Jane Austen

Which other authors do you enjoy? Discuss them here.
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burlingtonbertram
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Re: What other author are you reading at the moment?

Post by burlingtonbertram »

Farwa wrote:
Anita Bensoussane wrote:I've always liked Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey, in which fiction books read by the characters (especially lurid Gothic novels) play an important part.
I agree Anita. Northanger Abbey is a lovely book. All the excitement, and then the disappointments felt by Cathrine, can be felt by us. One of her best works, I think.
However, I happen to be reading "Pride and Prejudice" nowadays.
Northanger Abbey could easily be mistaken for a Georgette Heyer.
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by burlingtonbertram »

Nice production of Northanger Abbey on ITV2 this morning starring Felicity Jones as Catherine Morland.

As Austen's books go, 'Northanger Abbey' is something of an ingenue compared to her more sophisticated sisters, but it's none the worse for that.
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Northanger Abbey was actually the first of Jane Austen's adult works that she completed, but she put it aside and worked on what were to become Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice instead, so they were published first. I don't believe she ever spent much, if any, time revising Northanger Abbey after it was originally written. Her brother discovered it and published it, along with Persuasion, after Jane's death, so we'll never know what revisions she might have made if she'd decided to get it published herself. I agree with you that it lacks the sophistication of Jane's mature style, but is still an entertaining read!
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Just found this interesting article from the Oxford Dictionary blog: Love and language in Jane Austen

I haven't seen most of the particular versions the author talks about, but it does reinforce my conviction that the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice is the greatest! :wink:
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Machupicchu14 »

Really Courtenay? Why?
I still believe the 2005 is the best one. How I love Mr. Darcy in that movie!!! :wink: :lol:
Courtenay, that's a very interesting article :D and true, the 1995 version is I think closer to the book.It's way longer, so I guess it's more similar. :)
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Machupicchu14 wrote:Really Courtenay? Why?
Because the 1995 version, as you say, is the most faithful to what Jane actually wrote. Having Colin Firth in it is an added bonus. :wink: (No, I can take or leave the legendary lake scene — it was ridiculously tame even by 1990s standards, for crying out loud — but he is the best-looking chap ever to play a Jane Austen lead role, as far as I've seen.)
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Machupicchu14 »

:lol: :lol:
"All, everything that I understand, I understand only because I love."
(все, что я понимаю, я понимаю только потому, что люблю)
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Machupicchu14 »

Who plays of Mr. Bingley in the 1995 version?
The one from 2005 is like so similar, Simon Woods, I mean, both him and Matthew McFadyen are like so cute :lol: I love them

Well despite the movie adaptations,I think Jane Austen is a wonderful author and Pride and Prejudice an amazing book.

By the way, where can you find Jane Austen's England? :D
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Machupicchu14 wrote:Who plays of Mr. Bingley in the 1995 version?
Crispin Bonham-Carter. Also a nice-looking guy, but almost never stops smiling throughout the entire six episodes. (Possibly to contrast with Colin Firth's Darcy, who never smiles at all throughout the entire six episodes until the very end of the last one, as he and Elizabeth get married! :lol:
Machupicchu14 wrote: By the way, where can you find Jane Austen's England? :D
Mainly Hampshire, where she was born (in Steventon) and lived most of her life. The two best museums devoted to her are Jane Austen's House Museum in Chawton (Hampshire) and the Jane Austen Centre in Bath (north-east Somerset). Jane Austen's House is the cottage where she lived from 1809 until just before her death in 1817. After the death of Jane's father, she and her sister Cassandra and their mother fell on hard times until Jane's brother Edward, who had been adopted into a rich family, inherited the Chawton estate and was able to give his mother and sisters this cottage to live in. It was a place Jane truly loved and was where she wrote or completed all six of her published novels. Really, really worth visiting if you can — it's a beautiful little place and you really get a sense of what Jane's home life was like and what inspired her.

