The Enigmatic Tatiana

[Olga Maria]

After all, Tatiana looks like an ancient goddess.

[gioia]

I love all of OTMA, but something about Tatiana has always interested me. I don't know if it's because she's sort of mysterious, or something about her character, or what she looks like...but she's very compelling, don't you agree?
What, exactly, do you think makes her look so different, and "exotic"? And what makes her so interesting?
Thanks

[LondonGirl]

Tatiana ... "601,1359,Ts.S., Apr. 6, 1915,p.79
 "... On Wednesday I am going to have a Commitee sitting which is so dull that it makes me sweat to think about it. I hate those sittings. Now we are sitting in Mother's bedroom after dinner. Mary and Mother are playing "Colorito" and Olga has gone to talk over the telephone with our hospital."

I don't think she enjoyed duty anymore than anyone else lol. Seems she found it rather dull. My feeling is she didn't suffer fools - so committees with their rigid and comical nonsense must have bored her almost stupid. I think she is basically a little misunderstood and stereotyped.

[Sunny]

I think she found much more important duty "at home". I mean, sewing, helping her mother, take care of her health and of Alexej's, and have a look on what her siblings did. The IF was a closed family in a certain way, they preferrred the company of themselves better to anyone else's; maybe she found dull whatever was duty "out of home"; i think that, on the contrary, she very much preferrerd "duty at home". duty is always duty and, of course, we shouldn't steretypy a person, but i thinks is undeniable she was the one who best beared the wwight of duty in the family - along with Nicholas. In this side, she was justn like Nicholas, and NOT like Alix. Alix couldn't bear duty and formal duties mkore than a minute. On the contrary, Tat'jana possesed her father's self control & phisical resistence (and a stronger mental one, IMHO than N). That's way, IMHO, Alix needed her so much: Tatiana was as practical as she was and as much decisional but she was stronger and more resistant in everyday life.

[Sarushka]

Tatiana's duty at the lazaret was also very important to her.

The key here may be that Tatiana was shy around large groups of people -- particularly those who were deferential to her. Valentina Chebotareva's diary contains a charming story (which of course I can't find right this minute) about Tatiana walking past a group of officers in the lazaret and feeling so awkward that she took Valentina's hand like a little girl. Tatiana's whispered comment was something like, I can never remember who I've greeted and who I haven't.

[Sunny]

Tatiana's duty at the lazaret was also very important to her.

The key here may be that Tatiana was shy around large groups of people -- particularly those who were deferential to her. Valentina Chebotareva's diary contains a charming story (which of course I can't find right this minute) about Tatiana walking past a group of officers in the lazaret and feeling so awkward that she took Valentina's hand like a little girl. Tatiana's whispered comment was something like, I can never remember who I've greeted and who I haven't.

 didn't know that, and that's very interesting, Thanks, Sarushka! In fact, many of those knew the IF wrote that all the Gds were shy - except Anastasia (or, at least, that is what Buxhoeveden wrote).

[GrandDuchessAndrea]

It crossed my mind that perhaps Tatiana didn't like duty as much as is thought, but she knew that she had to do it, and felt sort of obligated because none of her sisters were as inclined to do so...? I agree with Sunny that Tatiana probably felt more comfortable doing home duty than official public duty; I think that she must have felt some sort of warm satisfaction knowing that she was such a help to her mother and it pleased her very much to be able to be useful.
Just a thought...
It seems she had sort of two sides: the side who found much pleasure in being useful to her family, and the side that, when on vacation or free from obligations, would laugh as hard as anyone, look at fashion magazines... (and daydream of Dmitri Malama... ) But she truly loved her family, I know, and would do anything for them. She was very strong and possibly didn't have as hard a time giving up luxuries in capitvity, or else gave the outward appearance of it because she knew it would be best to set a good example. She was sort of a rock of gibraltar when NAM left Tobolsk...

EDIT: After looking at the "Tatina's Sense of Humor" thread, I thought of one more thing: there were times when Tatiana seemed to have just "let go" and had as much fun as Anastasia, kind of like in the scene in The Lost Crown when the other girls persuade her to slide down the hill without a sled.

Lots of "maybes", I guess this isn't a very consctructive post, just musings...but with history, the details especially, at some point, that's all we can do, is muse over whether it was this way or that.

[Sunny]

It crossed my mind that perhaps Tatiana didn't like duty as much as is thought, but she knew that she had to do it, and felt sort of obligated because none of her sisters were as inclined to do so...? I agree with Sunny that Tatiana probably felt more comfortable doing home duty than official public duty; I think that she must have felt some sort of warm satisfaction knowing that she was such a help to her mother and it pleased her very much to be able to be useful.
Just a thought...
It seems she had sort of two sides: the side who found much pleasure in being useful to her family, and the side that, when on vacation or free from obligations, would laugh as hard as anyone, look at fashion magazines... (and daydream of Dmitri Malama... ) But she truly loved her family, I know, and would do anything for them. She was very strong and possibly didn't have as hard a time giving up luxuries in capitvity, or else gave the outward appearance of it because she knew it would be best to set a good example. She was sort of a rock of gibraltar when NAM left Tobolsk...

