Saturday nights. This agreement lasted many years, until Raymondin’s imagination got the best of him. LeBey states that as Raymondin was making his way up the steps to Melusine, he thought to himself, “He climbed quickly in his eagerness to strike, his heart pumping…there where he had never been before. Neither he, nor anyone, except her—and—who else? He believed there must be someone, but without entirely believing it” (Lebey 121). The language LeBey uses in this passage portrays Raymondin’s fears and imagination that led him to break his promise with Melusine. The use of his “eagerness to strike” and “his heart pumping” presents the notion of desire and hostility that Raymondin is experiencing. This wording is significant to the storyline because of how it portrays his relationship with Melusine, the fusion of rage and love. It portrays Raymondin as an intruder of Melusine’s precious space by expressing his actions as a “strike”. His motivation at this moment is jealousy rather than love; he no longer wants to understand Melusine but to conquer her. This, as a result, displays Raymondin’s desire to control a mystery that intimidates and threatens his masculinity. Not knowing this one aspect of Melusine’s life creates a more significant issue for his identity because she is choosing her own space over him.
LeBey’s language provides a deeper context for Raymondin’s toxic masculinity towards Melusine and her female freedom. When it’s stated that he was making his way to a place “where he had never been before. Neither he, nor anyone” (LeBey 121), it enhances the idea that Melusine has a space that has been untouched by the male presence. A space that gives her independence from Raymondin. This independence is the exact reason Raymondin feels he must defy it, furthering the idea that Melusine is forced to live in a male narrative created out of fear and jealousy. This furthers the thoughts that he had while scaling the stairs to Melusine.
As Raymondin thinks, “her—and—who else? He believed there must be someone” (LeBey 121), it materializes from nothing but his own imagination, furthering his own insecurities. By providing the context of using his own imagination, LeBey can show how patriarchal narratives are created. Not by how women inherently act, but by how the men in their lives interpret female actions, based on their own imagination and free will. This assumption stems from the patriarchal idea that women hold secrets that are incomprehensible to their male counterparts. Secrets which Raymondin feels entitled to know at this moment in time. Without thinking about how Melusine might feel about his intrusion or “strike” into her female space. This loss of common sense is shown when Raymondin thinks, “He believed there must be someone, but without entirely believing it” (LeBey 121). Highlighting the aspect of suspicion without confirmation, further forcing this narrative he has created onto Melusine. This exposes the idea that Raymondin feels that he knows his wife, but has been so corrupted by the patriarchal gaze of control and mistrust. By picturing Melusine as an unfaithful wife, he can keep her in a story that he is ultimately controlling.
Overall, LeBey’s language in describing Raymondin’s inner thoughts in this passage highlights the male-created narrative Melusine has been forced to live in during her marriage. It’s important to note how this use of language exposes how Raymondin’s want to “strike” stems from this narrative he has created in his mind to control Melusine. Through the relationship and mistrust of Raymondin and Melusine, LeBey can critique the unsteady male authoritative foundation that makes it so easy for uncertainty to mutate into allegation. This passage sheds light on the concept of how female narratives stem from the male fear. Ultimately proving how patriarchal narratives are built to control the lives of the women they are forced onto.