Before they moved to Chawton, Jane and Cassandra and their mother lived in Bath for some years. Jane had visited Bath previously and it partly inspired two of her novels (Northanger Abbey and Persuasion), but she never really enjoyed living in the city and didn't do any writing while she was there. It's still a great place to learn about her and her times, though, as many of the buildings there are largely unchanged since her era — I always say Bath is THE most beautiful city I've ever seen anywhere in the world. :D The Jane Austen Centre there is fantastic and also teaches you a lot about Jane and her family and what their world was like. I would highly recommend either or both these museums if you're visiting England!
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Liam »

Courtenay wrote:Just found this interesting article from the Oxford Dictionary blog: Love and language in Jane Austen

I haven't seen most of the particular versions the author talks about, but it does reinforce my conviction that the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice is the greatest! :wink:
I do like the 1995 version with Colin Firth - especially that it’s five or so episodes long - but I have to admit that the American accent of Lizzie does not seem quite right. Maybe Lizzie’s accent is the thing they chose to make more down-to-earth in that version. In the 2005 version with Keira Knightley it is the house and home of the Bennett’s which is not as posh. I like that - I can relate to it - it makes that version seem very real to me. Plus the music is simply beautiful and uplifting. The Darcy of that version was less appealing to me at first, but I have come to appreciate him with more viewing. But from the start I could appreciate Keira Knightley! I think she struck gold to get that role in such a classic story at the age she did, and will be remembered for this role more than any other.
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Liam wrote:I do like the 1995 version with Colin Firth - especially that it’s five or so episodes long - but I have to admit that the American accent of Lizzie does not seem quite right. Maybe Lizzie’s accent is the thing they chose to make more down-to-earth in that version.
That's interesting — Lizzy in that version was played by Jennifer Ehle, who was born in America, but her mother was English and she (Jennifer) spent her childhood in both countries and did a lot of her drama training in London. Even after watching it multiple times, I've never picked up that she has a definitely noticeable "American accent" in P&P. If she does have tinges of it at times (and I can think of a few scenes where she does sound a little borderline), it would have to be because she is part-American, not because the producers deliberately decided to make her sound American. Unless you're an extremely good voice actor (or mimic), a native accent is very difficult to get rid of entirely! :wink:
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Liam »

When I wrote “does not seem quite right” I was being overly polite. What I meant was: my brain interprets her hybrid accent as a pretend British accent. But you know what they say - when someone irks you, it’s probably something of yourself that you see in them! I was told once that my accent was a put on - I think that person was just jealous of my colonial British accent! Traces of it still remain after all these years. Most people though quite like it.

And btw, the director could have chosen Jennifer Ehle because of her accent. :)
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Liam wrote: And btw, the director could have chosen Jennifer Ehle because of her accent. :)
True, but I've read and watched the official "making of" book and mini-documentaries for the BBC Pride and Prejudice and nowhere is there any suggestion that they picked Jennifer Ehle because they wanted Elizabeth to sound American or otherwise less English. I assume they were more concerned about who could carry the role best, regardless of accent.

Re-watching a few clips on YouTube, I can occasionally just hear a bit of American here and there in Lizzy's lines, but it's still almost unnoticeable (I wouldn't have picked it up if it hadn't been pointed out) and doesn't stand out in comparison to how the other (mostly very English) actors speak. I looked up an interview with Jennifer Ehle, speaking in her natural voice, and she definitely does sound like an American who's spent a lot of time in Britain. But she sounds quite different in P&P, so it doesn't seem they wanted her to play up her natural accent in any way.
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Liam »

Courtenay wrote:But she sounds quite different in P&P, so it doesn't seem they wanted her to play up her natural accent in any way.
To me Ehle’s accent stands out. I just took it they needed the requisite American presence to more appeal to that 300 million market. :wink: I don’t blame them. It’s just a bit distracting to me.
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Re: Jane Austen

Post by Courtenay »

Liam wrote:I just took it they needed the requisite American presence to more appeal to that 300 million market. :wink:
Could be. 8)
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