Any Regrets?
(Regrets? Get it? We do crack ourself up.)
No pre-snarking, as we are really posting this before it aired so we haven’t seen it yet…so what’s the verdict, Gentle Readers?
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Anna – so glad I’m not alone! We got a flash flood warning here on Maui, and I literally started screaming at the tv screen! Could not believe that it went on for soooo long – it really felt longer than two minutes!! I keep telling my sister that they could have just scrolled it across the screen – I was also wondering what the conversation was?
As to Cassandra’s and Jane relationship…I didn’t think anything was weird about it. But, my sister and I are extremely close, and a lot of our friends don’t understand that we “like” hanging out with each other. Whereas, I think people who barely talk to their siblings(especially siblings of the same sex)and have no idea what is going on with there life are strange…and I find it a bit sad.
Question for the forum: I have often heard it said and it’s been noted here also that Jane Austen knew so much about true love despite having lived as a spinster. Would anyone agree that while she certainly wrote very compellingly about true attraction and the forming of attachments, (since no more than a couple of lines is ever dedicated in her books to the long haul i.e, the marriage once one is 5-10 years in), she actually never really wrote about true, lasting love? Yes, she writes of other secondary and tertiary characters who are long married and supposedly happy, but none of the protagonist couples is ever portrayed beyond the point of agreeing to marry. I think she was a master at creating partnerships that would be likely to end up in marriage given how courting took place at the time, but I’ve never been convinced that all of those pairings would be happy together forever. For instance, while I’ve always thought Elizabeth and Darcy had a good chance of keeping the spark for the long haul, I have equally always thought that Marianne Dashwood would become terribly bored with Edward Ferrars over time. Anyway, just throwing that out there. It’s not a criticism of her work which I have adored for over 30 years. It’s just a distinction between writing well about falling in love versus staying in love.
I enjoyed it. I loved Olivia Williams in the Beckinsale Emma, Peter Pan, and Rushmore. I love that face of hers, not just in a girl-crush way, but she’s so lovely and expressive. Speaking of girl-crush, though, I don’t think there was anything creepy about Jane and Cassandra. there was just the creepiness of growing old with your own sister, having that over-closeness of being always together: finishing sentences, knowing how to push buttons, codependency. I’ve seen some of that in my husband’s family, and it’s unfortunate but only as creepy as is the situation.
And wasn’t Greta Scacchi Mrs. Weston in the Paltrow Emma?
I am ashamed. I was watching the Super Bowl, and I missed it.
Do you know of any of those way cool bootleg sites to watch it on?
I’m sure someone will post the stray satellite signal reception location eventually… *cough*
From Comment 52: “I have equally always thought that Marianne Dashwood would become terribly bored with Edward Ferrars over time.”
Marianne pretty much said that herself early in the novel. Good thing she married Colonel Brandon, while her sister married Edward Ferrars.
I regret watching “Miss Austen Regrets.” Jane was bitter, Fanny annoying and Cassandra quite bland. If that accurately portrayed the end of Jane’s life, I’d rather be ignorant and stick to her fictional creations.
To SeaSpot — apparently it’ll be in the same box as the new S&S when that comes out.
Shout out to Julie P. and SeaSpot!!! Haven’t seen y’all around in a coon’s age. Fond memories of the old Sam W. “B” index. Regretfully, I also missed seeing this new JA broadcast, so will be watching for random satellite links *cough*.
Kira: Oops! Note to self: do not comment after a terribly long day on e-mail when ones brain is no longer functioning. Thanks for catching the error. I meant Elinor but I’m too tired this morning to re-post the whole question so I’ll just let it go.
PaddyDog–I actually wasn’t sure if you meant Elinor, or if you thought Marianne would tire of Colonel Brandon. It did make me smile, though, thinking of Marianne’s “there is a something wanting” speech about Edward!
I thought the film was a well done and interesting depiction of Jane’s life. There were some things I did not agree with. For example, it seemed a little jarring to hear her discuss characters from her books in social situations. Somehow I imagined that she would be more private about her work, feeling like she was calling too much attention to herself to discuss it at length socially. But, that is just my guess.
I applaud the attempt to show her as a real woman in early middle age. The scene where she is reacting to the Doctor turning his attention to Fanny’s youthful charms, and away from her complex, mature beauty, was very touching. Also, dealing with an unreasonable, demanding mother is an experience that many women in their 40s and 50s share today. Perhaps she would have written about long lasting love and marriage if she lived longer?