EDIT: After looking at the "Tatina's Sense of Humor" thread, I thought of one more thing: there were times when Tatiana seemed to have just "let go" and had as much fun as Anastasia, kind of like in the scene in The Lost Crown when the other girls persuade her to slide down the hill without a sled.

Lots of "maybes", I guess this isn't a very consctructive post, just musings...but with history, the details especially, at some point, that's all we can do, is muse over whether it was this way or that.

I *totally* agree with Andrea  expecially when she says they are only "maybes". Of course we could never know for sure, but I like these sort of guessing.
I'm working hard on Tatiana's personality (i mean: to better understand it) for my novel. I've really found her enigmatic, i mean i'm sure there was something, or better, MUCH underneath the surface of a perfect and dutiful young woman, best child and best companion, and i'm studying her, in a certain way, to better understand her and try to find out something from underneath. I think the same as Andra's, and if i'm on this topic, is because i'm trying to "scrap" this surface a bit.

[TimM]

I'm working hard on Tatiana's personality (i mean: to better understand it) for my novel

Good luck on your novel

[Sunny]

I'm working hard on Tatiana's personality (i mean: to better understand it) for my novel

Good luck on your novel

Thanks Tim! After all my studying historical facts i'm now working on how correctly and coherently portraying the main carachters - OTMAA. it's hard, but also thrilling.

[Olga Bernice]

I second Tim - good (would it make sense if I said great? Hmm, one of those mysteries of the world ) luck on your novel! And if you need somebody to read it or anything . . . well, I'm no professional (not even close) but I'm always avalaible through PM's!

[blessOTMA]

Tatiana's duty at the lazaret was also very important to her.

The key here may be that Tatiana was shy around large groups of people -- particularly those who were deferential to her. Valentina Chebotareva's diary contains a charming story (which of course I can't find right this minute) about Tatiana walking past a group of officers in the lazaret and feeling so awkward that she took Valentina's hand like a little girl. Tatiana's whispered comment was something like, I can never remember who I've greeted and who I haven't.

Well said. What I love about their friendship is so often TN was expected to be the strong one ..or at least not needful ...yet with Chebotareva, Tatiana was  looked out for and emotionally supported in a touching manner. It was an important relationship imo

 from  Valentina Chebotareva's diary, please excuse the google translation:

January 16. 1916

Today Tatiana went with me after the dressings have upstairs at the dressing Popov. Sweet baby terribly embarrassed only when you need to pass the mass of the sisters, grabbed my arm: "The horror, how ashamed and afraid ... do not know who you shake hands with someone there."

To me she was quite a sensitive person...the exacting often are

[Sunny]

I second Tim - good (would it make sense if I said great? Hmm, one of those mysteries of the world ) luck on your novel! And if you need somebody to read it or anything . . . well, I'm no professional (not even close) but I'm always avalaible through PM's!

Youìre right it's all my fault (( sorrysorrysorry i'm going to make up for lost time today after work! I bet you're sleeping now so it will be ok ^^

Sorry for OT. Back to topic now.

January 16. 1916

Today Tatiana went with me after the dressings have upstairs at the dressing Popov. Sweet baby terribly embarrassed only when you need to pass the mass of the sisters, grabbed my arm: "The horror, how ashamed and afraid ... do not know who you shake hands with someone there."

To me she was quite a sensitive person...the exacting often are

I'm sure - also thanks to Annie - that behind the surface of a precise, exacting person who always wished to fix everything, another Tatiana, sensitive, shy, and romantic was half hidden. She showed up what she thiught it was her best part - or the one Alix preferred to accomplish her - but she wasn' only "The Governess".
But i'm quite sure both Tatiana & Anastasia were something this way. Maria and Olga were more spontaneous, more "sincere" because it was harder for them to hide their emotions. T&A, IMHO, were more self - controlled. But this is just IMHO.

*Ehy, guys, i'm LOVING this thread. This is so USEFUL for my work on carachterization! Thank you alla and... LET'S GO ON please ^^*

[Paul]

After reading all of the posts, the question occurs: had the revolution been averted, what would Tatiana been like as an adult? Anastasia, obviously, would've been the family liberal. Would Tatiana have been the family traditionalist?
What kind of man would she have married- if, indeed, she married at all?
Would she have emerged as a political power behind throne- but more in the loving protector mode than as an ambitious Regent Sophia? She obviously sensed a certain power that comes from having everyone depend on her so much.
Of course it's all speculation.

[Sunny]

Paul - i think she would have become famous for her engagement in hospitals. I bet she would have studied to become a doctor and not "only" a nurse and would have given the best of her in this. That was her world, that was what she was made for, IMHO.