#1. What do you think of all Orual's changes in the kingdom? Are they good or bad? Why is she doing them?

Some changes are good and some are bad. It was very good idea of her to free slaves and give them land. It would have been better if she had freed all of them. Freed slaves will be loyal and grateful. I think she made this change 1. To gain support 2. because she likes the kind of attention she gets from doing such things. The slaves will adore her and she wants to be adored. I don't think she should have hanged Batta. She didn't seem to have a good enough reason to take her life. I think she did it more out of anger than out of logic. Prison or being sold would have been more appropriate. I think a lot of the changes she made were also a way for her to separate herself from her father. She doesn't want to be like him so she changes the way the kingdom is run. She seems to be running it better than he did. I think it is a good idea that she started a library.

I'll answer the rest of the question another time.

1. I think a lot of what she is doing is good. All the improvements--deepening the river, starting a library, fixing the mining system, improving the livestock--were all good things to do. I didn't really expect her to free all the slaves, if slavery is so much a part of their lives. She seems to be doing all this as part of her plan to be a great queen.
2. It seems that the gods in Glome also 'veil themselves'. They are mysterious and don't let anyone see their faces. That makes them seem much more frightening, and everyone is in awe of them, in much the same way that everyone is in awe of Orual.
3. I'm not sure what this means. It seems to be referring to the 'divide' of sorts between men and women, how neither really understands the other. She seems to be thinking of how Bardia has no idea of her feelings for him and goes back and forth between her and Ansit without a second thought, and how that is part of her troubles as a woman. Also, Glome does seem to be rather a male-dominated society, and that could also have something to do with it.

#2. Orual writes that her veil makes her "something very mysterious and awful." And she takes advantage of this popular perception. Is this anything like the actions of the gods she reviles?

I hadn't thought of it that way. But it could be seen that way. Orual reveals to the people what she wants to and the gods reveal to her (and other) what the want to. The gods are also not readily available to the people. The usually aren't seen and that makes them mysterious and awful.

#3.

The one sin the gods never forgive us is being born a woman.

What does Orual mean by this?

It was a rather confusing passage. It comes when she is taking about Bardia and her feelings about his wife. I think she means that women see things differently the men and are more observant. She is jealous of Ansit and Ansit is probably jealous of her. Bardia has no clue that there is any problem. She is probably also referring to a tendency to be jealous.

1. I think most of the changes were good. Her changes to the mines especially brought some prosperity back to the kingdom and improved conditions for the workers. Bringing in books was also a good thing. The slaves are a little harder, but I think it was mostly good. The slaves that she did set free were the honest ones who would adjust to life outside of slavery well and would be good workers. Her hanging Batta never really bothered me. Perhaps she did let her prejudice cloud her judgment in that case, but Batta was "the pest of the whole palace."

2. The gods are also hidden behind a veil of sorts. Holy things are thought to be terrible things in Glome, and so they are kept hidden. Orual's veil hides her ugliness, but it also adds mysteriousness.

3. Well, she was talking (writing?) about Bardia just before she says this. It's strange to think how Bardia went to and fro daily between Queen and wife, well assured he did his duty by both (as he did) and without a thought, doubtless, of the pother he made between them. This is what it is to be a man.
I think what she means is that men are not as aware of the jealousies of women. Or maybe she thinks men are incapable of feeling the same jealousies?