The brief, charming scene of the sisters whispering conspiratorially is contrasted with a rather awkward conversation with Joseph at the dinner table.
Archduchess Marianne’s relationship with her brother Joseph (born 1741) had long been marked by veiled tension. Both were intelligent and studious, though Marianne, with her superior intellect and remarkable memory, consistently outperformed her brother in their lessons. Both were ambitious and somewhat arrogant — especially Joseph, who, as heir to the throne, had been lavished with attention from the day he was born. Marianne, by contrast, had come into the world as a disappointment to the Empress and gradually became the most ‘invisible’ of the siblings.
It hardly requires a psychologist to detect the solid grounds for mutual bitterness between them. Years later, after the death of Empress, when Joseph became the sole ruler, the poor relations between brother and sister drove Marianne’s decision to leave Vienna for Klagenfurt, where she spent the rest of her life.
Yet in this scene, Marianne manages the situation with finesse. She cleverly appeals to her brother’s ego and thereby draws him into conversation — and her efforts are rewarded with a fresh lead.
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