130 Years
Reading Sir Walter:
The Bride of Lammermoor
(Chapter 3) Introducing the heroine
Read by Prof. Claire Lamont
Sir William Ashton, a lawyer, has recently been elevated to the post of Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. This passage, from chapter 3 of the novel, reveals the family politics of his household and introduces the heroine, Lucy. In the song she sings we hear one of Scott's most celebrated lyrics.
My reasons for choosing this are 1) because I hope it will make the hearer want to read on in the novel, 2) because it gives a presence to Scott the poet within a novel, and 3) because I thought it an appropriate passage for a woman's voice.
December 2009
Lucy Ashton. 1833 Steel engraving by Henry Robinson based on a painting by William Etty.
Image used here with the permission of the [Walter Scott Digital Archive Image Collection].
