Why do you think Margarete pretended to be a nun? When did you begin to suspect that she had never taken vows?

Why do you think Margarete pretended to be a nun? When did you begin to suspect that she had never taken vows?

Pretending to be a nun might be a form of protection for a woman in this situation in which she is often the only female around. I never thought she seemed to be especially nun-like except for wearing the outfit.

I agree with peggyt. Dressing as a nun did give her some protection while being in the company of so many men. I did suspect that she wasn't a nun when she stated that it didn't matter what or who she was previously. I also don't recall her performing any religious duties.

I also think that dressing as a nun afforded her some protection from the soldiers as this was in a time when clergy were still respected. There were certainly no instances of her being prayerful in anyway so that was a good give away. Clearly her affair with Lucius was the key indicator that, if she was a nun, she had a very colorful background. I almost expected him to find her in Vienna in a brothel.

Because it was wartime and she was at a remote location among many men, maybe she identified herself as a nun in order to avoid dealing with relationships and possible sexual overtures. Possibly it helped her deal with her own personal loss as well. I first started thinking that possibly she really wasn't a nun when she first came to Lucius. He never would have made the first move, even though he had fallen in love with her. She said "I know what I'm doing." I doubt a nun would have said and done that, even in wartime.

Both Margarete and Lucius appeared to be running away from something. With Lucius, it was his overbearing family situation. With Margarete, you didn't know what it was, but......it was apparent that she needed to cover up something, thus pretending to be a nun.

I agree with the previous commenters that claiming to be a nun provided Margarete with a certain protection in a remote area peopled chiefly by military men. While she didn't act like a nun or seem very religious, I didn't really question her claim to be one until Lucius started having so much trouble tracing her. The issue just didn't raise up for me.

I also agree that pretending to be a nun gave her protection around so many men. That role also allowed her to act with authority in the makeshift hospital setting.

I agree, being a nun protected her from potential assault as much as anyting would. It also gave her access to work as a nurse which was not easily available to women in the early 1900s. She was a talented medical professional that had little freedom to work absent her cover as a nurse.

The only time I believed she was a nun was at the very first meeting when she described the other nurses. After that the lack of information about her life and the fact that she never relied on religious quotes or ideas begins the suspicious that she is not who she says she is very early.

I agree that it offered her a lot of protection from the men, but she had so much medical knowledge, I wondered where she got it from. She never seemed to pray, and she seemed to have no problem shedding her vows of celibacy. She also liked to drink. She also never talked about her background, other sisters, medical training or how she got where she was. I didn't really think too much about it until she broke her vows and said that she knew what she was doing.

I agree, she dressed like a nun to protect herself. When Margarete became so ill with fever, Lucius was taking care of her. There is nothing more intimate than taking care of a person you love. He slept in her room to be there to take care of her. She comes out of the fever and approaches him in the dark, becomes intimate … not the characteristics of a nun. I knew then that she was using it as protection.

Well I agree with the consensus pretending to be a nun was a way of protection. Her lack of self control,made me think she wasn’t a nun

As with the others, pretending to be a nun was a form of protection. I believe she was hiding from something and pretending to be a nun was a way to "hide in plain sight." It also offered the means to be involved in medicine, which she was so adept at. As a woman, she had no other way to be involved but as a nun/nurse. She certainly surpassed that with her ability to perform amputations, etc. I was never concerned about whether or not she was a real nun, although her lack of religiosity led me to believe she wasn't.

Totally agree with the others--being a nun protected her and also supported her authority. Even after she slept with Lucius, I didn't doubt she was a nun. Many people do things they would otherwise avoid when in a war zone or situation where life may be taken away at any moment.

The nun pretense may have helped her avoid talking about her past. There are and always have been plenty of sexual relations going on among people who supposedly have taken vows of abstinence, so her brief fling with Lucius did not surprise me. I felt suspicious about her when she mentioned withholding pain killer drugs for male patients that were too amorous towards her.

It gave her protection also she could hide behind nun clothing. she did not have to speak about her past as that was her old life now that she was a "nun"

Aloha,

I think she did it for saftey reasons too. At that time, nuns had respect. Nuns do now but not like back then. A few years ago I was visting NY. No one who had a seat, gave it up for the nun that was standing. I understand the bad apples with the Catholic Church today. I mention about the respect because back then it was unheard of being disrepetful to a nun. It why Margartee would be safe by pretending to be a nun.

I only picked up that she was a not nun immediately because I went to Catholic School for twelve years. No nun I known ever talk that way like Margarete did.

To help keep her safe from sexual advances from the injured soldiers.

She said she was a nun for protection & I suspected from the very 1st meeting that was the case. Certainly understandable for her to claim to be a nun

She used it as a shield for any possible sentimental approach from the soldiers. A nun wearing a habit denotes respect, I guess that is why she felt secure and confident when moving around, treating and caring for the soldiers.

I started suspecting that she wasn't a nun when nothing religious came through her words or actions. The author did a fine job covering this secret from the beginning but I felt that even though she was called Sister, there was a fakeness to her. And then, when she woke up from her feverish days and was intimate with Lucius and said " I know what I'm doing", well that kind of made me conclude that she wasn't a nun.