Pride and Prejudice 2.0: Interpretations, Adaptations and Transformations of Jane Austen's Classic 9783737004527, 9783847104520, 9783847004523

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Representations & Reflections Studies in Anglophone Literatures and Cultures

Volume 11

Edited by Uwe Baumann, Marion Gymnich and Barbara Schmidt-Haberkamp

Hanne Birk / Marion Gymnich (eds.)

Pride and Prejudice 2.0 Interpretations, Adaptations and Transformations of Jane Austen’s Classic

In cooperation with Carolin Brühl, Anna Coogan and Ann-Sophie Treuheit

V& R unipress Bonn University Press

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Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available online: http://dnb.d-nb.de. ISSN 2198-5448 ISBN 978-3-8471-0452-0 ISBN 978-3-8470-0452-3 (e-book) ISBN 978-3-7370-0452-7 (V& R eLibrary) You can find alternative editions of this book and additional material on our website: www.v-r.de Publications of Bonn University Press are published by V& R unipress GmbH. Ó 2015, V& R unipress GmbH, Robert-Bosch-Breite 6, 37079 Göttingen, Germany / www.v-r.de All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher. Printed in Germany. Cover image: Ó The British Library Board F60121–39 C.131.c.1. Title page. Printed and bound by CPI buchbuecher.de GmbH, Zum Alten Berg 24, 96158 Birkach, Germany. Printed on aging-resistant paper.

Contents

Hanne Birk Preface: Go, Lizzy, Go! Celebrating Pride and Prejudice . . . . . . . . . .

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Marion Gymnich 200 Years of Reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice; or Where the Literary Canon Meets Popular Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Marie-Josefine Joisten The Serious Business of Mrs Bennet and the Consequences of a Mother’s Fear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Nadezˇda Rumjanceva ‘And she beheld a striking resemblance to Mr. Darcy’: Nineteenth-Century Illustrations of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice . .

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Uwe Baumann Elizabeth Bennet, Liebe und Ehe – Untersuchungen zu Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice und den deutschen Übersetzungen des Romans . . .

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Elena Baeva ‘My name is Lizzie Bennet, and this is my [vlog]’ – Adaptation and Metareference in The Lizzie Bennet Diaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Stella Butter Jane Austen Meets Bollywood: Forms and Functions of Transcultural Adaptations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 Imke Lichterfeld Mr Darcy’s Shirt – An Icon of Popular Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

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Gislind Rohwer-Happe The Mr. Darcy Complex – The Impact of a Literary Icon on Contemporary Chick Lit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Ulrike Zimmermann Crime Comes to Pemberley – Pride and Prejudice Sequels in Contemporary Crime Fiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 Hanne Birk Gothic Fiction Bites Back – The Gothification of Jane Austen at the Beginning of the 21st Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245 Silke Meyer ‘Spank me Mr. Darcy’: Pride and Prejudice in Contemporary Female (Hardcore) Erotica . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Uwe Küchler Participatory Transfer/mations: Inviting Pride and Prejudice Adaptations into the Foreign Language Classroom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 Hanne Birk and Marion Gymnich with Sarah Cordes, Sarah Fißmer, Corinna Jörres, Christine Lehnen and Manuela Zehnter Elizabeth Bennet: A Heroine Past and/or Present? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Bettina Burger Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our time? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Denise Burkhard and Simone Fleischer Have a Fan-tastic 200th Birthday, Lizzy! – Elizabeth Bennet in Recent Fan Fiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311 Contributors

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Hanne Birk

Preface: Go, Lizzy, Go! Celebrating Pride and Prejudice

Over the last 200 years Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has been read by millions of readers all over the world – and by some of them innumerable times. It is them who allowed the text (or the experience of having read it) to remain with them wherever they went and it is the same readers who took the novel also with them through their lives and passed it on to younger generations. In other words, only due to its readership neither space nor time could counteract the continuous blossoming of the Pride and Prejudice phenomenon, a development that Marion Gymnich explores in her introduction. As a result, the novel can certainly be called a globetrotter : It is rather likely that you can find an edition that was published in one of the languages that you read. But the complexities and challenges inherent in translation processes, on which Uwe Baumann’s article focuses, are certainly not restricted to translations that involve ‘primarily’ a language transfer ; Pride and Prejudice did not only cross borders; it has repeatedly been turned into a cultural go-between. Exhibiting a rather tricksterish demeanour, the text has been culturally appropriated, adapted and thus transferred into various (trans-)cultural realms. It is these transfer processes that Stella Butter’s contribution analyses by referring to some of the most influential and certainly paradigmatic transcultural adaptions of the text rooted in Indian culture(s). But Pride and Prejudice strides not only across continents, it has also travelled through centuries. Being a time traveller entails almost inevitably certain effects. First of all, any potential aging processes of the novel have been counteracted by the fact that its readers allowed it to participate in the progression of media history : Pride and Prejudice has resurfaced not only in many TV adaptations, such as the famous BBC version (1995), which is – especially due to the iconic ‘wet shirt scene’, as Imke Lichterfeld explains – one of the main sources for Darcymania, but also in video blogs such as The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, which are discussed by Elena Baeva, or online erotic rewritings, which are analysed by Silke Meyer. Secondly, Pride and Prejudice has naturally been swept along by literary history, which not only means that it was adapted for or worked into relatively

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recent genres, such as Chick Lit (cf. Gislind Rohwer-Happe’s contribution). It also follows that Pride and Prejudice was rewritten or modified by employing more established narrative frames, such as the genres of crime fiction (Ulrike Zimmermann) or the Gothic (Hanne Birk). Thirdly, due to the fact that readers are often also researchers, the time travelling of literary texts may have the effect that they are approached from ever new angles or analysed by taking contemporary research or discourses into account, so that perpetually new insights into the literary text can be gained. Examples in this volume include – among others – Josefine Joisten’s sociocultural contextualisation of the character of Mrs Bennet and her intentions and Nadezˇda Rumjanceva’s analysis of nineteenthcentury illustrations of Pride and Prejudice. The processes addressed above certainly are if not triggered then fuelled by the indisputable canonical status of Jane Austen’s classic. And evidently, canonization (and its revision) are closely intertwined with teaching: As soon as or as long as a text is taught, it is read by students and talked and/or written about and thus kept ‘alive’. Naturally, the validity of a text, its contemporariness or seemingly timeless relevance, is not only affirmed when the original is taught, but also when adaptations of a text are used in creative teaching situations such as those explored by Uwe Küchler. The fact that students not only read Pride and Prejudice but even perform excellent research on the text was illustrated by the quality and number of responses to a ‘call for papers’ issued in autumn 2013, i. e. an essay competition that asked students to respond to the question whether Elizabeth Bennet really is a heroine for our times. Due to page restrictions it was regrettably not possible to include all student essays in this collection. Only two contributions could be published in full. While Bettina Burger focuses mainly on the character of the female protagonist in the original as well as in adaptations, fan fiction is discussed by Denise Burkhard and Simone Fleischer. In addition, the editors decided to publish a ‘synergetic essay’ consisting of excerpts from the other student essays in order to include as much research done by students as possible. Furthermore, the presentation of selected students’ work constituted a vital part of the anniversary festivities held at the University of Bonn in 2013. Coinciding with the novel’s bicentenary the vitality and contemporariness of Pride and Prejudice was celebrated at a birthday party disguised as an academic conference called “Pride & Prejudice 2.0 – Celebrating the Bicentenary of Jane Austen’s Most Popular Novel” in December 2013. And this is certainly the right moment to express our sincerest thanks to Anna Coogan, without whom the conference simply would not have taken place and the volume would not have been published, as well as to Carolin Brühl and Ann-Sophie Treuheit for their invaluable help and support at the conference and as members of the editorial team.

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As the conference Pride & Prejudice 2.0 revolved mainly around one single text it provided the participating scholars with the rare enough opportunity to discuss their work with others who naturally shared the same in-depth knowledge of the very same text. A fact which contributed further to the lively discussions and the enjoyable working atmosphere – for which we want to thank everyone who was there. It goes without saying that the shared experience of having read Pride and Prejudice (repeatedly) constitutes a condition for new research output (presented orally in 2013 and lying right in front of you in print in this very moment), but furthermore the presentations given at the conference and the contributions in this volume also do their very own job in keeping the novel alive and its protagonists present in our world(s). Go, readers, go – thank you for reading Pride and Prejudice.

Marion Gymnich

200 Years of Reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice; or Where the Literary Canon Meets Popular Culture [Leonard:] “Why are you reading Pride and Prejudice?” [Sheldon:] “I’ll tell you why. Amy ruined Raiders of the Lost Ark for me, so now I’m trying to find something beloved to her and ruin that. […] it turns out Amy’s beloved Pride and Prejudice is a flawless masterpiece. He’s got too much pride, she’s got too much prejudice – it just works.” (The Big Bang Theory, Season 7, Episode 4 “The Raiders Minimization”, 4:05–4:15; 8:40–8:50)

1.

Introduction

In October 1796, at the age of twenty, Jane Austen started working on a novel called First Impressions. Seventeen years later, in 1813, the novel was finally published as Pride and Prejudice, and Jane Austen sold the copyright for merely £110.1 Pride and Prejudice is a literary text that has aged remarkably well; at the beginning of the twenty-first century this novel and its author appear to be as popular as ever. What sets Pride and Prejudice apart from many other literary classics is that it has become a true pop-cultural phenomenon, as the reference to Austen’s novel in an episode of the enormously successful American sitcom The Big Bang Theory already suggests. The reference to Pride and Prejudice in The Big Bang Theory is particularly telling since this sitcom is famous for being replete with references to popular culture, ranging from Star Wars and Star Trek to superhero comics. Beyond intertextual and intermedial references to Austen’s novel in many movies, TV series and literary texts, there are several popular audiovisual adaptations, numerous sequels, rewritings and modernisations of Pride and Prejudice. The plot of Pride and Prejudice is for instance closely linked with the pop-cultural genre of chick lit, as Gislind Rohwer-Happe shows in her contribution to this volume. Further evidence of the novel’s status as a pop1 Cf. Tomalin, Claire. Jane Austen: A Life. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1998 [1997]. 220. For an account of Jane Austen’s publishing career, see Fergus, Jan. “The Professional Woman Writer.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 12–31.

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cultural icon is provided by the existence of a wide range of fan fiction and merchandise related to Jane Austen in general and Pride and Prejudice in particular, ranging from jewellery to bumper stickers.2 In fact, as Allison Thompson observes, it seems “ironic that an author who used a character’s [for instance Mr. Collins’s, M.G.] obsession with material items as a sure sign of snobbery, boorishness, or moral deficiency should now have so many material goods associated with her”.3 While Pride and Prejudice has made its way into popular culture, it of course also continues to be taught and discussed regularly in academic contexts.4 Heta Pyrhönen even argues that [c]ontemporary culture knows two Jane Austens. The first Jane Austen is the literary innovator respected for her groundbreaking contributions to the art of the novel. In her six novels she honed a bold ironic style, helped establish a sense of character as an individual, and experimented with various strategies for representing consciousness; in particular, she excelled in new ways of employing free indirect discourse. […] The second Austen is the creator of a memorable and emotionally appealing fictional world where delightful characters are looking for true love but always encounter various obstacles before happiness is theirs. The status of this Austen as primarily a worldmaker is best illustrated by the staggering number of adaptations of her novels into various media. The darling of the general reading and movie-going public, this Austen wrote romances set in a world that fosters immersion for the reader.5

The key to the lasting success of Pride and Prejudice seems to be that it is situated at the intersection of the literary canon and popular culture. In other words, it 2 Cf. Juliette Wells’s observation: “Austen’s name sells merchandise, especially to women” (“True Love Waits: Austen and the Christian Romance in the Contemporary U.S.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p.). 3 Thompson, Allison. “Trinkets and Treasures: Consuming Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions OnLine 28,2 (2008): n.p.; Thompson distinguishes three different types of Austen-related merchandise: “The first group might be called ‘evocative’ and includes the items that evoke either the author or the Regency period in general. The second major category of Austen artifacts consists of the crafts and games created largely by individual fans and marketed principally, though not exclusively, through the internet. The third category of Austen artifacts embraces the hip and ironic, items that create an image of Austen directly opposed to the traditional romantic Austen.” 4 A substantial part of the research that has been done on Austen in recent years focuses on the adaptations of Pride and Prejudice in other media or by other writers, since “[…] in the last twenty years Austen’s works, and Pride and Prejudice in particular, have become such an inherent part of cultural discourse that it is becoming more and more difficult to separate the original novel from the layers of tributes, adaptations, interpretations, reconstructions and reworkings.” (Terentowicz-Fotyga, Urszula. “Lost in Austen? The Afterlife of the Literary Classic.” In: Katarzyna Pisarska and Andrzej Slawomir Kowalczyk (eds.). The Lives of Texts: Exploring the Metaphor. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 263–75, 264.) 5 Pyrhönen, Heta. “Generic Stability despite Hybridization: The Austenian Dominant Construction Principle.” In: Michael Basseler, Ansgar Nünning and Christine Schwanecke (eds.). The Cultural Dynamics of Generic Change in Contemporary Fiction: Theoretical Frameworks, Genres and Model Interpretations. Trier : WVT, 2013. 183–200, 183.

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appears to cater to a remarkable range of tastes and lends itself to being adapted for very different purposes.

2.

