59 pages • 1-hour read
Waverley
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Symbols & Motifs
The Highlands
The Scottish Highlands are both a setting and symbol in Waverley. Edward had been taught that the people of the Highlands were barbaric and the landscape was uninhabitable, but he learns throughout the novel that the people and culture are more diverse and nuanced than the generalizations he had internalized at Waverley-Honour. In fact, the Highlands are much more welcoming to Edward than any other region in the novel. He is treated like one of Fergus’s clan, contrary to the betrayal he feels from his regiment, and he experiences passion for a cause for the first time in his life. Through Edward’s eyes, Scott puts a positive spin on many of the contemporary English and Lowland assumptions about the Highlands, emphasizing their simple and natural way of life. Still, Edward and Scott romanticize the Highlands in a way that some readers find a bit fantastical. This is because the Highlands are not just a place, but a symbol of romanticism. Flora, whose untamed passion and interest in the greater good recall to Edward the romantic stories he daydreamed of in childhood, represents the most positive aspects of romanticism, including idealism and reverence for nature. Yet by the end of the novel, Flora and the other Highlanders are gone, dead or banished in the aftermath of the conflict. The Highlands thus also symbolize the past, as Scott is focused on preserving the culture and character of the region that was hit the hardest following the Jacobite uprising. In this way, the Highlands represent what Scotland once was and what remains after the uprising.
Names and Titles
Names and titles are incredibly important to many of the characters within Waverley. For several characters, including Edward, Bradwardine, and Fergus, their connection to their name and title provides their primary motivation. Sir Everard wants Edward to carry on the family name and reminds him before he joins his regiment that he is “the last of that race” and the only one capable of preserving the Waverley legacy (137). As the last son of the Mac-Ivors, Fergus is in a similar situation. However, each man perceives his duty to his title differently. Though Edward cares less and less for his title and inheritance throughout the novel, he is still influenced by Sir Everard’s insistence that he uphold the family name. Fergus is more motivated by his family legacy, however, knowing his clan depends upon him to be a good leader. Fergus also bears the title of chief proudly, and the different names he is called in different regions like Vich Ian Vohr and Glennaquoich symbolize his family’s history and power over the land.
Other characters’ titles are used against them because of the political alliances they represent. Though a Baron who comes from a highly distinguished family, Bradwardine cannot escape persecution for his involvement with the Jacobites. Though she shares the Bradwardine name, Rose is unable to inherit the title as the Bradwardine estate is entailed away from the female line. Edward’s name and social status are used against him by Donald Bean Lean, who uses the Waverley family seal to convince British soldiers to join the Jacobites. The Waverley name also carries weight for Colonel Talbot, who risks his life to defend it when he goes to Scotland to get Edward. Overall, names and titles have great symbolic significance to the characters of Waverley and influence or represent the motivations of its characters.
Tartan
Tartan—the patterned plaid cloth worn in different regions across Scotland—is highly symbolic both in Waverley and in Scottish history. Tartans come in many different colors, patterns, and styles, each one representing different families, clans, or regions of Scotland. Scott makes note of many significant times when Edward sees tartan, such as when it is worn as a kilt, when it is used to distinguish clans, or when it is used to represent someone’s loyalty to a particular cause. Though characters like Talbot make fun of the use of tartan in the Highlands, tartan is culturally significant to many of the Scottish characters in Waverley, who often use it to show their identity and allegiances. One of the most symbolically poignant moments in the text is when Edward is given an outfit of the Mac-Ivor tartan when he officially chooses to join the Jacobites in battle. This moment shows how Edward is accepted as a part of Fergus’s clan after he has pledged to support him unconditionally. The prince also wears the tartan of the House of Stuart, emphasizing the Stuarts’ connection to Scotland. Part of the reason many Scots were supporters of the Jacobite cause was because the Stuarts were kings of Scotland, and the king’s sartorial choice emphasizes that connection. When the Tully-Veolan mansion is restored, it includes a portrait of Fergus and Edward in Mac-Ivor tartan to symbolize their heroics in the uprising. After the Battle of Culloden, wearing tartan was outlawed by the British government because they considered it a symbol of treason. Yet by Scott’s time, tartan was becoming more acceptable across Britain. When George IV made his first visit as king to Scotland in 1822, he wore tartan to symbolize the healing union between England and Scotland.
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