Here are my thoughts....
1. Though it was very successful, Jane Austen deemed Pride and Prejudice "rather too light." Austen hoped to address more serious issues in her next novel, Mansfield Park. Many readers and critics think Mansfield Park is Austen's most serious and most profound novel. How does it differ from other Austen novels? How are her treatments of class, gender, relationships, and most especially, faith, more nuanced and more mature?
I would have to say that this is a serious novel, not as light hearted as most of her others. But, the topic that she was constantly trying to bring out is a more serious topic. I think Annette said that she felt like Jane was preaching to her while she read, and I did too.
2. Describe the social positions of the three Ward sisters: Lady Bertram, Mrs. Norris, and Mrs. Price. How did they arrive at such different circumstances and how have their circumstances presumably affect their personalities? How do the sisters treat each other and how much of this is a result of their respective status?
These ladies drove me nuts. Each one was so lacking in motherly characteristics that I had a hard time remembering that they were the adults and not Fanny. They each arrived at their various circumstances by their choice of marriage and the luxury of the money that they married into, or in Mrs. Price's case didn't marry into. I think that their personalities might have changed a little once they were married but it wouldn't surprise me if they were just as annoying as unmarried women!
3. Describe the family's feelings for Fanny as the novel develops. How does the treatment of Fanny by Mrs. Norris and the Bertram sisters distinguish her from the rest of the children? How does Fanny feel about the Bertrams and how do her feelings change?
I felt like the Bertram sisters felt that they needed a charitable project to keep their status in high society so they adopted Fanny into their home. There was no love for Fanny, she was a burden to just about everyone, or so they thought. Mrs. Norris and the Bertram sisters believed that no one could possibly be better then themselves so they treated Fanny as a servant to make sure she never achieved a greater status then themselves. I felt that Fanny was grateful and terrified to be chosen and taken away from her home, even though it wasn't a caring home. If someone had nurtured her more, taken her under their wing, I bet she would have bloomed earlier than she did in the book. She wasn't my favorite heroine of the Austen novels but she did say some things that made me chuckle. (And if I wasn't on vacation writing this right now, I would flip through my book and write down some of my favorite Fanny quotes.)
4. Mansfield Park was divided into three volumes, published separately. Why do you think Austen chose this structure, and how does it affect your reading of the book?
My edition was divided and it didn't affect the reading of my book at all. It was still hard to read!
5. From the moment the idea is suggested, Edmund is against the staging of a play. Why is the play seen as inappropriate by both Edmund and Fanny? Why, once it is decided upon, does Edmund accept a part in the play, even though he would appear a hypocrite? What is the significance of their choice of plays, Lover's Vows?
Acting was considered to be something suggestive during Fanny's time. Pretending to be a different character was seen as dangerous by those with good moral values because you could forget who you were and just pretend, and that allowed all of those young people to be flirtatious and I think that was what bothered Edmund and Fanny. I think Rebecca said that she felt Edmund was kind of "wishy washy" for the entire book and again, I agree. He wasn't firm in his decisions, he could be persuaded by others, and I have a hard time viewing him as a parson.
6. Describe the similarities and differences between the courtship of Edmund and Mary and that of Fanny and Henry. What are the stumbling blocks in these two courtships that cause them to fail? Ugh! These courtships were tedious, nothing but lies and deceits. I hated the way Mary used Edmund and that Edmund allowed it to happen. Henry drove me nuts that he "chose" to try to break Fanny's heart and then ended up in love with her, and then ran off with her cousin. Hello! He is awful!!!! The part that I was a bit annoyed by was when Fanny and Edmund finally got together we didn't get to see it through the characters eyes, we heard it from the narrator. I was happy that Fanny finally got what she wanted but felt like Jane didn't really want to include that and added it as a side note at the end when she was all done preaching.
I do want to read this book again to see if I feel differently about it. Has anyone seen the movie? Is it any good?
3 comments:
I have seen both versions of the book...i liked them both. Perhaps having seen the movie first made Fanny of the novel harder to swallow...in neither movie version was she so one dimensionally good with no spunk. Edmund also fared better I think in the movies.
I liked the movie version I saw. I think Fanny is just too good. Jane Austen made her points better being light-hearted than heavy-handed.
Completely agree with you Jennie. Jane is easier to understand when she is light hearted.
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