Mavis Clare - Perfection

Mavis Clare is perfection.

I almost feel like I've said enough with just that however I doubt that would stentence would stand upon literary criticism. I say Mavis Clare is prefection because she is Corelli's ideal woman.

1. "an 'old-fashioned' young woman" (216)
2. "a woman who shows the power of her intellect is more to be respected than the woman who shows the power of her legs. But men alway prefer the legs, - just as they prefer the devil to the Deity." (216-7)
3. "a quite graceful creature" (221)
4. "with all her intellectual gifts she was yet a lovable woman" (225)
5. "my angel at the gate of a lost Paradise, whose Sword of Genius, turning every way, keeps me back from all approach to my forfeited Tree of Life!) (225)

How can the woman which all these quotations describe be anything but perfection? Not only that but she is perfect in everyway possible; beautiful, intelligent, kind, and moral. She is the perfect foil to Lady Sibyl who is only beautiful in a very strange exotic fashion, she has violet eyes, all though his will not hold up under criticism I believe I read somewhere that the colour violet means "to have a purpose." Not only that but Lady Sibyl "repulses the frank and sensitive soul" (86) with just her look, very different from that of Mavis.

Now what is funny is Marie Corelli's vanity which shines through with the character of Mavis Clare. Anyone else notice the duplicity? both M.C., both writters "best-sellers" even, both shunned from their society because of their genuis. Is Corelli trying to tell people that she is perfect just like Clare? Well, it probably is there a little bit but more likely what Corelli is doing is a matter of "practice what you preach." If Corelli is going to create a perfect character in attempt to convert the world then she better believe and practice what she teaching.