The growing interest in Jane Austen

In the early nineteenth century, Austen’s novels did not start out as bestsellers.6 Still, right from the beginning, Pride and Prejudice was more successful than Austen’s first novel, Sense and Sensibility, which had been published in 1811. The famous English playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan for instance “recommended it as one of the cleverest things he had ever read”.7 Moreover, the popularity of her second novel “eventually meant the end of Austen’s anonymity”.8 In the first decades after Austen’s death, the interest in her novels remained moderate, but one can observe an increasing popularity of her works from the 1880s onwards.9 This interest was mainly triggered by the publication of James Edward Austen-Leigh’s A Memoir of Jane Austen in 1870 as well as by “the wider publication of Austen’s novels singly and in sets, ranging from Routledge’s cheap issues of 1883, and the Sixpenny Novel series starting in 1886 […]; to the quasi-scholarly ten-volume set of R. Brimley Johnson for Dent in 1892, reissued five times in as many years.”10 In particular the illustrated editions which appeared towards the end of the nineteenth century enhanced the popularity of Austen’s novels.11 Today Pride and Prejudice has come to be seen as a prototype for chick lit as well as for romance plots in a wider sense, and it is more or less taken for granted that women constitute the majority of Jane Austen readers and fans. Yet the first well-known Jane Austen enthusiasts from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were actually men belonging to the cultural elite, including Thomas Babington Macaulay, R.W. Chapman and Winston Churchill.12 Rudyard Kip-

6 Cf. Johnson, Claudia L. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 211–26, 211. 7 Tomalin. Jane Austen: A Life. 220. 8 Fergus. “The Professional Woman Writer.” 22. 9 Cf. Johnson. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” 211. 10 Ibid. 11 Cf. Maunder, Andrew. “Making Heritage and History : The 1894 Illustrated Pride and Prejudice.” In: Nineteenth Century Studies 20 (2006): 147–69, 148: “In the case of the publishing history of Jane Austen, illustrated editions of her novels are intricately involved with the rehabilitation of the novelist in the later nineteenth century as a cultural icon.” In her contribution to this volume, Nadezˇda Rumjanceva takes a closer look at the significance and the aesthetics of selected nineteenth-century illustrations of Pride and Prejudice. 12 Cf. Looser, Devoney. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.).

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ling’s short story “The Janeites” (1926) also pays tribute to the appeal Austen’s novels had for a male readership. In this story, “the shared love of Jane Austen generates community among the officers at the front during World War I, and their discussions of Austen provide an oasis of sanity amidst the chaos of war”.13 After the First World War “Austen’s novels were […] recommended to British veterans suffering post-traumatic shock syndrome”.14 According to Claudia Johnson, in particular the “limited dimensions of Austen’s fictional world could feel rehabilitative” and the notions of femininity implied in Austen’s novels could help to reaffirm a masculinity which had been challenged by the war experience.15 So far there has been little research on the appeal Pride and Prejudice had specifically for female readers in the nineteenth century. We know, however, that feminist writer and literary critic Virginia Woolf joined the (male) chorus of praise for her nineteenth-century predecessor at the beginning of the twentieth century.16 Woolf enthusiastically referred to Pride and Prejudice as a “polished masterpiece blazing in universal fame”.17 The lasting popularity of Pride and Prejudice has also been displayed in the countless transformations into other genres and media which this particular novel has been subject to. Since the late nineteenth century, Pride and Prejudice has repeatedly been adapted for the stage. Already in 1895 Rosina Filippi published a collection of shorter dramatic texts called Duologues and Scenes from the Novels of Jane Austen, Arranged and Adapted for Drawing Room Performance. This collection consists of seven scenes, two of which were derived from Pride and Prejudice.18 In the following decades, material based on Pride and Prejudice continued to be used frequently in dramatic readers; moreover, the first play based on the entire novel was written by Mary Medbery MacKaye in 1906.19 In the following decades a number of further plays based on Pride and Prejudice were staged, including one by Gopal Chimanj Bhate, which was written in Marathi, in 1912.20 Thus, contrary to what one might assume, Gurinder Chadha’s movie Bride and Prejudice from 2004 is not the earliest instance of an Indian rewriting

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85, 175–77. Francus, Marilyn. “Austen Therapy : Pride and Prejudice and Popular Culture.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Johnson. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” 217. Ibid. Cf. Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 178. Woolf, Virginia. “Jane Austen at Sixty.” In: Susannah Carson (ed.). A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen. New York: Random House, 2009 [1925]. 259–68, 262. Cf. Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 179–80. Cf. ibid. 180. Cf. ibid.

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of Austen’s novel. There are also a number of musicals based on Pride and Prejudice; the early examples include an American musical from 1959 and a South African musical from 1964.21

3.

The international success of Pride and Prejudice

As some of the examples just mentioned already suggest, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has turned into an international success. In the United States in particular, Austen’s novel has been received enthusiastically, and many of the rewritings and modernisations of the story have been created by American authors. But the success of Pride and Prejudice is not limited to predominantly Anglophone cultures, as the history of translations of this particular novel indicates. The first language Pride and Prejudice was translated into was French. In fact, rivalling French translations were published already in 1821 and 1822.22 These translations modified the original text in various ways, however. While some of the departures from the original may certainly be due to linguistic differences between English and French, the changes seem to have been motivated primarily by considerations resulting from current literary taste and expectations associated with the genre. As Val¦rie Cossy has shown, many features of the early translations into French can be attributed to the fairly rigid system of literary genres that French literature relied upon at the time: “By the standards of the French novel, the realist and sentimental modes excluded each other […]. […] Austen’s novels, centering on courtship and marriage, were assimilated to sentimental novels.”23 Thus, many of the characteristics of Austen’s novels which result from her realist approach to the depiction of society are quite simply ‘lost in translation’, which of course alters the tone of the text significantly. For instance allusions to “money and the marriage market […] are omitted entirely from the first French translation”24 since mundane references of this kind were deemed inappropriate in French sentimental novels at that time. Moreover, the protagonist Elizabeth Bennet was reinterpreted and turned into what was regarded as a “more […] respectable heroine: she speaks less, and with a less forthright manner”.25 The history of translations into German can likewise be traced back to the first half of the nineteenth century ; the first translation into 21 Cf. ibid. 183. 22 Cf. Dow, Gillian. “Translations.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 122–36, 122. 23 Cossy, Val¦rie. Jane Austen in Switzerland: A Study of the Early French Translations. Geneva: Editions Slatkine, 2006. 123. 24 Dow. “Translations.” 125. 25 Ibid.

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German was published in 1830.26 The first translations into a number of further European languages – including Finnish, Danish, Norwegian, Spanish and Italian – were only published in the 1920s or 1930s.27 Since the 1950s, Pride and Prejudice has been translated into even more languages. There have for instance been several Turkish translations since the early 1950s,28 and Feng Zhang points out that Pride and Prejudice has also been popular in China since the 1950s, when an influential translation was published despite the political climate in China at the time, which hardly encouraged Chinese readers to appreciate a romance set in the English gentry in the early nineteenth century.29 Today, there are several different translations of Pride and Prejudice into Chinese.30 In addition to translations, intertextual references and rewritings in many different literatures provide further evidence of the international recognition of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice as an important reference point. An early example of a Japanese rewriting of Austen’s novel is Nogami Yaeko’s novel Machiko, serialised from 1928–1930, which, as Emily Auerbach puts it, “features a kimono-clad heroine initially refusing a proposal from the haughty head of the Kawai Financial Group.”31 A further interesting case in point is the Japanese novel Yume No Ukihashi (The Floating Bridge of Dreams, 1971) by Kurahashi Yumiko, who is known for her experimental and controversial writing style. In The Floating Bridge of Dreams the author has drawn upon Jane Austen’s works and has combined them with ideas, motifs and patterns from Japanese classics. The novel focuses on a young woman called Keiko who has to cope with her parents’ adulterous affairs and the repercussions these have for her own life when she finds out that she and her boyfriend Ko¯ichi might actually be brother and sister.32 The intertextual references to Austen in Yumiko’s novel are marked by the fact that the protagonist is shown to be working on a thesis on Jane Austen. According to Ebine Hiroshi, the similarities between Pride and Prejudice and The Floating Bridge of Dreams are particularly apparent in the characterisation of the female protagonist:

26 Cf. ibid. 126. In his contribution to this volume, Uwe Baumann explores the history of translations into German in more detail. 27 Cf. Dow. “Translations.” 126–28. 28 Cf. Tekcan, Rana. “Notes on a Turkish Edition of Pride and Prejudice: An Editor’s Perspective.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 235–40. 29 Cf. Zhang, Feng. “A Brief Analysis on the Two Chinese Versions of Pride and Prejudice from the Perspective of Ideology.” In: English Language Teaching 3,3 (2010): 194–97, 194. 30 Cf. ibid. 31 Auerbach, Emily. “Pride and Proliferations.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 186–97, 190. 32 Cf. Hiroshi, Ebine. “Experimenting with Jane Austen: Kurahashi Yumiko.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p.

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Her [Keiko’s] deliberate conservatism is part of a more general independence of character that is able to disregard not only shallow ideas of political radicalism but also conventional codes of female behavior. Keiko’s sense of herself as a ‘rational creature’ is categorical; she is as confident as Elizabeth Bennet of her ability to be mistress of her own life […].33

This assessment hints at some of the potential interpretations of a character like Elizabeth Bennet in a Japanese context. As Juliette Wells observes, “cross-cultural adaptations depend, of course, on the capacity of Austen’s central themes and characters to be transposed compellingly into other languages and cultures […]. In other words, such adaptations implicitly rely on the perceived universality of Austen’s primary concerns.”34 The countless references to Pride and Prejudice in different cultures indeed suggest that the concerns of this particular novel have been regarded as universal by many authors, readers and viewers. Further evidence of the fact that Pride and Prejudice translates well into many different cultural contexts is provided by Azar Nafisi’s memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books (2003). In this text, Nafisi, who used to teach English and American literature at the University of Tehran before the Islamic Revolution and migrated to the United States in 1997, discusses her former students’ reactions to several works of Western literature, including Pride and Prejudice. In particular Austen’s emphasis on social norms that turn marriage into the only respectable goal in a woman’s life resonated with her students. She recalls one of them saying: ‘ The Islamic Republic has taken us back to Jane Austen’s times. God bless the arranged marriage! Nowadays, girls marry either because their families force them, or to get green cards, or to secure financial stability, or for sex – they marry for all kinds of reasons, but rarely for love.’ 35

As the example just mentioned shows, it is in particular the way Austen addresses the plight of women in a society that imposes rigid norms and expectations on women which lends itself as a starting point for modern rewritings. One of the more recent expressions of the universal appeal of the concerns addressed in Pride and Prejudice is Gurinder Chadha’s movie Bride and Prejudice, which was released in 2004 and which, as Elena Oliete Aldea puts it, “includes elements of Hollywood, Bollywood and British cinematic traditions to create a hybrid transnational film”.36 The movie takes the character con-

33 Cf. ibid. 34 Wells. “True Love Waits.” n.p. 35 Nafisi, Azar. Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books. London/New York: Fourth Estate, 2004 [2003]. 258. 36 Aldea, Elena Oliete. “Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice: A Transnational Journey

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stellations and tensions that one encounters in Austen’s novel as a starting point and adapts them in order to create a space for articulating the concerns of upper middle-class women in India at the beginning of the twenty-first century.37

4.

The impact of audiovisual adaptations

Audiovisual adaptations have certainly played a major part in establishing the current iconic position of Pride and Prejudice in popular culture. Claire Grogan, for instance, argues that “[t]hough her [Austen’s] novels have risen steadily in popularity since their first publication in the early 1800s it is the more recent film adaptations that have catapulted first Austen’s works and then her person to their current celebrity status.”38 The first film based on Pride and Prejudice was produced by MGM in 1940. The black-and-white movie was directed by Robert Z. Leonard; the script was written by Aldous Huxley and Jane Murfin; and the movie starred Laurence Olivier as Darcy and Greer Garson as Elizabeth Bennet. This version of Pride and Prejudice departs in several respects from the novel: A number of scenes have been deleted, added or changed extensively, including the ending, where all Bennet daughters are provided with eligible suitors. Some of the characters have been modified in terms of their characterisation. Lady Catherine de Bourgh, for instance, has been turned into a grumpy but essentially well-meaning old lady, who visits Elizabeth in order to support her nephew’s proposal. Moreover, the costumes suggest that the story is set in Victorian England rather than in the Regency period, a fact that “allowed the actors and actresses to be dressed in obviously Gone with the Wind fashion”, which means that “Elizabeth Bennet looks […] suspiciously like Scarlett O’Hara”.39 Jessica Durgan aptly describes the 1940 movie as “a comic romp, rather than dramatic adaptation, for wartime England”.40 Moreover, the interpretation of Austen’s novel in the 1940 movie has been regarded as an attempt to create a positive image of England, the future ally of the United States in the Second World War, by

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through Time and Space.” In: International Journal of English Studies 12,1 (2012): 167–82, 168. Stella Butter examines this particular transformation of Austen’s novel in more detail in her article in this volume. Grogan, Claire. “From Pride and Prejudice to Lost in Austen and Back Again: Reading Television Reading Novels.” In: Tiffany Potter (ed.). Women, Popular Culture, and the Eighteenth Century. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012. 292–307, 292. Favret, Mary A. “Free and Happy : Jane Austen in America.” In: Deidre Lynch (ed.). Janeites: Austen’s Disciples and Devotees. Princeton/Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2000. 166–87, 181. Durgan, Jessica. “Framing Heritage: The Role of Cinematography in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions On-Line 27,2 (2007): n.p.

