Bedelia was the personification of evil I thought as well.
I've mentioned elsewhere that I didn't think Scarlett belonged on this list as she was just trying to survive.

So you consider Anna Karenina evil? I kind of felt sorry for her and felt she paid for her sins.

She is!

I honestly feel Scarlet was a heartless creature, she was just trying to survive but she wanted more than to just 'survive' she wanted to thrive and she pushed others down to get what she wanted. At the end I'm not sure but I almost feel like she learned her lesson. I wish it had an epilogue that would tie then ends.

Funny enough, I don't feel she was evil. But she wasn't a good/likable woman. She wasn't sorry, and she was vile to me, because she left her child and a good man for a fling. People who do that bring so much hurt to others. All because she was selfish and didn't want to live with the life she'd chosen. But, that's just how the book made me feel.

I see your point about Scarlett, Tweety. But who knows how we would act in similar circumstances as Scarlett faced? I think we're all pretty lucky and pampered to be living at this point in history but what would happen if a major catastrophe occurred to our country? How would we behave when starving to death? Would we just wring our hands and watch our family starve or would we suddenly rise to meet the challenges we were forced to face?

Scarlett was a survivor even though she had to be heartless at times to survive. I think the trauma of losing everything she had made her obsessed with money in the end and no matter how much money she acquired she would never feel safe and secure again. She was certainly one single-minded woman when she made up her mind to do something.

I don't understand Anna either - how could she desert her poor child? I feel like Anna was a very weak and selfish person as well and made very poor choices.

That's true that till we are in someone else's shoes we can't always be sure how we would act. But, then again, look at all the other women in Gone With The Wind, Melanie was a good woman and she didn't push others down to survive. Or Scarlet's sisters, they may not have ended up rich like her, (or have been completely likable), but they remained honest. Frankly, whatever Scarlet's reasons for being like she was, she still strikes me as a heartless woman who is in no way admirable, unless you like her acting. No one made her do anything that she did, and she has only herself to blame for being disliked.

That's so true about Anna K, I think most weak and selfish people make bad decisions, and it's a pity because she could have been so different.

But that's the main point of GWTW, without Scarlett Melanie and Scarlett's sister would've starved to death as they didn't possess her strong will to survive.
Melanie, Ashley and Scarlett's sister were more or less useless and a weight around Scarlett's neck. Melanie and Ashley had the good sense to know that and stuck by her even when she was at her worst.

If possible Scarlett O'Hara would agree with your assessment of her character and was very much aware that she wasn't a nice person that could be heartless in order to survive. She was a very strong woman unlike Anna K. She was too busy trying to survive to worry whether or not people liked her.

Let's not forget Scarlett's redeeming quality though; she could've deserted her hapless family at any time and was mighty tempted to do just that at her lowest points. But she didn't. She was just as selfless as Melanie when it came to her family.
I certainly didn't admire Scarlett's actions but I am a little in awe of her none the less.

Bedelia, YES!!! Gemma was pretty nasty in Signa as well.

Laurie wrote: "But that's the main point of GWTW, without Scarlett Melanie and Scarlett's sister would've starved to death as they didn't possess her strong will to survive.
Melanie, Ashley and Scarlett's sister..."

Well, I guess with Scarlet we'll just have to agree to disagree on whether or not she really was vile. That's why this is a vote, I have voted for who I feel was vile, if you don't think she is, great! I don't mind. I personally don't like her and it's not a question of her being a strong woman or not. Strong people can be vile. She definitely looked after her family , but she also took her sister's boyfriend (Obviously he was weak, but that doesn't absolve Scarlet).

Anyway, let's agree she had good qualities and bad, for me the bad overshadowed the good. You were able to look beyond that and I'm glad you enjoyed it more than me.

Dorcas wrote: "Bedelia, YES!!! Gemma was pretty nasty in Signa as well."

Bedelia goes to the very top for me! Ah, you remembered her name, Gemma was a nasty piece of work.

Tweety wrote: "Laurie wrote: "But that's the main point of GWTW, without Scarlett Melanie and Scarlett's sister would've starved to death as they didn't possess her strong will to survive.
Melanie, Ashley and Sc..."

Hey Tweety, I never said Scarlett wasn't vile :D
I was suggesting she had a good reason to be so vile.
It's been great discussing GWTW with you - I've enjoyed our conversation.

Dorcas wrote: "Bedelia, YES!!! Gemma was pretty nasty in Signa as well."


Bedelia was probably demon possessed as well as vile :D

Laurie wrote: "Tweety wrote: "Laurie wrote: "But that's the main point of GWTW, without Scarlett Melanie and Scarlett's sister would've starved to death as they didn't possess her strong will to survive.
Melanie..."

Okay. :)