What did Hilda say to Juliet before leaving for England?
Hilda made two important statements. First, she said, almost in passing, that she would speak to the Matron to make sure “she takes extra special care of you.” This line was exchoed later by Juliet in a very poignant and telling line, when Pauline and Honora came to visit. Juliet informed them proudly that the Matron had shown Juliet the Matron’s ‘special stitch’ and “I’m her favourite.” We are led to believe that the Matron’s lavishing attention on Juliet is simply the result of her following the orders of an important patron. Juliet seems to have been completely deceived, rather naively–she is that starved for adult affection. Hilda’s second statement is actually a reference to an extremely poignant and tragic event that occurred in real life. She said to Juliet (and wasn’t Diana Kent’s delivery wonderful?) “We can always … cancel … our arrangements, if that’s what you want.” A tearful Juliet simply shook her head. She had been offered the opportunity to stop her parents from ab