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featuring members of the English upper class who may appear to be snobbish at first sight, but are essentially good-natured.41 This approach explains the reinterpretation of Lady Catherine’s attitude which was referred to above: One of the least likeable characters from Austen’s novel for once is not shown as someone who is entirely governed by class prejudice; instead, she “learns to admire Elizabeth and therefore favor the match between her and Darcy”.42 In addition, according to this interpretation, even “the marriages at the end of the film represent the democraticization of the upper classes in Britain”.43 There are also a few TV adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, including BBC productions from 1967 and 1980. These, however, have had very little impact compared to what has arguably turned out to be the most influential adaptation of Pride and Prejudice so far : the BBC mini-series broadcast in 1995, a production that appears to be responsible for much of the intense interest in Austen’s novel in recent years. As far as academic responses are concerned, the majority of papers addressing the BBC adaptation are quite positive, at times even enthusiastic; yet there has also been some harsh criticism.44 Due to its enormous popularity, the BBC series has by now become “an important intertext with a life of its own, examined and quoted on an equal footing with the novel”.45 Many literary and audiovisual versions of Pride and Prejudice have paid tribute to this particular adaptation of the text, including Helen Fielding’s novel Bridget Jones’s Diary, the movie based on Fielding’s novel and the TV series Lost in Austen. What has made this BBC production famous is – more than anything else – its portrayal of Mr. Darcy. Laurie Kaplan, for instance, refers to this audiovisual adaptation as “the Colin Firth series”,46 and Olivia Murphy argues that “[t]he impetus for [the] sudden explosion in interest in Jane Austen can be traced to one week in September 1995, when ten million people in Britain watched Mr. Darcy dive into his pond at Pemberley”.47 Devoney Looser argues

41 Cf. Lawson-Peebles, Robert. “European Conflict and Reconstruction of English Fiction.” In: Yearbook of English Studies 26 (1996): 1–13. 42 Brosh, Liora. “Consuming Women: The Representation of Women in the 1940 Adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.” In: Quarterly Review of Film & Video 17,2 (2000): 147–59, 149. 43 Ibid. 44 For a very negative assessment of the BBC production, see Hannon, Patricia. “Austen Novels and Austen Films: Incompatible Worlds?” In: Persuasions 18 (1996): 24–32. 45 Terentowicz-Fotyga. “Lost in Austen? The Afterlife of the Literary Classic.” 265. In a similar vein, Veerle Van Steenhuyse refers to the BBC adaptation as “a secondary canon” (Van Steenhuyse, Veerle. “Jane Austen Fan Fiction and the Situated Fantext: The Example of Pamela Aidan’s Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman.” In: English Text Construction 4,2 (2011): 165–85, 178). 46 Kaplan, Laurie. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. 47 Murphy, Olivia. “Books, Bras and Bridget Jones: Reading Adaptions of Pride and Prejudice.”

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that the BBC series constitutes a turning point in readings of Pride and Prejudice in so far as it “marked the moment that Darcy became for many readers and viewers the imaginative centre of Pride and Prejudice, taking that role over from Elizabeth”.48 While the BBC adaptation has certainly drawn more attention to Mr. Darcy, the character of Elizabeth also remains crucial for the attractiveness of Pride and Prejudice. After all, what makes Mr. Darcy attractive is not merely the way his physical presence is depicted on screen. Arguably he is also interesting for (female) viewers because he falls in love with a woman like Elizabeth Bennet, i. e. with a woman who is far from perfect and whose independent spirit rather than her looks turns out to be what makes her attractive. In Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth, who is initially considered to be merely “tolerable”49 by Mr. Darcy, is obviously the character female readers are invited to identify with, a fact that is emphasised by her function as focalizer in many scenes throughout the novel. The paper by Bettina Burger in this volume explores a number of reasons for the lasting popularity of Austen’s female protagonist. The movie from 2005 starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen to a certain extent shifts the interest from Darcy to Elizabeth again, showing a lively, independent and in many respects very modern version of Austen’s heroine. This film constitutes a milestone for the British film industry, since it marks a departure from some of the conventions of the so-called ‘heritage film’, thus presenting Austen’s Regency England in a new, arguably more realist fashion. Heritage films, which thrived in the 1980s, tended to “have a narrow and typically older audience” and their producers employed “period settings (usually the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries) and literary antecedents [to] align them with the cultural capital of ‘higher’ art forms like literature and theatre”.50 In the 1980s the heritage film primarily catered to “middle-class values of conservative Thatcherism” by “turning Britain into a cultural museum”.51 In addition to modernising Elizabeth Bennet in terms of her demeanour and her body language, the 2005 movie also updated the heritage genre by means of introducing a “gritty realism”52 and departing from the relatively static cinematographic style that had come to be associated with heritage films. Making use of strategies that were meant to modernise the characters as well as the audiovisual style, the 2005 movie contributed to keeping the popularity of Pride and Prejudice alive, ad-

48 49 50 51 52

In: Sydney Studies 31 (2005): 21–39, 21. In her contribution to this volume, Imke Lichterfeld examines the impact of Colin Firth’s portrayal of Mr. Darcy in more detail. Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 183. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1985 [1813]. 59. Durgan. “Framing Heritage.” n.p. Ibid. Ibid.

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dressing a potentially younger target audience. Of course the popularity of actress Keira Knightley, who had become famous due to her roles in movies such as Bend it Like Beckham (2002) and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) enhanced the attractiveness of Elizabeth Bennet for a younger audience. Pride and Prejudice has not only been appropriated by Hollywood and Bollywood, but also by what some critics refer to as ‘Mollywood’, i. e. the Mormon film industry. The term ‘Mollywood’ has been used to subsume relatively low-budget Latter-day films of various genres, created by Mormon directors and companies, addressed either to the Latter-day population and thus distributed within limited geographical areas with a high density of Mormons, or to a wider audience with the purpose of educating it on Mormonism.53

In 2003 the ‘Mollywood’ film Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy was produced – a movie that (at least on DVD) has presumably been distributed more widely than most productions of the Mormon film industry. Similar to literary rewritings of the novel that are associated with the American evangelical scene, which will be discussed below, the movie directed by Andrew Black privileges a conservative stance towards sexuality ; but at least “Austen’s readiness to apply pointed satire to a member of the clergy”54 is reflected in the ‘Mollywood’ production, given the fact that the Mormon preacher Collins in Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy appears to be every bit as ridiculous and pompous as Austen’s Mr. Collins. The audiovisual versions of Austen’s novel even go beyond movies and TV productions. Recently, Pride and Prejudice has also been adapted in new audiovisual formats that are characteristic of the Internet, as Elena Baeva shows in her analysis of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a video blog on YouTube, in this volume. Moreover, there have already been several attempts to use Austen’s novel as the starting point for a videogame. Apparently, the possibilities of transforming and updating Jane Austen’s classic in new media are virtually endless. The Internet has also provided a space for Pride and Prejudice fan fiction, a facet of the reception of Austen’s novel that Denise Burkhard and Simone Fleischer look into in their contribution to this volume. The increased interest in Jane Austen since the mid-1990s has affected the British tourism industry. Both places associated with Austen’s life and locations that have appeared in one of the audiovisual adaptations of her novels have benefited from Austen’s popularity, attracting additional visitors because of their association with Austen – a phenomenon that Sarah Parry refers to as ‘the 53 Annus, Ir¦n. “Trans-Culturing Jane Austen: The Mollywood Adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.” In: Americana: E-Journal of American Studies 8,1 (2012): n.p. 54 Wells. “True Love Waits.” n.p.

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Pemberley Effect’ in her eponymous article.55 There seems to be an immediate impact of audiovisual adaptations on ‘Austen tourism’. In comparison to the previous year, the number of visitors to Lyme Park almost tripled after the house had been presented as ‘Pemberley’ by the BBC in 1995.56 The marketing of those houses that have become famous because of their appearance in audiovisual adaptations of Austen’s novels relies on the interest in prolonging the ‘Austen experience’. Basildon Park, which appeared as Netherfield in the 2005 movie, for example, started organising special activities centred on Jane Austen: During the special Jane Austen Weekends held in the summers at Basildon Park since the movie was released, many of the staff dress in Regency costume, there are Regencythemed displays and talks within the house, the soundtrack from the movie is played along part of the visitor route through the house, and there is a Jane Austen-themed children’s trail.57

Parry emphasises that the name Jane Austen has come to fulfil the function of a ‘brand name’, which is apparent in ‘Austen tourism’, but also in the selling of merchandise, as was pointed out above.58

5.

Pride and Prejudice sequels and rewritings

All novels by Jane Austen have given rise to a number of sequels (in the form of narrative and dramatic texts) which constitute “narrative prolongations that seek to write beyond the (happy) endings of Austen’s novels”.59 Yet Pride and Prejudice is clearly the novel by Austen that has provoked the largest number of such sequels.60 The idea of continuing the story beyond the ending provided in the novel can be traced back to Jane Austen herself. As Emily Auerbach points out, Austen’s nephew reports in his 1870 Memoir that his Aunt Jane ‘would, if asked, tell us many little particulars about the subsequent career of some of her people’, including the fates of the two unmarried sisters of Pride and Prejudice: ‘Kitty Bennet was satisfactorily married to a clergyman near Pemberley, while Mary obtained nothing 55 Cf. Parry, Sarah. “The Pemberley Effect: Austen’s Legacy to the Historic House Industry.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 113–22. 56 Cf. ibid. 116. 57 Ibid. 120. 58 Cf. ibid. 113. 59 Munford, Rebecca. “ ‘ The Future of Pemberley’: Emma Tennant, the ‘Classic Progression’ and Literary Trespassing.” In: Gillian Dow and Clare Hanson (eds.). Uses of Austen: Jane’s Afterlives. New York/Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. 59–76, 60. 60 Cf. Munford. “ ‘ The Future of Pemberley’.” 64; Auerbach. “Pride and Proliferations.” 187.

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higher than one of her Uncle Philips’ clerks’ and became an admired personage in Meryton.’ 61

This account by her nephew suggests that Jane Austen stayed true to the pattern of the romance plot when imagining a possible ‘future’ for her characters. Many sequels to Pride and Prejudice have since proceeded in a very similar fashion. Taken together, they sketch an enormous range of different happy endings for the minor characters. But the sequels of course also reveal a strong interest in exploring the married life of Jane and Bingley, Lydia and Wickham and, most of all, Elizabeth and Darcy. The existence of an astonishing number of published sequels plainly suggests that readers just cannot get enough of Pride and Prejudice. The phenomenon of sequels written by other authors is familiar from popular culture and in particular from the field of fan fiction. Austen sequels in fact display a number of features one tends to associate with fan fiction as well as with popular culture in general. There are for instance occasionally ‘crossovers’ between Austen’s novels. Such crossovers at times even lead to weddings ‘across books’, such as Kitty Bennet marrying James Morland from Northanger Abbey.62 The fact that sequels often feature minor characters from the original text as main characters also corresponds to a pattern that is well-known from fan fiction. There are novels exploring Mary Bennet’s future (e. g. Colleen McCullough’s The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, 2008),63 novels focusing on the ‘bad boy’ George Wickham (e. g. Amanda Grange’s Wickham’s Diary, 2011) or on Charlotte Lucas/Collins (e. g. Elizabeth Newark’s Consequence, or Whatever Became of Charlotte Lucas, 1997). Another case in point is the play The Heiress of Rosings by Cedric Wallis, which was first performed in 1955 and which turns Anne de Bourgh into the protagonist, who is arguably one of the most marginal characters in Pride and Prejudice and thus presumably a relatively unlikely candidate for a sequel. Other sequels explore the fate of the ‘next generation’ (for example Elizabeth Aston’s Mr. Darcy’s Daughters, 2003) or feature foreign (usually French or American) cousins, thus enriching the set of familiar characters in order to generate new complications and plot developments. Sequels to Pride and Prejudice were published throughout the twentieth century, but the number of sequels published each year has multiplied since the 1990s, when a number of popular audiovisual adaptations of Austen’s novels 61 Auerbach. “Pride and Proliferations.” 186. 62 Cf. Glancy, Kathleen. “What Happened Next? or The Many Husbands of Georgiana Darcy.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 110–16. Glancy provides many examples. 63 For an interpretation of the character of the ‘middle daughter’ Mary in Pride and Prejudice, see Scott, Steven D. “Making Room in the Middle: Mary in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Bruce Stovel and Lynn Weinlos Gregg (eds.). The Talk in Jane Austen. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2002. 225–36.

