The “TBB” in the name of this post means that it is part of The Big Box series. If you’re new to Scarlet Letters, read the introductory post to see what The Big Box is all about.
I might as well begin this post with a confession. Every time I have to read, listen to, or write about the Botkin sisters, sooner or later I always end up listening to and singing this song (any hardcore ballad nerds in my audience will recognize it as Child #10):
The reason I end up at Two Sisters whenever I write about the Botkins should be obvious by now: irony. The sisters in the ballad could not be more unlike Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin if they tried. First, I’m sure Elizabeth would never be caught dead accepting a gay gold ring and a beaver hat from a suitor without her father’s permission (in fact, perhaps Two Sisters is really about the perils of unsupervised courtship 😀 ). Second, Anna and Elizabeth would certainly never get into such hysterics over a boy. They are, after all, important purveyors of the idea of “emotional purity,” which I touched on before in my response to S. M. Davis’ lecture Seven Bible Truths Violated by Christian Dating. Continue reading
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