To Deb R. — how did you like the description of the “real” Captain Wentworth’s visit to Brooklyn yesterday? I am still very sad I could not sneak out of work to get there.
Julie P – I am all despair!!!!! I just dashed back over to that post, hopeful that someone had reported on the event, but alas, still nothing. I bet our old friend Helen on the Left Coast is also tearing her hair out over missing this. I agree, (most of) the oldies are still the goodies.
Miss Austen regrets she’s unable to write today…
I liked this much more than I thought I would! I’m too exhausted from posting about Ciaran Hinds over at Pemberley to give much detail but even if I weren’t I wouldn’t want to say too much. Even though we all share a love of Jane, we all have our own personal relationship with her, and to talk too much about this almost feels like spilling the secrets of a friend.
I will only add that I cried at her being fawned over almost as much as I did when she suffered.
#52
I agree with you, PaddyDog. Jane Austen is supposed to have written love stories, but that was never my impression.
There is talk of ‘love’ but not dealt with in great detail in her novels, because that was never the main theme.
NA – a parody of a *certain* kind of gothic novels.
S&S – she’s actually drawing in words the quality of these two characteristics, it’s effects etc.
P&P – the high and lows of society
MP – The different moral standards
Emma – she tries her hand at mystery, plus drawing a pretty picture of provincial life in Highbury
Persuasion – this is one novel with love as quite central. We see it immortalized in the letter. But there is also a quality about it which seems to draw a picture of ‘women’s situation at home, with so many women characters in different situations. Persuasion has the most number of women.
And of course *all* novels deal with the teething problems of growing up, the situation of women in society etc.
How she came to be called a writer of love stories, I can’t imagine.
PS: my comment about there being the most number of women in Persuasion, actually meant ‘the most number of women in ’significant’ roles.
Mrs Smith, Mrs Clay, Lady Russell (the most important, I would say
the two Musgrove sisiters. And of course the three Eliot sisters.
Didn’t read all the comments..so I may be duplicating. Olivia Williams was great. She, of course, made the quintessential Jane Fairfax in “Emma” and I thought she was fabulous here too.
I know there are big holes in Jane Austen’s story…but I didn’t like a lot of the dramatic license taken with what we do know.
Miss Austen did appear to make a rich and rewarding life, despite her circumstances. I guess I didn’t like that THAT wasn’t celebrated more, instead of the constant litany of regrets and missed chances.
But…taken for what it is…it was well paced, beautifully costumed and I agree with those who said what a pleasure it was to hear some of Jane’s written words spoken by this Jane.
Since I have not seen MAR yet, I have been looking up the JA’s letters where Dr. Haden appears mentioned and in one, she wrote:
He is no apothecary… He is a Haden, nothing but a Haden…”
Also one of the entries in Fanny Knight’s diaries, as quoted by the JA Family Record, Fanny wrote:
“Mr. Haden, a delightful clever musical “Haden” comes every evening…”
As English is not my first language, I suspect I am missing a joke since both aunt and niece refer to him as a “Haden”, I would think the word might not only be a family name but also a noun of which I do not know its meaning, I have looked up at some of the dictionaries I have but it does not show. Is there an English word “haden” and what does it mean, please?
Cinthia, I do not know of a word “Haden” either. I can only think that Fanny is making a joke about him being like Hayden the composer – maybe?
I agree, Mags!
I was thinking, Jane never expected to make any money on her writing, right? I mean, she was thrilled that she did, and wanted to make more (and there are some laughing allusions in her letters to that), but she never had any intention of supporting her family, and no one expected that of her.
Jen K,
>I’m too exhausted from posting about Ciaran Hinds over at Pemberley <
And where at Pemberley would this be?
“there was just the creepiness of growing old with your own sister, having that over-closeness of being always together: finishing sentences, knowing how to push buttons, codependency. I’ve seen some of that in my husband’s family, and it’s unfortunate but only as creepy as is the situation.”
That made me sad…and a bit scared! Sister and I live together, and neither of us are married…although at 27, I wouldn’t want to be married yet. But, is closeness with a sister weird with most people? I guess it could be if, as Debra mentioned above, it became an over closeness that closed out other people, or made one too dependent on the other.
Cinthia, there is no word “Haden,” Jane was just being silly and lighthearted. I think that might be where the idea that she had a crush on Mr. Haden came from. I am of the opinion that she was being silly because she liked him for Fanny’s sake (though perhaps she liked him herself, a little bit).
