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...