24 Matching Annotations
  1. Aug 2022
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    1. no rumour of the news had yet reached them

      I don't understand why she doesn't tell them. Is it because she's aware they think Captain Wentworth will marry Louisa? Is the engagement not sufficiently public? It's such a great piece of gossip! Though Anne is not one to gossip, perhaps she might have behaved differently were it not a "visit of ceremony" and her family not present

    2. if the woman who had been sensible of Captain Wentworth’s merits could be allowed to prefer another man

      Interesting echo to Lady Russell's thoughts about "the man who at twenty-three had seemed to understand somewhat of the value of an Anne Elliot, should, eight years afterwards, be charmed by a Louisa Musgrove" (Persuasion Chapter 13). She thinks it speaks badly of him to find someone superior to Anne, just as Anne almost can't believe that Louise prefers anyone to Captain Wentworth.

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    1. There was never any burst of feeling, any warmth of indignation or delight, at the evil or good of others

      I think this is why we glimpse Captain Wentworth sneering at Mary when she's being a snob and rolling his eyes at Mrs Musgrove when she's grieving her useless son. We see his humanity. His is a "frank...open-hearted..eager character" who's sincerity she can depend on because he "sometimes looked or said a careless or hasty thing"

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    1. But I hate to hear you talking so like a fine gentleman, and as if women were all fine ladies, instead of rational creatures. We none of us expect to be in smooth water all our days

      It's unclear if Captain Wentworth honestly thinks women require more care and better accommodations or whether he is avoiding women in general because of Anne. This line of Mrs Croft's is beautiful. There is a modern web series adaptation called Rational Creatures. I think this is an echo of Mary Wollstonecraft, Austen uses the term again when Elizabeth Bennet is rejecting Mr Collins proposal (P&P chapter 19)

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    1. she had a value for rank and consequence

      This is really hard for a modern reader to understand. Austen has just said how sensible Lady Russell is but she too panders to Sir Walter. This may be part of the reason she rejects Wentworth for Anne; true, he didn't have money but he also wasn't important enough - were he a penniless titled person I bet she would have supported the match. Austen excels at writing well rounded complex characters, she often pokes fun at their inconsistencies.

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    1. she was only Anne.

      We are hearing the echo of Sir Walter and Elizabeth's opinions/words. This is a strange introduction for the main character, she is ignored and secondary. Chapter 1 focuses on Sir Walter and then the family context, Chapters 2 and 3 are a group setting (and people finally speak). A first time reader may not identify Anne as the main character till chapter 4 when the text pivots to focus on her. In chapter 1 we hear of Elizabeth's disappointment with Mr Elliot but the history with Wentworth is hidden till Anne is alone. Modern texts tend to have more active, vibrant main characters (like Lizzy Bennet) who have agency and push the story forward through their choices and actions. Fanny Price in Mansfield Park is another good example of the sort of main character modern readers struggle with.

  18. Mar 2021