Lizzie Borden Society Forum

Do you think Lizzie missed her parents when they died? I am guessing she did not miss her step mother abby as she did not like her very much but what about her father andrew?

That is a good question. I'd guess maybe she missed her father alittle but not abby.

Maybe she missed the idea of her parents... I think that also depends on whether or not she did it, and if so, did she feel any remorse.

I guess there is really no way to know for sure. My opinion would be that she missed her father as they were fishing buddies and I think they had a pretty tight bond. Since she did not ever really know her real mother, I would venture to say she probably dreamed about the way it might have been if her real mother had lived. As for Abby, I am not sure we will ever know the true relationship there. I dont think she hated her stepmother as much as the Fall River Police Department would like us to think she did though.

I don't think she misse either one of them all that much. She doesn't strike me as the person that dwells on those kinds of thnigs.

I think she probably missed her father. Perhaps her demand to be buried at her father's feet was her way of saying, "I'm sorry."

As for Abby I don't know. It's strange how we can miss a person whom we didn't like when they were alive. As soon as they die though, we miss them. On the other hand, Lizzie may have missed Abby like a teenager misses a boil on Prom Night.

One thing is for certain, Lizzie had a lot of time to think about it in Maplecroft.

-1bigsteve (o:

I have wondered about this myself... One would think that whether Lizzie liked her parents or not, they were both suddenly gone (and she may have been responsible). I would imagine that even if she didn't like one or both, once they were gone she may have noticed their NOT being there.

I have heard people say things like "I didn't realize how much so-and-so did until they were gone..."

I have never read anything like this attributed to Lizzie or Emma - does anyone know if either made such a statement?

So true, Kfactor. I guess we have a tendancy to take people close to us for granted. I didn't fully appreciate one of my friends when she was alive but after more than 30 years I still miss her. I'm sure Lizzie said many times to herself, "Boy I sure wish my father were here now. I miss him. I even miss Crabby Abby. I wish I could argue with her one more time." Whether Lizzie killed them or not I'm sure she missed them both to some degree, especially as she got older.

-1bigsteve (o:

I too have wondered about this.

I think she was glad Abby was gone. About Andrew she was probably a lot more ambivalent--she may have missed him a bit at times.

But I'm sure her newfound freedom, her new wealth and her new home (complete with a staff of servants, Emma, and no one to tell her what to do) went a long way towards consoling her loss.

I think Miss Lizzie was a cold fish.

I don't think she missed them. If she wanted them around, she wouldn't have killed them. (But, then again, that's just my opinion.)

I think she really didn't miss either one of them. She had enough money to console herself, anyway.

What about Emma? Did she miss her at all? She 'lost' her as well afterwards.

kfactor @ Mon Aug 13, 2007 8:46 pm wrote:I have wondered about this myself... One would think that whether Lizzie liked her parents or not, they were both suddenly gone (and she may have been responsible). I would imagine that even if she didn't like one or both, once they were gone she may have noticed their NOT being there.

I have heard people say things like "I didn't realize how much so-and-so did until they were gone..."

I have never read anything like this attributed to Lizzie or Emma - does anyone know if either made such a statement?

I see what you mean. I think it's pretty astute- that they were suddenly gone after 32 years (or in the case of Abbie- a bit less)- I think there would be a huge traumatic adaptation to be made.
If Lizzie did not kill, it would have been like post-traumatic stress I think, and grieving to boot! Especially after being incarcerated for 10 months and the long hot trial.

She was probably glad to be out and on her own at last, and with all that money! She could finally go and do or see whatever she so pleased! What do you think Andrew and Abby would've thought of the new house on French Street? Or Lizzie attending the World's Fair? Of the friendship with Nance? She was a finally a free woman. But she was also very secluded. After awhile even Emma left her. Could it be that Lizzie preferred being alone?

I kinda think that Lizzie did "Miss" her sister. It was never the same again
with them.

I don't think Lizzie missed her father, and certainly not "Mrs. Borden". I think Lizzie was most likely the type to hold onto grudges for life. According to her astrology sign: Cancerians have a retentive memory, particularly for emotionally laden events which they can recall in detail for years afterwards. (Source: http://www.astrology-online.com/cancer.htm). If this is true, and if Lizzie did kill Andrew and Abby or was involved in a conspiracy to have them killed, then whatever the reason she felt they had to died was carried within her for, most likely, the rest of her life. I think this is also true of Lizzie's feelings toward Emma, after their separation - whatever the reason was, for their separation, these two women never spoke again. This tells me that both Lizzie and Emma held grudges.