Star light, star bright...

Here's some information on the Pleiades star cluster, which I argued in class represented the dumpkeeper's daughters. I really think this is a telling sign in the book.

In African tradition, the Pleiades are considered either maidens that are being pursued by men, or a mother hen with her chickens (fox in a henhouse theory).

In Greek Tradition, the constellation is know as the "seven sisters", "the seven daughters of Atlas and of Pleione. They were the attendants of Artemis, goddess of wildlife and of hunting, who were pursued by the giant hunter Orion, but were rescued by the gods and changed into doves. After their death, or metamorphosis, they were transformed into stars, but are still pursued across the sky by the constellation Orion" (http://www.kitezh.com/sevensisters/pleiades.htm). This one fits with my theory of the girls because Lester is "hunting" his prey, much like Orion.

During the Bronze Age, the Pleiades were associated with mourning and funerals because the star cluster became visible on the Samhain (Halloween, All Souls Day), and in western astrology they represent coping with sorrow.