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were produced, making Jane Austen an even more popular author.64 While many sequels to Pride and Prejudice seek to imitate the tone and the value system of the original text, others depart from Austen’s novel in various ways, for example in terms of their sexual politics, thus potentially giving rise to a feminist critique. Literary critics have tended to react to the sequels with mixed emotions; a number of sequels have even been accused of drawing upon the very literary traditions that Austen parodied in her works, i. e. in particular the melodramatic mode as well as the Gothic tradition.65 Emma Tennant’s sequels, including Pemberley (1993) and Pemberley Revisited (2005), for instance have been criticised for turning Elizabeth Bennet into a melodramatic character and making Pemberley resemble a Gothic mansion.66 Mr. Darcy often plays a particularly prominent role in recent sequels and rewritings, which “often add his childhood background, fill in gaps in the novel (dialogue showing Darcy convincing Wickham to marry Lydia), thaw his reserve, follow him into the bedroom and add his tormented internal thoughts.”67 Such sequels exemplify the general tendency to pay particular attention to the male protagonist of Pride and Prejudice which can be traced back to the audiovisual representation of this character in recent filmic versions and specifically to Colin Firth’s interpretation of the character in the 1995 BBC production. Jointly, the BBC series from 1995 and the 2005 movie have contributed to the fact that the number of novels based on Pride and Prejudice has multiplied; Devoney Looser claims that “[f]rom 2009 to 2011, at least 130 Pride and Prejudice-inspired novels appeared in print.”68 The majority of these novels are either straightforward sequels or rewritings of the nineteenth-century novel, or they transfer the plot and the characters to a contemporary setting. The most well-known examples of a modernisation of Pride and Prejudice include Helen Fielding’s novel Bridget Jones’s Diary (1996), which has been seen as “the first classic of chick lit”,69 and the TV series Lost in Austen, which is discussed in Uwe Küchler’s article in this volume. Pride and Prejudice (as well as other novels by Austen) has also been appropriated by a group of writers in the United States who are associated with evangelical Protestantism and aim specifically at an evangelical female readership, transferring the plot into a contemporary evangelical context and presenting the protagonists as resolute Protestant Chris-

64 65 66 67 68 69

Cf. Munford. “ ‘ The Future of Pemberley’.” 61. Cf. ibid. 65. Cf. ibid. 65–66. Auerbach. “Pride and Proliferations.” 188. Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 183. Ridout, Alice. “Lost in Austen: Adaptation and the Feminist Politics of Nostalgia.” In: Adaptation 4,1 (2010): 14–27, 16.

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tians.70 Their texts encompass both novels and advice books, such as “Sarah Arthur’s Dating Mr. Darcy : A Smart Girl’s Guide to Sensible Romance (2005) […] [which] coaches young evangelical readers through reflections on themselves and their potential marriage partners, using Pride and Prejudice as a touchstone”.71 While Pride and Prejudice has been appropriated by writers associated with evangelical groups in the United States, it has likewise inspired numerous pornographic rewritings, as Silke Meyer shows in her contribution to this volume. This emphasises that Pride and Prejudice can indeed be read very differently, depending on one’s world view. Moreover, in recent years Pride and Prejudice has been a major source of generic hybrids. There are for instance numerous crime novels derived from Austen’s novels, including Carrie Bebris’s series of ‘Mr and Mrs Darcy mysteries’ and P.D. James’s Death Comes to Pemberley (2011), which Ulrike Zimmermann examines in her article in this volume. There are also many hybrid novels which seek to inscribe Austen’s classic into the paradigm of Gothic or horror fiction, as Hanne Birk shows in her contribution. In Jonathan Pinnock’s Mrs Darcy versus the Aliens (2011), the Regency-style setting is even combined with twentiethcentury alien abduction lore. It is noteworthy that even such rather radical revisions of Austen’s comedy of manners do not necessarily give up the romance plot. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, which was published in 2009, for instance, presents a heroine who is “physically strong, capable of independence, and yet still chained to the necessity of finding the ideal mate that is the touchstone of the original text.”72 Elizabeth’s fighting skills certainly do not reduce her value on the marriage market. In fact, as Andrea Ruthven points out, “it is her very prowess in fighting the zombie offensive, her abilities with a sword and her capacity for killing which win her the esteem of those around her and garner her the greatest prize of all – Mr. Darcy, a rich and handsome (and equally well-trained) husband.”73 In recent years, Pride and Prejudice has also repeatedly been transformed into graphic novels, including a series of graphic novels published by Marvel, the publishing house best known for its comics about superheroes.74

70 On these rewritings of Austen’s novels, see in particular Wells. “True Love Waits.” 71 Wells. “True Love Waits.” n.p. 72 Ruthven, Andrea. “Pride and Prejudice and Post-Feminist Zombies.” In: Mar†a Alonso Alonso (ed.). Weaving New Perspectives Together : Some Reflections on Literary Studies. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 155–70, 155. 73 Ibid. 155–56. 74 Cf. Burningham, Hilary and Rachel Phillips Illus. The Graphic Novels Series: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. London: Evans Brothers, 2004 and Butler, Nancy and Hugo Petrus. Pride and Prejudice: Adopted from the Novel by Jane Austen. New York: Marvel, 2009.

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Conclusion: The many uses of Pride and Prejudice today

What do the countless references to, adaptations and rewritings of Pride and Prejudice tell us about the reception of this canonical text today? Many of these references can be regarded as a straightforward tribute to Jane Austen and to the lasting appeal of her literary works. In addition to borrowing plot elements and character constellations from Austen’s novel, the modern versions of Pride and Prejudice often incorporate verbal or visual tributes to the literary text and/or to its author. Very often these tributes appear in the form of quotations from the novel, but they may also involve visual strategies, such as showing a portrait of Jane Austen. Nora Ephron’s romantic comedy You’ve Got Mail (1998) starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, which may also be seen as a modernised version of Pride and Prejudice, is a case in point. It shows the protagonists discussing and reading Austen’s novel (and quarrelling about its meaning in a style that is clearly reminiscent of Elizabeth and Darcy). Many rewritings of and intertextual references to Pride and Prejudice are based on the premise that Austen’s novel, the prototypical romance, caters to an escapist desire on the part of the female protagonist as well as the female reader. This is particularly apparent in the TV series Lost in Austen, where rereading Pride and Prejudice enables the protagonist Amanda Price “to escape into a fantasy world where things seem calmer, more ordered and ultimately more romantic”.75 As Laurie Kaplan argues, in the mini-series Lost in Austen it is specifically the utterly unromantic proposal of the protagonist’s boyfriend which serves as the trigger for the appearance of a magical door allowing Amanda Price to enter the world of Pride and Prejudice in a very literal sense.76 In Lost in Austen, but also in novels such as Austenland (2007) by Shannon Hale and the film based on this novel, which was released in 2013, the world projected in Austen’s novel appears to be an attractive alternative to “a dreary contemporary reality”.77 This shows that Pride and Prejudice continues to be seen as the prototypical romance. The plot pattern which involves a man and a woman who overcome their initial antagonism and gradually realise that they are in love with each other has been drawn upon in countless novels, films and TV series, ranging from Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South (1854–55)78 to contemporary romantic comedies, such as You’ve Got Mail. Even the formulaic romance plot

75 76 77 78

Grogan. “From Pride and Prejudice to Lost in Austen and Back Again.” 297. Cf. Kaplan. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” n.p. Ibid. Janine Barchas argues that North and South “may be the first full-length reworking of Pride and Prejudice” (Barchas, Janine. “Mrs. Gaskell’s North and South: Austen’s Early Legacy.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 53–66, 53).

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one can identify in Mills and Boon/Harlequin popular romances “comes close to the skeleton of Pride and Prejudice”.79 Yet by seeing Pride and Prejudice exclusively as “romantic fantasy”80 one misses many other components that have likewise ensured the canonical status and the popularity of Austen’s novel – and that can be traced in many recent appropriations of the text. There is for instance a remarkable correlation between references to Pride and Prejudice and the depiction of intelligent, resourceful young women, who strive to achieve a certain amount of independence despite social pressure. In addition, the female protagonists often have a special relationship to books, being booksellers, working in publishing houses, studying literature, striving to become writers or being at least avid readers. Occasionally adaptations even seem to merge the fictional character of Elizabeth Bennet and the author Jane Austen; after all, Elizabeth Bennet is a reader and not a writer.81 With respect to the movie Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy for instance, Ir¦n Annus argues that the protagonist “embodies not only Elizabeth Bennet, as made obvious numerous times throughout the story, but also Jane Austen herself”.82 The protagonist in this movie is a writer, and the (romance) “novel on which she is working is set in 1813, as we can see from a quick glimpse at her computer screen, the year Pride and Prejudice was first published”.83 Another component of quite a number of appropriations of Pride and Prejudice that is particularly interesting from a feminist perspective is the fact that reading Austen’s novel and/or watching an adaptation of her work is shown to create a communal experience shared by a group of women. In Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary, “watching Pride and Prejudice is a communal event”84 which serves to assure Bridget and her friends of shared values, hopes and romantic ideals. Likewise, in Karen Joy Fowler’s novel The Jane Austen Book Club (2004) and the eponymous movie from 2007, five women from different generations and one man learn to cope with their personal problems and find new hope through their discussions of Austen’s six novels.85 In a similar vein, reading 79 Todd, Janet. “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–61, 159. 80 Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. 81 In fact, in Austen’s novel it is Caroline Bingley who says that Elizabeth “ ‘ is a great reader and has no pleasure in anything else’ ” (Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 83), i. e. someone who certainly does not seek to pay the protagonist a compliment in this way. Elizabeth, in contrast, emphasises: “ ‘ I deserve neither such praise nor such censure, […] I am not a great reader, and I have pleasure in many things.’ ” (Ibid.) 82 Annus. “Trans-Culturing Jane Austen.” n.p. 83 Ibid. 84 Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. 85 Cf. ibid.: “Although their readings of Austen’s novels differ, Austen brings them together, and

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and discussing Pride and Prejudice is depicted as an empowering communal experience for a group of Iranian female students and their teacher in Nafisi’s Reading Lolita in Tehran. It is a truth widely acknowledged by scholars that literary texts may provide multiple interpretations. This is certainly true for Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. As the interpretations, adaptations and rewritings of Austen’s classic continue to show, Pride and Prejudice is an enormously flexible text, which has appealed to men and women in different periods, to readers and viewers of different ages and in different cultures.86 One may be tempted to argue that the more recent adaptations of Austen’s novel generally have been produced with a younger target group in mind. Laurie Kaplan argues that the mini-series Lost in Austen for instance “[a]imed primarily at a new generation of Jane Austen fans, some of whom were hooked on Austen’s novels via the Colin Firth video and the Keira Knightley movie”.87 Similarly, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries on YouTube presumably appeal mainly to a younger target audience. Yet Pride and Prejudice can already look back on a long history of being marketed for young readers. As Devoney Looser points out, the novel “appeared in 1908 in ‘a series of English texts, edited for use in elementary and secondary schools’ ” .88 Given the different reactions by readers and literary critics in the course of the last two hundred years as well as the interpretations which are suggested by the sequels, rewritings, intertextual references and filmic adaptations, one feels compelled to agree with Devoney Looser, who argues that “Pride and Prejudice functions more like a cultural Rorschach test than a ‘universal’ work of fiction.”89 Examining the different interpretations, rewritings, adaptations and translations of Pride and Prejudice thus promises to provide insights into “the changing cultural codes”90 which have informed these readings of Austen’s classic. In 1925 Virginia Woolf offered an assessment of Austen’s writings which could actually provide a very intriguing explanation for the fact that Pride and Prejudice continues to inspire adaptations and rewritings – in the guise of evangelical novels, pornography, chick lit, Gothic stories and crime fiction. Woolf argues: Jane Austen is […] a mistress of much deeper emotion than appears upon the surface. She stimulates us to supply what is not there. What she offers is, apparently, a trifle, yet

86 87 88 89 90

as the members of the club coalesce as a community, they support each other through a number of crises […].” For more information on the current readership of Austen, see Kiefer, Jeanne. “Anatomy of a Janeite: Results from the Jane Austen Survey 2008.” In: Persuasions On-Line 29,1 (2008): n.p. Kaplan. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” n.p. Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 175. Ibid. 183. Terentowicz-Fotyga. “Lost in Austen? The Afterlife of the Literary Classic.” 265.

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is composed of something that expands in the reader’s mind and endows with the most enduring form of life scenes which are outwardly trivial.91

In other words, Pride and Prejudice encourages readers to be creative, to use their imagination. Two hundred years after Pride and Prejudice was published, the novel seems to be more alive than ever. It has remained a subject of academic discussions, but it has likewise become a part of popular culture. The contributions to this volume seek to explore various facets of this cultural/popcultural phenomenon and to provide new insights into the reasons for the lasting popularity of Jane Austen’s most famous novel.

References Aldea, Elena Oliete. “Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice: A Transnational Journey Through Time and Space.” In: International Journal of English Studies 12,1 (2012): 167–82. Annus, Ir¦n. “Trans-Culturing Jane Austen: The Mollywood Adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.” In: Americana: E-Journal of American Studies 8,1 (2012): n.p. Auerbach, Emily. “Pride and Proliferations.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 186–97. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1985 [1813]. Austen-Leigh, James Edward. A Memoir of Jane Austen and Other Family Recollections. Edited by Kathryn Sutherland. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Barchas, Janine. “Mrs. Gaskell’s North and South: Austen’s Early Legacy.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 53–66. Bride & Prejudice. Gurinder Chadha (director). Path¦ Pictures/Miramax, UK/USA, 2004. Brosh, Liora. “Consuming Women: The Representation of Women in the 1940 Adaptation of Pride and Prejudice.” In: Quarterly Review of Film and Video 17,2 (2000): 147–59. Burningham, Hilary and Rachel Phillips Illus. The Graphic Novels Series: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. London: Evans Brothers, 2004. Butler, Nancy and Hugo Petrus. Pride and Prejudice: Adopted from the Novel by Jane Austen. New York: Marvel, 2009. Cossy, Val¦rie. Jane Austen in Switzerland: A Study of the Early French Translations. Geneva: Editions Slatkine, 2006. Dow, Gillian. “Translations.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 122–36. Durgan, Jessica. “Framing Heritage: The Role of Cinematography in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions On-Line 27,2 (2007): n.p. Favret, Mary A. “Free and Happy : Jane Austen in America.” In: Deidre Lynch (ed.). Janeites: Austen’s Disciples and Devotees. Princeton/Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2000. 166–87. 91 Woolf. “Jane Austen at Sixty.” 262–63.

