British Literature from 1800, "The Mythmakers"

For Tuesday's class, read at least through the "Pig and Pepper" Chapter (VI), though read more if you like. However, we're going to break this into two parts, so we'll finish the rest on Thursday.  Answer TWO of the following: Q1: How might Alice in Wonderland be a satire of a Victorian childhood, much as Austen satirized early 19th century womanhood? From what we read here, what might have been expected of young girls or children in the 1860's? What is Carroll specifically making fun of or parodying through Alice's adventures? Q2: When Carroll originally wrote the book for Alice Liddell (the daughter of a friend), he included his own illustrations throughout. When the book was properly published, the publisher insisted on more professional illustrations, and John Tenniel (a popular artist) was hired to provide illustrations throughout. Why are the illustrations as important as the text of the story? What do they add to the experience of reading Alice in W...

  Answer TWO of the following:  Q1: Why, after the slow lead-up to Darcy's final proposal, does Austen suddenly race through the subsequent marriages and get everyone settled in a single chapter, stopping only to include a brief letter from Lydia? In other words, why does she end with a telescope where many people would have preferred a microscopic approach? Q2: After meeting with Lady Catherine (see Q3), her mother asks her about their conversation, and the narrator reflects, "Elizabeth was forced to give into a little falsehood here; for to acknowledge the substance of their conversation was impossible" (Ch. XIV). Why does Lizzie continue to withhold information from her parents, even after berating herself earlier for not telling them about Wickham? Is this a testament to her pride, or her prejudice (against her parents)?  Q3:One of the greatest scenes in the book is the verbal duel between Elizabeth and Lady Catherine in Chapter XIV. In many ways, this scene illus...

Self-Portrait by Elizabeth Vigee Le Brun, 1790 For Thursday, start reading Vol.3, getting to or around Chapter 9. But again, if you fall short, you will still be able to contribute to the in-class writing.  Here are some general ideas to consider (you DON'T need to answer these): * Note Elizabeth’s reaction to arriving at Pemberley: what do you make her reaction to the feel of the place, and of the account of Darcy his housekeeper gives her? Is she dazzled by the sheer wealth and spectacle of the place, or something else? * How does Darcy signal a change in his attitude (if not his love) at their next meeting? How should Elizabeth and the reader ‘read’ this? * Think, too, about how letters continue to play an important role in the novel, even when we can’t literally read them. It’s possible that First Impressions was an epistolary novel before Jane Austen re-wrote it as Pride and Prejudice . So why might she have retained some of the letters, and/or their role in the plot? * ...

Gainsborough, Portrait of Molly and Peggy (c.1760) REMEMBER: No class on Thursday--go to the 1920's event in the UC instead!  Try to read all or as much of Part II as you can for Tuesday's class since you have a few extra days (and what else would you want to do, except spend all day reading Austen?!).  Answer TWO of the following: Q1: How does Austen satirize the upper classes ala Mr. and Mrs. Andrews (the Gainsborough painting) at  Rosings? Consider how Lady Catherine treats her social inferiors--the Collins and Elizabeth--and how might Austen be sharing Elizabeth 's delight here in "anything ridiculous"?   Q2: How does the manner of Darcy’s proposal echo, in some particulars, that of Mr. Collins? Why is each one incapable of a truly flattering, romantic proposal? What factors does Darcy apparently have to overcome to express his love and affection to Elizabeth ? Q3: Why do you think Elizabeth conceals the proposal from her family, as well as the truth about Wi...

Rare painting by a woman of a woman from the 19th century: Marie Denise Villers, portrait of  Marie Joséphine Charlotte du Val d'Ognes NOTE: If you want to know more about the painting above, which is by one of only a handful of female painters of this period, check it out at the Met Museum's website here:  https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/437903 Answer TWO of the following as usual... Q1: After a fairly short acquaintance, Elizabeth Bennet uncharacteristically falls for George Wickham, a “red coat,” one of the officers that Kitty and Lydia chase about. As she herself says, "he is, beyond all comparison, the most agreeable man I ever saw." Why does she fall for him? IS this really out of character for her? Or might it tie into the overarching themes of the novel itself (hint: remember the original title)? Q2: Why does Charlotte agree to marry Mr. Collins after Elizabeth has already refused him? And more importantly, why doesn't Elizabeth  b...

  Joseph Ducreux, Portrait of a Gentleman As always, answer TWO of the following, and get as far as you can in the novel before Friday's class, even if you don't finish all 13 chapters (but go further if you like!):  Q1: Some of the most famous lines in English literature are the opening lines of this novel, which begin, "It is a truth generally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife..." These lines are of course deliciously satirical, and suggest that everything that follows is an elaborate lampoon, sort of like Gainsborough’s painting of Mr. and Mrs. Andrews. But is that the only way to read this? Can this be more than just a good-natured ribbing of small-town society? Are there darker implications to this fortune-cookie like wisdom? Q2: Though the novel isn't a first-person account of English life in the country, the narration seems to borrow something from a first-person perspective. Discuss a passage whe...