Lori, I personally would like to see a movie with Jane being a shrewd businesswoman–because I think she was (and they did show that in passing in MAR–she talked about switching publishers, etc.). And I think she always WANTED to make some money from her writing but was thwarted on her first couple of attempts–when her father tried to sell First Impressions and then the Susan mess with Crosby & Son. But still, she had a pretty sweet deal at Chawton–her brothers supported her financially and her mother and Cassandra and Martha Lloyd did the housework so she was free to write. But I’m sure she would have preferred to have money of her own, and especially felt it when the family was going through their financial crisis as shown in the movie.
LynnS, the post (and its many responses!) is on the Meetings board. There is also a pointer from the Persuasion board. As, you know, that is the movie we were all there to watch and discuss
Mags, I thought about linking, or copying and pasting, or whatever, over here, but just couldn’t imagine where or if or when. ?
You could send me an e-mail.
I haven’t seen it yet, but can’t wait to! Actually, the thought of Jane getting a bit tipsy now and then makes me grin. She certainly had no aversion to wine – there are various references in her letters to drinking it.
Someone above wrote, “SHE attributes her shaking hand to too much drinking, but we know it is an early symptom of her illness.” I beg to differ. She wrote that letter in 1800 when she was 24 years old. A full 15 years before the onset of her fatal illness.
Elaina and Mags, thank you both very much about “Haden”, I was afraid that I might be missing a joke.
I think that might be where the idea that she had a crush on Mr. Haden came from. I am of the opinion that she was being silly because she liked him for Fanny’s sake (though perhaps she liked him herself, a little bit).
I do agree with you Mags, on both accounts. That’s where they got the idea but streched it too much.
There is another quote from her letters where I think they got the idea that she was jealous of Fanny because of Haden (Letter no. 128) because she almost desires her niece should be gone so Henry could recover faster.
Still, it seems I would accept more willingly the speculations of this film than those so off the mark ones from Becoming Jane.
Karenlee, I agree with you about the no aversion to wine. What others may have found unappropiate, I am looking forward to watch it (as soon as it becomes available, either the DVD or the strayed signal
) and judge if it is what I had imagined from her.
As you say, the original quote of the shaking hand was many years before when it seems to appear on the film, however, as you say, there are many references in her correspondence about drinking and there is one of the later years when she commnents something like one of the advantages of being now the chaperone is that then she was allowed to drink as much as she wanted (these are not precisely her words, I’m just paraphrasing the idea).
I figured the joke was Haden and Hayden.
I figured the joke was Haden and Hayden.
Do you mean Haydn?
Just an FYI to throw into the mix. If Jane did have Addison’s Disease of the Adrenal glands, there would likely be a very gradual onset of symptoms before an acute exacerbation, possibly due to stress, called an Addisonian Crisis or Acute Adrenal Insufficiency. Not sure if the symptoms would go on for 15 years before an exacerbation of symptoms.
I’m noticing a trend that the adaptations Janeites like are not liked by critics, who don’t get all the details that were right, while the adaptations that take the most liberties annoy those of us who know better, but end up delighting those who don’t. In Entertainment Weekly this week, Becoming Jane gets a B+ while The Jane Austen Book Club, based on Karen Joy Fowler’s well-detailed book, only gets a C+. This was the reverse appraisal of Richard Roeper when the films came out, and he seemed rather more well informed on Jane than I would have thought. Miss Austen Regrets seems to have been better received by lovers of Jane than by critics in general, perhaps because it was so attentive to details like the order of the novels, if not her hats.
Soes anyone know if Miss Austen Regrets is available online anywhere, as the new S&S very quickly was?
I am wondering the same think, Karenlee. The links are not necesary if they may cause troubles to Mags, but just a pointer would be enough. So far, I still searching in the usual sites where the adaptations were available when they first aired in UK, but nothing. I am astonished that people over there were more quick to upload them, than now people in US have been. Is it that nobody recorded in any digital format?
Cinthia/Karenlee – where do people normally post online? Cinthia mentions the ‘usual sites’ is there a way to located those sits, per say, google on certain words.
The latest Sense & Sensibility was up within – it seemed – days of the broadcast on some Asian site. Don’t have the link to it anymore though.
*checks in hopefully*
I guess no one has found anywhere on line where we can watch this yet…