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Fergus, Jan. “The Professional Woman Writer.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 12–31. Fielding, Helen. Bridget Jones’s Diary : A Novel. London: Picador, 2001 [1996]. Francus, Marilyn. “Austen Therapy : Pride and Prejudice and Popular Culture.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Glancy, Kathleen. “What Happened Next? or The Many Husbands of Georgiana Darcy.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 110–16. Grange, Amanda. Wickham’s Diary. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 2011. Grogan, Claire. “From Pride and Prejudice to Lost in Austen and Back Again: Reading Television Reading Novels.” In: Tiffany Potter (ed.). Women, Popular Culture, and the Eighteenth Century. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2012. 292–307. Hannon, Patricia. “Austen Novels and Austen Films: Incompatible Worlds?” In: Persuasions 18 (1996): 24–32. Hiroshi, Ebine. “Experimenting with Jane Austen: Kurahashi Yumiko.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Johnson, Claudia L. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 211–26. Kaplan, Laurie. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Kiefer, Jeanne. “Anatomy of a Janeite: Results from the Jane Austen Survey 2008.” In: Persuasions On-Line 29,1 (2008): n.p. Lawson-Peebles, Robert. “European Conflict and Reconstruction of English Fiction.” In: Yearbook of English Studies 26 (1996): 1–13. Looser, Devoney. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85. Lost in Austen. Dan Zeff (director). ITV, UK, 2008. Maunder, Andrew. “Making Heritage and History : The 1894 Illustrated Pride and Prejudice.” In: Nineteenth Century Studies 20 (2006): 147–69. McCullough, Colleen. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. London: HarperCollins 2009 [2008]. Munford, Rebecca. “ ‘ The Future of Pemberley’: Emma Tennant, the ‘Classic Progression’ and Literary Trespassing.” In: Gillian Dow and Clare Hanson (eds.). Uses of Austen: Jane’s Afterlives. New York/Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. 59–76. Murphy, Olivia. “Books, Bras and Bridget Jones: Reading Adaptions of Pride and Prejudice.” In: Sydney Studies 31 (2005): 21–39. Nafisi, Azar. Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books. London/New York: Fourth Estate, 2004 [2003]. Parry, Sarah. “The Pemberley Effect: Austen’s Legacy to the Historic House Industry.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 113–22. Pinnock, Jonathan. Mrs Darcy versus the Aliens. London: Turnaround Publisher Services, 2011. Pride and Prejudice. Robert Z. Leonard (director). MGM, USA, 1940. Pride and Prejudice. Joan Craft (director). BBC, UK, 1967.

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Pride and Prejudice. Cyril Coke (director). BBC, UK, 1980. Pride and Prejudice. Simon Langton (director). BBC, UK, 1995. Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy. Andrew Black (director). Excel Entertainment, USA, 2003. Pride and Prejudice. Joe Wright (director). Focus Features/Universal Pictures, France, UK, USA, 2005. Pyrhönen, Heta. “Generic Stability despite Hybridization: The Austenian Dominant Construction Principle.” In: Michael Basseler, Ansgar Nünning and Christine Schwanecke (eds.). The Cultural Dynamics of Generic Change in Contemporary Fiction: Theoretical Frameworks, Genres and Model Interpretations. Trier : WVT, 2013. 183–200. Ridout, Alice. “Lost in Austen: Adaptation and the Feminist Politics of Nostalgia.” In: Adaptation 4,1 (2010): 14–27. Ruthven, Andrea. “Pride and Prejudice and Post-Feminist Zombies.” In: Mar†a Alonso Alonso (ed.). Weaving New Perspectives Together : Some Reflections on Literary Studies. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 155–70. Scott, Steven D. “Making Room in the Middle: Mary in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Bruce Stovel and Lynn Weinlos Gregg (eds.). The Talk in Jane Austen. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2002. 225–36. Tekcan, Rana. “Notes on a Turkish Edition of Pride and Prejudice: An Editor’s Perspective.” In: Persuasions 30 (2008): 235–40. Tennant, Emma. Pemberley. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2003. – Pemberley Revisited. London: Maia Press, 2005. Terentowicz-Fotyga, Urszula. “Lost in Austen? The Afterlife of the Literary Classic.” In: Katarzyna Pisarska and Andrzej Slawomir Kowalczyk (eds.). The Lives of Texts: Exploring the Metaphor. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 263–75. The Big Bang Theory, Season 7, Episode 4 “The Raiders Minimization.” USA: Warner Bros., 2013. Thompson, Allison. “Trinkets and Treasures: Consuming Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p. Todd, Janet. “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–61. Tomalin, Claire. Jane Austen: A Life. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1998 [1997]. Van Steenhuyse, Veerle. “Jane Austen Fan Fiction and the Situated Fantext: The Example of Pamela Aidan’s Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman.” In: English Text Construction 4,2 (2011): 165–85. Wallis, Cedric. The Heiress of Rosings. London: Samuel French, 1956. Wells, Juliette. “True Love Waits: Austen and the Christian Romance in the Contemporary U.S.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p. Woolf, Virginia. “Jane Austen at Sixty.” In: Susannah Carson (ed.). A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen. New York: Random House, 2009 [1925]. 259–68. You’ve Got Mail. Nora Ephron (director). Warner Bros., USA, 1998. Zhang, Feng. “A Brief Analysis on the Two Chinese Versions of Pride and Prejudice from the Perspective of Ideology.” In: English Language Teaching 3,3 (2010): 194–97.

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The Serious Business of Mrs Bennet and the Consequences of a Mother’s Fear Oh! Mrs. Bennet! Mrs. Norris too! While memory survives we’ll dream of you.1 (from “The Lady and the Novel” by George W.F.H. Earl of Carlisle)

Even though critics have highlighted a variety of different aspects of Pride and Prejudice Jane Austen’s novel is, without doubt, first and foremost a text concerned with marriage. The fact that Pride and Prejudice begins with the prospect of finding a husband and ends with the accomplishment of matrimony cannot be ignored and, similar to much early nineteenth-century literature, the extremely popular motive of money informs the concept of marriage that is presented in the novel. This link is partially due to the circumstance that “[i]n England, the ability of married women to own property came late. Although writers of the eighteenth and nineteenth century, such as Frances Burney, Jane Austen, and George Eliot, criticize marriage, they see few alternatives for women, and the marriage plot is the preoccupation of their novels.”2 Given the fact that Pride and Prejudice features a family with five daughters and an estate entailed to the male line, it is no surprise that “Austen’s concern with money and incomes permeates [this] novel,”3 as Hume puts it. That the idea of marriage in Pride and Prejudice is irrevocably connected to financial concerns contradicts purely romantic readings of the text and provides an adequate assessment of the economic status of women at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Despite a general awareness of the necessity of marriage, none of Mrs Bennet’s daughters seems to be particularly inclined to marry. Neither the elder daughters, Jane and Elizabeth, who are expected to consider marriage sooner rather than later because, as Lydia points out, “Jane will be quite an old maid

1 Carlisle, George W.F.H. Poems by George Howard, Earl of Carlisle. London: E. Moxon, 1869. 91. 2 Livingston, Sally A. Marriage, Property, and Women’s Narratives. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. 3. 3 Hume, Robert D. “Money in Jane Austen.” In: The Review of English Studies 64,264 (2013): 289–310, 289.

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soon” being “almost three-and-twenty”,4 nor the younger ones, Lydia, Kitty and Mary, make finding a husband the main concern of their everyday lives. Jane’s and Elizabeth’s attitude to marriage is addressed when Elizabeth communicates to Lady Catherine de Bourgh that “the elder may not have the means or inclination to marry early” (PP 162). Questioning whether they ‘have the means’ to marry refers to their insignificant dowry, which narrows their options down to only few suitable partners. Yet doubting their ‘inclination’ questions their willingness to conform to the social expectations which are laid upon them and the women of their time. Their notion of marriage is further outlined in the mutual awareness of each other’s ways of thinking: “[I]f I were to get a rich husband, or any husband, I dare say I should adopt it. But these are not Jane’s feelings; she is not acting by design” (PP 23), Elizabeth explains in a conversation on husband-hunting with her friend Charlotte Lucas. Again, she refers to marriage in purely hypothetical terms with respect to Jane and herself. Jane, too, is unusually demanding when she offers advice to Elizabeth on that matter, saying “Lizzy! do anything rather than marry without affection” (PP 353), thus enhancing the notion that none of them wishes to marry for money alone. This position is put into action when Elizabeth, much to the regret of her mother, is bold enough to reject an offer by Mr Collins, who, by inheriting the Bennets’ estate, would have secured her as well as her sisters’ provision. Mary’s main concern is finding recognition within her own family, not founding a family of her own. Lydia appears to delight in the idea of being the first of the sisters to marry, exclaiming “Lord! how I should like to be married before any of you” (PP 213). Yet this enthusiasm can be attributed to the fact that she is the youngest and knows that marriage would completely reverse the sisters’ hierarchy because “[o]nce married, a sister gains prestige over a sister, whatever the place in the age sequence” (PP 213). She and Kitty are so much more interested in the less profitable, temporary enjoyments and charms of meeting the officers that even “Mr. Bingley’s large fortune, the mention of which gave animation to their mother, was worthless in their eyes when opposed to the regimentals of an ensign” (PP 30). While her daughters obviously do not intend to make marriage their priority, it is Mrs Bennet’s main concern to find suitable husbands for them as soon as possible. Her primary reason for this, as she repeatedly points out, is not only that “Mr. Bennet’s property consisted almost entirely in an estate of two thousand a year, which, unfortunately for his daughters, was entailed, in default of heirs male, on a distant relation” but also that her own “fortune, though ample for her situation in life, could but ill supply the deficiency of his” (PP 29). With 4 Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London: Penguin Books, 2003 [1813]. 213. All further references to this text are marked by the abbreviation PP.

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this financial situation, the idea of Mr Bennet’s death preceding her own, which is an undeniable biological probability, leads her to relentlessly emphasise the importance of marriage for her daughters and to direct nearly all of her actions at its fulfilment. Mrs Bennet’s behaviour is not exclusively based on the specific financial situation of the Bennet family, but on a general awareness of women’s options in nineteenth-century England. In Fallenness in Victorian Women’s Writing Logan aptly sums up women’s dilemma in the subtitle ‘Marry, Stitch, Die or Do Worse’.5 These are essentially the alternatives women had, and Mrs Bennet has clearly chosen the one her daughters should aim at. The ambition of having her daughters suitably cared for before a situation arises where she cannot provide for them herself is what motivates her actions. In fact, “[t]he business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news” (PP 7). While Mrs Bennet repeatedly stresses that her goal must not be contradicted and ceaselessly tries to convey that her task is a serious one, she becomes “a constant source of embarrassment and irritation.”6 Bearing in mind that her life’s ‘solace was visiting and news’, this woman, who is referred to as having a serious business, also has a “weak understanding and illiberal mind” (PP 228), as the reader quickly realises when perceiving her through the eyes of her husband. Pressing her issue very hard while being openly unmasked as simple-minded, Mrs Bennet appears as a character who is treated with a lack of sympathy and serious consideration by the other characters. On the one hand, she is pushing a main theme of the novel; on the other hand, she is only a minor character, who is constantly caricatured and laughed at. Mrs Bennet is, indeed, harshly criticised for her silliness and her humiliating interventions in her daughters’ affairs and seldom taken seriously by the characters within the novel or by the readership and critics of Pride and Prejudice. The essence of her relationship to Mr Bennet is no more and no less than that “her ignorance and folly had contributed to his amusement” (PP 228). Ridiculed as she is throughout the novel, her presentation leaves the reader wondering whether the points she is making need to be taken seriously or not: Are the silly mother’s indelicate approaches to getting her daughters closer to a profitable marriage justified, or is she unreasonably complaining and simply exaggerating when she time and again stresses the unfortunate affair of the estate being entailed? One might also begin to wonder whether the lack of dedication to the prospect of an economically motivated marriage on the part of Mrs Bennet’s daughters reflects ignorance or foresight. Are they progressing from a notion of 5 Logan, Deborah A. Fallenness in Victorian Women’s Writing: Marry, Stitch, Die, or Do Worse. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1998. 6 Benson, Mary Margaret. “Mothers, Substitute Mothers, and Daughters in the Novels of Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 117–24, 123.

