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The Security of Silence

Synopsis

The Security of Silence begins in the late 19th century and continues through the early decades of the twentieth century. It is the story of Emilie Elizabeth Louise Bartholomae who was born and grew up in a small, southern German Village. Her childhood was idyllic, until the death of her father changes the family circumstances of privilege and economic security. The onset of the WW I and its tragic aftermath for both the country and her family makes Emilie feel uncertain and threatened by the on rush of events and circumstances over which she feels she has little or no control. She marries a man many years her senior whom she believes can provide security for her and her family. Even though her mother warns her about the history of her husband's family she dismisses these comments. She soon discovers, however, her husband has the tendencies of a sexual predator. She remains silent and, thereby denies the reality of his behavior.

While Emilie and her growing family are well off by local standards because of her husband's successful business, she refuses to recognize his sexual proclivity. Having been schooled in the culture of accepting whatever the husband decides, she remains silent. She trades economic security for silence against her husband's conduct which she knows is wrong. What seems like an unconscious decision on her part to avoid any threat to her or her family, by ignoring her subconscious suspicions, she actually supports his unsavory behavior.

The novel traces the transition of a woman from a relatively high social status, with a good education and profession, to the uncertainty of a marriage to a man whom she believes will provide her with the same style of life to which she had become accustomed. Little does she realize the impact the social differences between their families have upon their common future. Unbeknownst to her, the security of silence becomes the "leitmotif" of her entire life.

Author Biography

Donald F. Megnin

Donald F. Megnin, son of immigrants from Germany, grew up on a farm near Chittenango, New York. He graduated from Fayetteville High School, Syracuse University, where he received his A.B., M.A., and Ph. D. and Boston University with an S.T.B. He worked on the family farm for several years before being given a scholarship by a Syracuse Industrialist to study at Syracuse University. He then represented Syracuse University as Lecturer at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand for two years. He then went on to study theology at Boston University. While serving as a United Methodist Minister in Syracuse, New York, he began his graduate studies in international politics in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs part time. After completing his doctorate in political science, he taught at Slippery Rock University (one of fourteen state-owned universities of Pennsylvania). He is currently a professor emeritus of international politics from Slippery Rock University and divides his time between New Smyrna Beach, Florida where he and his wife reside, and Syracuse, New York where they spend their summers.