Thursday, August 20, 2020

Rereading Jane Austen in August...

I don't care what anyone else says, I like Fanny Price! She may not be as outspoken, confident or lively as Elizabeth Bennett or Emma Woodhouse are, but then she doesn't enjoy the same privilege of position that they do either. She's the poor relation who's treated more like a servant than a member of the family. In a lot of ways, Fanny Price is Jane Austen's version of Cinderella. She's quiet, long-suffering, generous, and kind, but most of all, she has a good heart. (Plus, she loves books--having "been a collector from the first hour of her commanding a shilling.") And that's why I like her. She's good. (A quality highly under-rated these days.)

What I noticed most as I read Mansfield Park this time around is that the book is really a study in contrasts between Mary Crawford and Fanny Price. They are such opposites. Mary is outgoing and makes conversation easily; Fanny is quiet and shy. Mary needs to be constantly active and amused; Fanny finds contentment in solitude--enjoying her books and her own thoughts. Mary is careless and never chastises her brother, Henry, for his outrageous flirtations; Fanny sees and silently condemns his dishonorable behavior. When Mary has the chance to marry for love, she refuses because Edmund's position in society isn't prominent or important enough for her. Fanny, on the other hand, has the chance to marry a man of wealth and position, but refuses because he's not a man she can love.

So who's more likeable? For me, Fanny wins hands down. And I'm glad that, like Cinderella, she gets her happily ever after in the end. Because she deserves it. So, here's to Fanny! 


Happy Reading!

P.S. And while they've yet to make a really good movie version of this particular Austen novel, this 2007 Masterpiece one wasn't too bad. 


39 comments:

  1. I have to admit I've never read any Austen. I might have to make it a goal to read at least one classic every month.

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    1. One classic a month should be doable. There's certainly a lot of good ones to choose from. :)

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  2. I'm sad to say I haven't read anything by Jane Austen. I like the sound of this one though. Fanny sounds like a great character. :)

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    1. I really like Fanny. But then I love most of Austen's heroines. :D

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  3. Great commentary. I remember reading this and thinking that it was brilliant but maybe a little less brilliant then other Austen novels. I should give it a reread soon.

    It is neat that Fanny likes books so much. I actually reading Anne Radcliffe’s Mysteries of Udolpho as a result of this book.

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    1. I ended up reading an Anne Radcliffe after reading Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey. I just had to see what the Gothic fuss was all about. ;D

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  4. I've always liked Fanny too - not everyone can be like Elizabeth and Emma!

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  5. I haven't read any of the Austen books, but I've seen them adapted on the screen. Many versions. I think I liked this version, too, but there's another I've watched more (1999 version) either because I had the cd or video (that old) or my sister-in-law did. Now I need to do a re-watch! :)

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    1. Ooh...I'll have to see if I can find that version and give it a watch. :)

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  6. Oddly, the only Austen I haven't read is Mansfield Park. I've no idea why. I have seen the movie version you mention with Billy Piper though, and like you said, it's not bad. I think my favourite Austen adaptation is Emma Thompson's Sense and Sensibility with the Colin Firth P&P coming in a close second. :-)

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    1. Those are my two favorite movie adaptations, too! :D I also like the version of Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow.

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  7. I've always been really curious about Austen (especially since starting a book blog) but have never read her, although I tend to like many of the adaptations I see (especially Sense and sensibility). One of these days I may buckle down and read some Austen.

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    1. You should at least try her once in your life! :)

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  8. This is one of the few Austen I’ve never read, I can never seem to get past Elizabeth and Mr Darcy. I might actually watch the adaptation and see what it is like.

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    1. Yeah, check out the movie and see if you like it! It would at least be a good introduction to this book. :)

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  9. I'm not a classics person I have to say. I tried a few but it wasn't to my reading tastes and I never watch the adaptations. But there must be something good in the writing if so many people still enjoy it after all these years!

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    1. I think Austen captures something in her books about women and relationships and life that still ring true today.

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  10. I haven't read this but I really enjoyed a few of her other books. :)

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    1. Someday you'll have to give this one a try. :)

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  11. I've yet to read this one, but after this post I'm really looking forward to it now :) Thanks, Lark!

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    1. I'm a Jane Austen fan, so I like all of her books. :)

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  13. I’ll confess I haven’t read this one but I saw the 2007 version!

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  14. Hi Lark, I haven't read Mansfield Park yet but I think I would like Fanny Price as well. She sounds like a different sort of heroine than Elizabeth Bennett. I love Jane Austen. Read 3 of her books and I am eager to read Emma as well. I do wish Austen had taken a few more risks with her plots but then again she is one of the greatest writers ever and she knows her territory.

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    1. Emma always makes me laugh. I like that book a lot. And I think Austen wrote what she knew...and risk-taking for women back then wasn't really a thing, you know?

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  15. I haven't read Austen for years...but I can claim to having read Pride & Prejudice at least four times and have seen several versions of it in movie and TV form. Does that count?

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    1. Definitely! You've certainly read her best; although I do love several of her other books. :)

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  16. I started Mansfield Park a couple of years ago and unfortunately it was one I had to put aside but I do plan to read it one of these days.

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    1. I think you have to be in the right mood for this book. I hope you get a chance to read it someday. :)

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  17. I agree with your assessment of Fanny Price but for some reason I just didn't warm to her. Anne Elliot, the Dashwood sisters, and even Catherine Morland were more appealing characters to me. (Now, if we're talking Austen men, Mr. Darcy and Captain Wentworth win hands down.) Good post.

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    1. I love Catherine Morland and Anne Elliot, too, but especially Catherine. :) Thanks for commenting!

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  18. I always enjoy Mansfield Park and Fanny. It is a study in contrasts and Fanny does end up wearing the glass slippers in the end.

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  19. I completely agree with this post. I actually really admire Fanny. She is a quiet person with a core of strength and the ability to stand up for what she believes is right. That deserves to be appreciated.

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  20. I have a problem with the first cousins thing. Like the age difference in older novels, that is something modern readers have to accept - things were different then.

    I was hoping that Fanny would end up with Henry and Edmund with Mary and that they would compliment each other. But that's not the story that Austen wanted to tell. I have only read this one once so maybe upon re-reading I will appreciate Fanny more. :D

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    1. I also seem to appreciate Austen's novels more the more I read them. Not all books are like that for me, but hers are.

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