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marriage founded on social and financial considerations to another concept of marriage, which involves mutual affection? In addition to the general characterisation of Mrs Bennet and her elder daughters, which is bound to privilege the daughters’ position, the following information allots even more sympathy and reliability to them, especially in the matter of marriage: “Jane and Elizabeth tried to explain to her the nature of an entail [,…] it was a subject on which Mrs. Bennet was beyond the reach of reason” (PP 61). Moreover, bearing in mind that only “[a]bout one family in 575 had such an income” as Mr Bennet, who thus “represent[s] 0.17 % of the population,”7 and considering the family’s comparative wealth, one might be inclined to further question whether Mrs Bennet is right. In order to provide an adequate assessment of her position, it is necessary to fully comprehend the family’s economic circumstances. Downie8, Copeland9 and Tandon10 have offered convincing studies focussing on the significance of the Bennets’ income in Austen’s time. Drawing upon their insights Hume argues that “[a]ll of Austen’s incomes are within the realm of the possible: they are not the stuff of fantasy. But as Downie demonstrates and [his] figures amply confirm, ‘bourgeois’ they are decidedly not.”11 Yet, this assessment still does not answer the question of whether Mrs Bennet’s interpretation of these incomes is reliable, too. Hume insists: We may wince at the idea of a widowed Mrs Bennet and whatever daughters remained unmarried trying to live on the £200 per annum that would be all they had – and they would certainly have been horrified at the idea – but in national average income terms, they would be well in the top 10 %.12

Comparing their paternally guaranteed income with the one they would predictably have after Mr Bennet’s potential death, it becomes clear that a descent in social standing and quality of life would be unavoidable. So, irrespective of the Bennets’ actual wealth or possible lack thereof, it seems at least plausible to consider their financial status as unstable. Its relative nature is made tangible in the daughters’ prospective social decline, as it will be impossible for them to 7 Hume, Robert D. “Money in Jane Austen.” In: The Review of English Studies 64,264 (2013): 289–310, 297. 8 Downie, James Alan. “Who Says She’s a Bourgeois Writer? Reconsidering the Social and Political Contexts of Jane Austen’s Novels.” In: Eighteenth-Century Studies 40,1 (2006): 69–84. 9 Copeland, Edward. “Money.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 127–43. 10 Tandon, Bharat. “The Historical Background.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 67–78. 11 Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 299. 12 Ibid. 289.

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remain as unconcerned in financial matters as the Bennet sisters apparently are during their father’s lifetime. Considering the English society of the nineteenth century, Nelson explains that “[s]ocial rise was desirable on any number of fronts, as life in the middle class was not merely more comfortable than life in poverty, but generally longer as well.”13 This is something Mrs Bennet already achieved when she successfully married into the gentry ; yet her present concerns about marriage are not necessarily based on further aspirations for social rise; they may also be seen as the desperate attempt to prevent her daughters from a downward social movement. Despite the fact that with Mr Bennet’s income the Bennets belong to the top “0.17 % of the population”,14 their social status is threatened due to the entail of the estate and will certainly be lost once Mr Bennet dies, which generally demonstrates the lack of security for the daughters in such a family as the Bennets. There are parallels to the author’s social and financial situation since “[e]xamining Austen’s own finances emphasizes a hard fact: she lived at the bottom margin of gentility”.15 This may prompt the conclusion that Austen’s awareness of money and its precarious nature in her novels derives from her own experience. The parallels between Jane Austen’s actual financial straits and the potential social decline of the Bennet sisters after their father’s death are often drawn upon by scholars,16 because they support the claim that her approach to financial anxieties is an utterly realistic one.17 The Bennets thus represent a common genteel family in Regency England, who is faced with being perpetually in danger of a downward social movement, which leads to the ambition to maintain their social status – an endeavour that forms a focal point of Pride and Prejudice. The social and financial insecurity of genteel families is not only recognised by Mrs Bennet, after all, but in fact by nearly all characters, including Charlotte Lucas, who does not hesitate to choose the prevention of economic decline over affection: “Without thinking highly either of men or matrimony, marriage had always been her object; it was the only provision for well-educated young women of small fortune [,…] their pleasantest preservative from want” (PP 120). Consequently, she is the first to marry and functions as the paragon for the sensible, economically motivated marriage. Her considerations also emphasise a common aspect of late eighteenth- and nineteenth-century reality : “For women, working to support themselves was incompatible with genteel social position:

13 14 15 16 17

Nelson, Claudia. Family Ties in Victorian England. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2007. 4. Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 287. Ibid. 290. Cf. e. g. Tandon. “The Historical Background.” 74. Cf. Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” and Copeland. “Money.”

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they could inherit money or marry it; there were no other options.”18 This is something Mrs Bennet is fully aware of despite her rather simple mind, and, being forced to eliminate the option of inheritance, she acts accordingly. She may not have understood the precise details and the background of entails, but she has certainly grasped the way society works and tries with all her might to conform to its demands in order to secure her children’s prosperity. Though little skilful and self-conscious in her attempts to place her daughters advantageously, her main motives are clear. Mrs Bennet’s insistence on the necessity of getting married seems to be justified and reasonable after all. One can assume that contemporary readers would have realised this: Any reader, now or then, would be expected to ‘get’ the first layer of narratorial irony, but readers in 1813 might more readily have sensed the way in which the irony also pulls in the other direction, acknowledging, even as Mrs Bennet is exposed as the shallow creature she undoubtedly is, that for a woman in her financial position (having to make do within Mr Bennet’s £2,000-a-year income, itself entailed away from the female line), dealing with five unmarried daughters would indeed merit the title of a serious ‘business.’19

Given the Bennets’ financial prospects, one may definitely agree that the consequences of the financial situation in fact constitute a “serious business”, a “situation [that] can only be accounted desperate as regards the women.”20 And desperate Mrs Bennet is. Not on her own account, but on her daughters’. For all her deficiencies Mrs Bennet is not completely ignorant regarding the feelings of her daughters, though she often misunderstands or fails to consider them. Demanding that Elizabeth marries does not imply that she cannot understand her daughter’s objections but, being caught in her desperate perspective, she simply rates the economic advantage and its positive effects on all sisters higher than Elizabeth’s personal notions of an ideal marriage. Forced to acknowledge through her own experience that an ideal, both financially and emotionally satisfying marriage is an unrealistic ambition, Mrs Bennet focuses on what seems achievable. Even though she is unjust in her behaviour to her daughters, clearly favouring Lydia and feeling for her, wishing her to stay close and be happy more than any other of her daughters, she does not even for a moment consider rich and impolite Mr Darcy as a suitable match for any of her daughters – a stance which is certainly not due to the fact that she is modest. That she is not modest in her goals is made unambiguously clear when she states: “If I can but see one of my daughters happily settled at Netherfield, […] and all the others equally well married, I shall have nothing to wish for” (PP 11). This openly 18 Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 293. 19 Tandon. “The Historical Background.” 75. 20 Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 294.

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shows her lack of modesty and indicates that she does not only wish for her daughters’ financial security but also for their happiness. Moreover, the statement underlines that getting her daughters married is indeed the only thing she is striving for in her own married life. Still she does not take Mr Darcy into consideration, being convinced that he is not good enough for her girls. So in her desperation there are still limits she observes for the sake of her daughters’ happiness. Caught in her own fears, she might not be able to understand the thoughts and emotions of all of her daughters, but she is nevertheless focussing on securing their future. In defiance of the critical voices condemning Mrs Bennet’s weaknesses, it is this shift from her own concerns to those of her daughters which can certainly be regarded as an expression of a motherly attitude. She withdraws the focus of attention from herself and announces: “When a woman has five grown-up daughters, she ought to give over thinking of her own beauty” (PP 6). This suggests that her own beauty and public recognition are not relevant anymore. Instead of leaving her adult daughters to face their fate on their own, her entire purpose in life has become the prevention of their social decline. Whether this can be understood as selflessness or not may remain an open question, but it is certainly inaccurate to state that “for Mrs. Bennet, self-respect is wrapped up in snaring a husband”.21 It is not self-respect she is looking for, neither for her daughters nor for herself. It is security for the female line of her family. Her desire to secure her daughters’ financial and social position could be said to be based on her wish for respectability. Yet it is an open secret that Mr Bennet’s “[r]espect, esteem, and confidence [for his wife] had vanished for ever” (PP 228), which is why Mr Bennet gives Elizabeth the following piece of advice: “My child, let me not have the grief of seeing you unable to respect your partner in life. You know not what you are about” (PP 356). For Mrs Bennet, the daughter of an attorney, marrying Mr Bennet meant achieving social success and what was usually thought of as a happy ending (from a financial and social perspective). While Mr Bennet wants to prevent his favourite daughter from a marriage that resembles his own, Mrs Bennet aims at securing a similar match for her daughter despite her presumably at times humiliating experience. Her attitude towards marriage is by no means a progressive one, but marrying for money and status is the only option she can think of, while her husband actually fails to come up with any plans for his daughters’ future. Mrs Bennet accepts the possibility of an unhappy though profitable union. She is thus showing a deep conviction of its necessity although her own fate demonstrates that upwards marriage neither leads to long-term economic security nor delivers happiness and peace to married women. Instead of the happy 21 Livingston. Marriage, Property, and Women’s Narratives. 90.

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ending mentioned above, a woman might not only end up in an unsatisfying marriage, disrespected by her partner, but the pursuit of economically suitable husbands may start all over again if she happens to give birth to daughters while the family’s property is entailed to the male line. This leaves her unable to provide for her own offspring and desperate to the extent that she remonstrates with Elizabeth: “if you take it into your head to go on refusing every offer of marriage in this way, you will never get a husband at all – and I am sure I do not know who is to maintain you when your father is dead. I shall not be able to keep you” (PP 111). This fear of her own helplessness, combined with her daughters’ lack of someone else to ‘keep’ them, is the driving force of her actions. What she is trying to avoid by all means available to her is becoming a widow, which means essentially being a single mother, unable to provide for her children. Her attitude, which has amused so many fictitious and actual, past and present audiences, consequently does not indicate idiocy but the desperation of a mother whose means are limited, in intellectual as well as in material terms. Keeping in mind that she has already achieved important goals regarding her own social status and still has to worry about finding husbands makes her fears and her difficult position as a mother more clear. These considerations cast an interesting light on mothers at the beginning of the nineteenth century and their fear of being single, be it post- or pre-matrimony. Even the wealthy Lady Catherine, who already is in the much dreaded position of the lone parent, worries about her daughter getting married. Accordingly, if one takes into consideration Mrs Bennet’s social and financial prospects, the criticism often levelled against her by characters within the novel as well as by literary critics might seem unjust. Lady Catherine is convinced that Mrs Bennet is a failure as a mother. She is shocked when she hears that the Bennets do not have a governess and concludes that Mrs Bennet’s daughters “must have been neglected” (PP 161), an accusation which seems to be justified not only with respect to their general education but also with respect to moral and emotional issues. Mrs Bennet is not the person to turn to for moral and emotional advice or support. But at the same time her daughters’ material and social well-being constitutes the centre of her life. She thus does not neglect her daughters at all levels, only at those that she cannot serve due to her own limitations. Lady Catherine, who blames Mrs Bennet for her failings, in some respects behaves in a very similar fashion. She is shown to be striving for a suitable marriage for her daughter just as ruthlessly as Mrs Bennet. In their imprudence the one mother is in no way superior to the other. Their offensive behaviour ultimately has an unexpected effect because just as “his aunt’s rudeness must have made it a good deal easier for Darcy to forgive Elizabeth for

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having a mother like Mrs. Bennet”22 it must have been easier for Elizabeth to condone his aunt’s conduct being aware of her mother’s shortcomings. Their very similar intentions with respect to finding a suitable husband for their daughters obliterate the differences between Lady Catherine and Mrs Bennet. They are aware of the fact that “[i]n the class-stratified world of the gentry, suitable marriage partners for young men and women of the upper classes were comparatively few, as Austen herself knew only too well.”23 Therefore their designs are easily comprehensible. They must secure their daughters’ future and there are not many candidates available to serve this objective. At the same time “[t]heir similarly ridiculous and unsuccessful attempts to arrange the marriages they desire remove class distinctions and make fools of them both,”24 as Harmsel puts it. The character of Lady Catherine thus confronts the reader again with criticism of social conventions wrapped in the coat of ridicule. Again, one may either be amused or one may wonder whether to take the arguments brought forward by silly Mrs Bennet and pompous Lady Catherine seriously or not. Todd observes that “Pride and Prejudice allowed readers to be amused by characters such as Mrs Bennet, Mr Collins and Lady Catherine, whom the author herself detested since she knew how much real damage they could cause”.25 Yet the similarity between the three characters mentioned by Todd is not exhausted by their entertainment value; all three of them are also pushing towards marriage. Revisiting the novel, the reader may reassess the reasons behind these characters’ actions and may begin to see their point. If Mrs Bennet was less silly and less preoccupied with her anxieties, the very real social concerns associated with this character would be less apparent. The endless repetition of her worries results in unavoidable annoyance, which, however, catches the reader’s attention and is likely to bring forth a much more acute awareness of Mrs Bennet and her concerns than a more appealing character might have provoked: Although money, estates and questions of inheritance are everywhere in Pride and Prejudice, they are yet mentioned openly only by impolitic, ill-bred women, like Mrs Bennet and Lady Catherine, or unscrupulous males, like Wickham. Restraint in discussing these questions, particularly between the sexes, is a mark of good breeding.26

In other words, by presenting ridiculous characters such as Mrs Bennet Jane Austen was able to utter concerns which she herself might have been too well22 Harmsel, Henrietta Ten. “The Villain-Hero in Pamela and Pride and Prejudice.” In: College English 23,2 (1961): 104–08, 107. 23 Markley, Robert. “The Economic Context.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 79–96, 93. 24 Harmsel. “The Villain-Hero in Pamela and Pride and Prejudice.” 107. 25 Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49, 142. 26 Markley. “The Economic Context.” 91.

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bred to blurt out plainly. Her irony, combined with the comic nature of Mrs Bennet functions as a subtle critique of the social circumstances a woman in her situation faced, troubled by estates entailed away from the female line and social structures that made it very difficult for a woman to be financially independent. Being apparently immune to considerations regarding tactfulness and openly disclosing their motivations, voluntarily or not, Mrs Bennet and Lady Catherine also expose how vulnerable and helpless those mothers are who do not have the intellect or means to meet the social expectations they are eager to conform with. Jane Austen arguably does not criticise the damage they cause but the more farreaching damage that is being caused by society’s conventions. The main difference between Mrs Bennet and Lady Catherine is that the latter does not need a favourable liaison because of financial considerations. Even if a marriage of her daughter to Mr Darcy is advantageous, it is at least not financially necessary. “[S]he is better off than many girls” (PP 66) Mrs Bennet says about Lady Catherine’s daughter. Indeed, Lady Catherine is only aiming at the preservation of her daughter’s social status. Strictly speaking, her determination can therefore be regarded as less understandable than Mrs Bennet’s because “[t]he foundational reality underlying all of Austen’s novels is painfully simple: a genteel woman must either have money or marry money.”27 And Anne already has money. Lady Catherine understands and even shares Mrs Bennet’s dismay regarding the entail, as the former reveals in a conversation when she tells Elizabeth: ‘Your father’s estate is entailed on Mr. Collins, I think. For your sake,’ turning to Charlotte, ‘I am glad of it; but otherwise I see no occasion for entailing estates from the female line. It was not thought necessary in Sir Lewis de Bourgh’s family.’ (PP 174)

Mrs Bennet’s and Lady Catherine’s convictions are based on the same, female perspective of the contemporary situation of women, reflecting the insight that “[t]he socio-economic realities of the early nineteenth century put even greater pressure on women of the upper classes, given their limited property rights in inheritance and marriage law.”28 That is not to say that one of them understands the matter of the entail in detail, but its consequences for the Bennets are obvious enough. So it is still true that “[o]ne of the novel’s ironies is that Mrs Bennet, the daughter of an attorney, has no understanding of the complications that entails routinely created, nor of the logic behind them.”29 It is a legal and financial matter that neither Mrs Bennet nor Lady Catherine seem to comprehend completely because they are daughters 27 Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 293. 28 Markley. “The Economic Context.” 93. 29 Ibid. 85.

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of their times. They recognise the pressure and danger but they fail to fully grasp its background or justification. Wynne finds this lack of awareness amongst married women concerning their deprivation of property rights to be common.30 The ambitious pursuit of a husband of great fortune could thus, even if it proved to be successful, eventually end in owning less property than before the marriage because any property owned prior to being married immediately became the husband’s property upon marriage. Nineteenth-century women were therefore often only temporarily better off with a husband, precisely as long as he was alive and willing to share his property, or if he died without entails attached to his estate. The famous opening sentence of Pride and Prejudice suggests that young men of good fortune are in want of a wife (PP 5), but it is not them who are looking for a partner ; in fact, young women and men without fortune are in want of a marriage partner who can provide the money they themselves are lacking. Or, in the case of the Bennets, the young women’s mother is the one who is looking for an eligible marriage partner. Seeing this, William Baker is one of the critics who ascribe the first sentence of the novel to Mrs Bennet.31 Ironically, the reader is informed that Mr Bingley “is considered the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters” (PP 5) while the opposite was true with regard to property : “[U]pon marriage, a woman’s legal and economic existence was submerged in that of her husband – her property in essence became his.”32 It took almost another century after Jane Austen’s birth until this situation began to change: “Until the passing of the Married Women’s Property Act in 1870, wives were prohibited under common law from owning property.”33 Despite her admittedly limited intellectual capacities it is Mrs Bennet who grasps the meaning of the property laws, while her intellectually superior husband realises his failings with regard to securing his daughters’ future only when it is too late. In addition to suffering from her own limitations, Mrs Bennet lacks her husband’s support. The reader is often reminded of Mr Bennet’s unhappiness due to his choice of a wife and his unfulfilling marriage. One quickly sees his point and sympathises with his sufferings. However, looking closely one begins to realise that Mrs Bennet also deserves sympathy. Being married to someone 30 Wynne, Deborah. Women and Personal Property in the Victorian Novel. Farnham: Ashgate, 2010. 9. 31 Baker, William. Critical Companion to Jane Austen. New York: Facts on File, 2008. 363. 32 Livingston. Marriage, Property, and Women’s Narratives. 4. Cf. also Wynne. Women and Personal Property in the Victorian Novel. 7: “Under the common law, unreformed since the medieval period, women lost all legal rights on marriage, including the right to retain and control their property because the law of ‘coverture’ meant that husbands ‘covered’ their wives’ identity and publicly they existed as ‘one.’ ” 33 Wynne. Women and Personal Property in the Victorian Novel. 6.

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more serious and thoughtful than she is does not suit her disposition. She is suffering from the lack of a partner sharing the same kind of humour and her shallow nature; Mr Bennet does not make her laugh but instead makes fun of her and reminds her of her shortcomings. Moreover, she is the only one who is worried about their daughters’ financial future. Mr Bennet is reluctant to give Elizabeth away to anyone because he is interested in her happiness and does not consider anybody worthy of her, but also because she is the one who contributes most to his happiness and he therefore does not want to lose her. Mr Bennet literally wallows in self-pity for having to make do with such a wife as Mrs Bennet, while she worries about their daughters’ prospects in life. “As the reader quickly gathers, Mr Bennet is a charming, witty, hopeless parent”,34 as Miles asserts. The reader is also made aware right from the start of Pride and Prejudice that, in accordance with the common law mentioned above, Mrs Bennet has to rely on this ‘hopeless parent’ to form the acquaintances needed to widen their daughters’ options on the marriage market. With this in mind, the arrangement of the marriage contract in the nineteenth century seems all the more absurd: The gendered nature of the British marriage contract has not only operated to contain women’s sexuality and reproduction but it has also provided a mechanism which officially attaches and gives authority to men over their children.35

Thus Mrs Bennet is not only helpless due to her limited intellect, her clumsy manners and her general inability to present herself advantageously in society ; she also lacks legal authority and power over her own children when trying to protect them. Contrarily, “[u]ntil the 1960s in Britain there were no fathers outside the institution of marriage, only putative fathers who could not be definitively claimed to be the biological fathers. The illegitimate child was axiomatically defined as the legal, social and moral responsibility of the unmarried mothers of their illegitimate children.”36 This is one of the reasons why single motherhood was nothing to wish for and was sometimes even prevented by infanticide.37 Ironically, though Mrs Bennet lacks legal authority with respect to her daughters as long as her husband is still alive, she will have to take over the 34 Miles, Robert. “Character.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 15–26, 19. 35 Fink, Janet and Katherine Holden. “Pictures from the Margins of Marriage: Representations of Spinsters and Single Mothers in the Mid–Victorian Novel, Inter-War Hollywood Melodrama and British Film of the 1950s and 1960s.” In: Gender & History 11,2 (1999): 233–55, 233. 36 Fink and Holden. “Pictures from the Margins of Marriage.” 234. 37 Cf. Francus, Marylin. “Monstrous Mothers, Monstrous Societies: Infanticide and the Rule of Law in Eighteenth-Century England.” In: Eighteenth-Century Life 20 (1997): 133–56.

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sole responsibility for her daughters’ economic well-being after his death, ergo being in a situation which has much in common with that of a single mother. Comparing Mr and Mrs Bennet’s respective efforts to secure their daughters’ future one might in fact argue that the girls are already Mrs Bennet’s sole responsibility. Mr Bennet repeatedly places the task of taking care of his daughters on the shoulders of others, including, apart from his wife, Colonel Foster and Mr Darcy. Instead of acting in accordance with his paternal responsibility, Mr Bennet generally relies on the strengths or weaknesses of others: “Colonel Foster is a sensible man, and will keep her out of any real mischief; and she is luckily too poor to be an object of prey to anybody” (PP 224). Relying on the preferences of the officers, on Colonel Foster, on the family’s lack of money he arguably displays a worse misinterpretation and ignorance of his daughters’ circumstances than his wife does. He disregards their social and financial needs completely ; she ignores their emotional ones, but while she is at least trying to prevent future harm, he refrains from acting altogether. In an early characterisation of Mr and Mrs Bennet, which juxtaposes the alleged complexity of his “character” to “[h]er mind [which] was less difficult to develop” (PP 7), Miles notices the following inconsistency : Mrs Bennet seems the obvious candidate for ‘character’, meaning a caricature in the grip of her presiding passions (greed, envy and jealousy), whereas ‘mind’ should modify Mr Bennet, the unreadable surface of his capricious and sarcastic behaviour registering a more deeply considered view of the world, along with a more subtle interplay between the passions. On a second reading of the novel the original order may seem appropriate after all. Despite his sarcasm, sharp perception and quick wit, Mr Bennet fails the test of ‘mind’.38

Knowing his preference for his library, the reader at first gets an impression of Mr Bennet that he ultimately fails to fulfil. Mrs Bennet has no aspiration to be a studious and well-bred person and openly admits this in a conversation with Mr Bennet: ‘If it was not for the entail, I should not mind it.’ – ‘What should not you mind?’ – ‘I should not mind anything at all.’ – ‘Let us be thankful that you are preserved from a state of such insensibility’ (PP 128).

That the entail is the only thing she is seriously worried about, the only thing that preoccupies her, emphasises what a burden it has become in her eyes. Her husband’s reaction demonstrates where his lack of concern begins and where hers ends. In contrast to Mrs Bennet, who discloses early that she has nothing to develop into and who is from the beginning of the novel driven by the fear of not being 38 Miles. “Character.” 16.

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able to provide for her daughters, Mr Bennet begins to understand his own failings with regard to his daughters’ provision in the course of Pride and Prejudice and learns to regret these (PP 292). Beyond the sympathy Mr Bennet gains due to his sarcasm right from the start, one is also bound to respect his development and his progressive approach to marriage. After all, he is not confined by the conventions of his time and wishes for a union which suits his daughters’ minds and hearts, not their purse and status. Still, it remains an inescapable fact that he would leave his daughters without having taken care of their financial security, even if his wish to see especially his elder daughters truly happy does him credit. It is obvious that Mrs Bennet’s means are further limited through her husband’s lack of initiative, coupled with her (legally) restricted social role. Being neither in possession of high intelligence, wit and sobriety nor of an official social power or even legal identity, her attempts to reach her aims result in embarrassing scenarios. Failing to live up to all of her daughters’ needs, she certainly does not serve as a maternal ideal. Being indifferent to her daughters’ moral education, she also fails to provide them with any moral example. The scene when Lydia takes off to Brighton illustrates Mrs Bennet’s notion of ‘motherly advice’: Mrs. Bennet was diffuse in her good wishes for the felicity of her daughter, and impressive in her injunctions that she would not miss the opportunity of enjoying herself as much as possible; advice, which there was every reason to believe would be attended to (PP 227).

While it is obvious that she cannot be a good example for her daughters in terms of moral conduct and education, Mrs Bennet is not devoid of affection for them. Favouring Lydia and dismissing Elizabeth, she is certainly unjust in her motherly devotion. Both parents clearly feel connected to those daughters who are closer to their own disposition and dismiss the others. But Mrs Bennet is also said to fail in her motherly role with respect to those daughters she favours; the influence of “Mrs. Bennet, who [is] as immature and silly as their youngest daughters, and who [is] therefore unable to guide young women into maturity,”39 seems most dangerous for the younger daughters because they are most susceptible to their mother’s advice. While she certainly appears immature, her awareness of social conventions and apparent necessities has been identified above. Recognising the difficulties her family is faced with and making the attempt to prevent the family’s social decline the business of her life, securing

39 Gilbert, Sandra and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic: The Woman Writer and the Nineteenth-Century Literary Imagination. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000. 125.

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her daughters’ future in financial terms becomes her key to happiness. In this sense at least, Mrs Bennet entirely identifies with her role as mother. Regardless of her various undeniable shortcomings, she consistently does what she considers to be her responsibility as a mother. This fact is often neglected by scholars; Gilbert and Gubar, for instance, even argue that “[b]ecause they are literally or figuratively motherless, the daughters in Austen’s fiction are easily persuaded that they must look to men for security. Although their mothers’ example proves how debilitating marriage can be, they seek husbands in order to escape from home.”40 This assessment of Austen’s novel does not do justice to Pride and Prejudice. Lydia and Mrs Bennet feel affection for each other and regret the distance marriage imposes upon them. Charlotte Lucas does not marry in order to escape from her mother ; her decision is motivated by economic considerations, and she feels the distance from her home to be a disadvantage of her match (PP 174). In their criticism Gilbert and Gubar include a vital point, though: the daughters must “look to men for security”. This is not due to their mother’s weakness of character, however; instead, it is a consequence of the legal and financial limitations forced upon them by the society they live in. Focussing too much on Mrs Bennet’s incompetence as a mother, Gilbert and Gubar fail to see that “money plays such a prominent part in determining both the social climate of the novel and the permissible ‘moves’ of the plot that it could almost be considered as a character in itself – a powerful and largely invisible off-stage presence that nevertheless exerts an extraordinary force on everyone and everything on-stage.”41 In particular, the role of Mrs Bennet reveals this force. The fear of poverty constitutes a main incentive for her actions. Accordingly, it strongly contributes to the plot development mediated by Mrs Bennet’s seemingly static character. “Despite herself, this Terrible Mother is one of the more progressive elements in the novel,”42 as Manheimer puts it. Instead of denying Mrs Bennet an existence as mother (as Gilbert), or labelling her a ‘Terrible Mother’ (as Manheimer), Livingston is convinced that “the Bennet daughters […] have a meddling mother, which only adds to the difficulties arising from their own distressed economic condition.”43 It is certainly true in the case of Jane and Elizabeth that their mother’s interference discredits them while she is trying to increase their chances of getting married. Yet even Elizabeth wishes for a little more ‘meddling’ on the part of the father, asking him to promote advantageous and prevent unwelcome occurrences (PP 223). Pos40 Gilbert and Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic. 125. 41 Tandon. “The Historical Background.” 73. 42 Manheimer, Joan. “Murderous Mothers: The Problem of Parenting in the Victorian Novel.” In: Feminist Studies 5,3 (1979): 530–46, 536. 43 Livingston. Marriage, Property, and Women’s Narratives. 89.

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sibly Mrs Bennet’s over-motivation originates in Mr Bennet’s lack of motivation. Still, the success or failure of Mrs Bennet’s objective is generally attributed to her interference. Benson, for example, is convinced that her daughters get married notwithstanding their mother : In a sense, mothers may be measured by how well they succeed in this endeavour – though this is an ironic measure. In Pride and Prejudice, Jane, Elizabeth, and even Lydia are married in spite of their mother, not because of her at all. Austen’s other heroines come equally independently to their marriages.44

Manheimer, in contrast, concludes that Mrs Bennet’s “motives, manoeuvres and judgment are all wrong, but in ‘the business of her life’ she is successful.”45 She goes so far as to ascribe an unintentional but balancing effect to Mrs Bennet’s actions: “Though usually unaware of what she is doing, Mrs. Bennet consistently promotes connections threatened by her daughters’ modesty or pride”.46 While Manheimer offers a somewhat critical assessment of the daughters’ behaviour, she regards Mrs Bennet as both taking and giving and thus allows for a more intricate characterisation in Austen’s novel: Mrs. Bennet is a more complicated phenomenon than the naive reader might suspect: we must distinguish between what she is, an inadequate mother, and what she does, which is inadvertently to make herself of considerable use to those daughters in whom we are asked to take an interest. Whatever is lost to her daughters by Mrs. Bennet’s silliness and want of character is gained back by them from the function she serves in the novel.47

The impact of Mrs Bennet’s silliness reaches far beyond the character dynamics within Pride and Prejudice. Had Jane Austen drawn a picture of a more gentle, quiet and discreet mother, it would never have made such a lasting impression on the reader. Indeed, it is Mrs Bennet’s vulgarity, indiscretion and annoying conduct which arouse the reader’s attention. With her intention to marry her daughters well, she rushes ahead and induces the reader to not only roll their eyes, but pity Jane, Elizabeth and Mr Bennet for having to deal with her querulous nature. At the same time her lamentations about the difficulties the entail brings along cannot be ignored. Her limitations include intellectual, personal, emotional, social and financial deficits, of which she is at least partially aware. These contribute to her fear of becoming even less capable of providing for her five daughters in the event of Mr Bennet’s death. This fear of becoming a ‘single mother’ is the source of her actions. After having made a socially and financially advantageous marriage and having given birth to daughters, she has begun to 44 45 46 47

Benson. “Mothers, Substitute Mothers, and Daughters in the Novels of Jane Austen.” 124. Manheimer. “Murderous Mothers.” 534. Ibid. 535. Ibid. 536.

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worry about their future and has taken over responsibility. Her fear of becoming a mother who cannot rely on any financial support is based on the actual legal situation of women at her time. The reader, unable to avoid her because of her striking silliness, is forced to see these problems. Beneath her silly demeanour, the reader can sense existential trouble. For this reason, one can argue that Pride and Prejudice not only promotes socially advantageous marriages and marriages for affection, it also shows the limitations of marriage as far as lasting security for women is concerned. As ridiculous as her performance is right from the start when she is all aflutter at the news of Mr Bingley’s arrival, one can still argue: “Well might a worried mother welcome the arrival of such a bachelor in the neighbourhood”.48 And a worried mother Mrs Bennet definitely is.

References Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London: Penguin Books, 2003 [1813]. Baker, William. Critical Companion to Jane Austen: A Literary Reference to her Life and Work. New York: Facts on File, 2008. Benson, Mary Margaret. “Mothers, Substitute Mothers, and Daughters in the Novels of Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 117–24. Carlisle, George W.F.H. Poems by George Howard, Earl of Carlisle. London: E. Moxon, 1869. Copeland, Edward. “Money.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 127–43. Downie, James Alan. “Who Says She’s a Bourgeois Writer? Reconsidering the Social and Political Contexts of Jane Austen’s Novels.” In: Eighteenth-Century Studies 40,1 (2006): 69–84. Fink, Janet and Katherine Holden. “Pictures From the Margins of Marriage: Representations of Spinsters and Single Mothers in the Mid–Victorian Novel, Inter-War Hollywood Melodrama and British Film of the 1950s and 1960s.” In: Gender & History 11,2 (1999): 233–55. Francus, Marylin. “Monstrous Mothers, Monstrous Societies: Infanticide and the Rule of Law in Eighteenth-Century England.” In: Eighteenth-Century Life 20 (1997): 133–56. Gilbert, Sandra and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic: the Woman Writer and the Nineteenth-Century Literary Imagination. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000 [1979]. Harmsel, Henrietta Ten. “The Villain-Hero in Pamela and Pride and Prejudice.” In: College English 23,2 (1961): 104–08. Hume, Robert D. “Money in Jane Austen.” In: The Review of English Studies 64,264 (2013): 289–310. 48 Hume. “Money in Jane Austen.” 297.

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Livingston, Sally A. Marriage, Property, and Women’s Narratives. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. Logan, Deborah A. Fallenness in Victorian Women’s Writing: Marry, Stitch, Die, or Do Worse. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1998. Manheimer, Joan. “Murderous Mothers: the Problem of Parenting in the Victorian Novel.” In: Feminist Studies 5,3 (1979): 530–46. Markley, Robert. “The Economic Context.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 79–96. McMaster, Juliet. “Class.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 111–26. Miles, Robert. “Character.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 15–26. Nelson, Claudia. Family Ties in Victorian England. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2007. Tandon, Bharat. “The Historical Background.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 67–78. Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49. Wynne, Deborah. Women and Personal Property in the Victorian Novel. Farnham: Ashgate, 2010.

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‘And she beheld a striking resemblance to Mr. Darcy’: Nineteenth-Century Illustrations of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice

In 1905, less than a century after Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was first published, Henry James noted the radical change of fortune that Austen’s books had experienced since their publication: “Practically overlooked for thirty or forty years after her death, she perhaps really stands there for us as the prettiest possible example of that rectification of estimate, brought about by some slow clearance of stupidity, the half century or so is capable of working round to”1. Indeed, in the decades following their publication, Austen’s novels experienced a phase of relative obscurity : although they were appreciated by critics, they were by no means bestsellers. By James’s own time, however, the appreciation of Austen had gathered momentum and had now reached the other extreme – that of uninhibited commercialization, when a “body of publishers, editors, illustrators, producers of the pleasant twaddle of magazines […] have found their ‘dear’, our dear, everybody’s dear, Jane so infinitely to their material purpose”2. The luxuriously illustrated editions of Austen’s novels not only testified to the surging popular demand, but also affirmed Austen’s status as a newly canonized classic and a coveted commodity of British culture. Thereby, the publishers and illustrators also took an unprecedented control of the visualization of texts, which are notable, among other features, for the scarcity of physical descriptions. But besides their status as luxury objects, these illustrated editions provide the first large-scale visual attempts to recreate the world of Netherfield and Pemberley, creating an accompanying narrative that not only translated, but also extended, interpreted and competed with Austen’s text. Moreover, the specific style and atmospheric cast of these illustrations founded the tradition of visually representing Pride and Prejudice and Austen’s other novels as light period drama, which is still prevalent in contemporary cinematic adaptations. The last decade of the nineteenth century saw a surge of extensively illustrated 1 James, Henry. “Extract from ‘The Lesson of Balzac.’ ” 1905. In: Ian Littlewood (ed.). Jane Austen: Critical Assessments. Vol. I. Mountfield: Helm Information, 1998. 436–38, 436. 2 James. “Extract from ‘The Lesson of Balzac.’ ” 437.

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editions of Pride and Prejudice. In 1892, J.M. Dent published the first deluxe set of Austen’s novels illustrated by William Cubitt Cooke, followed by the 1894 edition by George Allen, which included no less than 160 illustrations in the text, headpieces, tailpieces and ornamental initials by the renowned graphic artist Hugh Thomson.3 This edition, prefaced by George Saintsbury, who had apparently coined the term “Janites”4, came to be known as the “peacock edition” due to the opulent golden peacock that decorated its dark-green cover. Successful in its presentation, it was reproduced year after year in different editions – in Macmillan’s Illustrated Standard Novels, in the Macmillan “peacock series” and in the Illustrated Pocket Classics.5 But while Thomson was still engaged by Allen in 1894, Macmillan published an alternative luxury illustrated edition in the following year; it was illustrated by Charles Edmund Brock, whose style was similar to Thomson’s.6 In 1898, Dent issued a new set, illustrated by Charles Brock and his brother Henry Matthew. For the first time, this set featured illustrations in color. It was succeeded by yet another set in 1907, with different illustrations by the same artists. Both sets were widely reprinted during the first decades of the twentieth century.7 Similarly, Christiana Hammond also produced drawings for three of Austen’s novels in the 1890s.8 The sales went well: George Allen’s 1894 “peacock edition” of Pride and Prejudice alone sold over 11,500 copies in the first year, with 3,500 further copies being shipped to America (image 1).9 By 1907, 25,000 copies had been sold.10 Compared to the boom of illustrations in the nineteenth century, these illustrated editions of Pride and Prejudice came late. Prior to the nineteenth century a novel would receive an illustration – typically a single frontispiece – only if it had achieved considerable commercial success already. For example, the fourth edition of Smollett’s Peregrine Pickle appeared with a frontispiece by Johann Heinrich Füssli, while William Hogarth provided an illustration for the

3 Sutherland, Kathryn. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives: From Aeschylus to Bollywood. Oxford/ New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. 9. 4 Caroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Jane Austen, Illustrated.” In: Claudia L. Johnson and Clara Tuite (eds.). A Companion to Jane Austen. Chichester : Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. 62–77, 68. 5 Southam, B.C. “Introduction.” In: B.C. Southam (ed.). Jane Austen: The Critical Heritage 1870–1940. Vol. II. London/New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1987. 1–158, 59. 6 Soria, Cinthia Garc†a. “Austen Illustrators Henry and Charles Brock.” Online on Molland’s Circulating Library, 2012. http://mollands.net/etexts/other/brocks.html (accessed 30 November, 2013). 7 Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 68. 8 Ibid. 9 Southam. “Introduction.” 59. 10 Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 73.

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Image 1. Cover of the George Allen 1894 edition of Pride and Prejudice, illustrated by Hugh Thomson and with an introduction by George Saintsbury

second edition of Sterne’s Tristram Shandy.11 But otherwise, the extant techniques and associated costs of image printing made their use in novels unprofitable. The nineteenth century, however, brought ever improving technical advancements such as the introduction of mechanized paper making in 1803, the steam-powered press in 1814 and multi-cylinder stereotype printing in 1827, which made faster and cheaper dissemination of texts and commercial mass-

11 Cf. Cohen, Jane. Charles Dickens and his Original Illustrators. Columbus, OH: Ohio State University Press, 1980. 4.

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reproduction of imagery possible.12 Illustrations of all kinds became available, affordable and fashionable. The 1830s, 40s and 50s saw a development of illustrated magazines with mass readership. Thus, the Penny Magazine, founded in 1832, combined factual articles with illustrations and addressed the new knowledge-hungry urban classes. By the end of the first year, it was selling 200,000 copies.13 The Penny Magazine (1832–45), the London Journal (1845–1906), Reynold’s Miscellany (1846–69) and Cassell’s Illustrated Family Paper (1853–1932) became the first illustrated serial publications that attracted and maintained a readership of one million or more each.14 The market not only grew, but also became more diversified, offering a range of sub-genres, from humor and caricature such as the Punch, or the London Charivari (established in 1841) to penny dreadfuls with their illustrations of gushing black and white blood. Simultaneously, the thirst for illustration retrospectively had effects on the novels of prior print runs, when contemporary artists produced prints to be privately inserted in the bound volumes, adding, for example, sketches of landscape to the novels of Walter Scott.15 Thus, a visual representation of topography could be added to the copy of a novel that one already possessed. Still, illustration did not become a major component of the novel until the rise of serialization. Here, Charles Dickens made a considerable contribution. During Dickens’s youth, when pictures were accompanied by a text – in Hogarth’s prints, in contemporary travel or sporting books or in the vastly popular series Life in London by Pierce Egan and the Cruikshank brothers (1821) – it was the illustrations that were considered the main asset, with the text written up to them.16 When Dickens started work on what was to become his first major literary project – Sketches by Boz – and published some nine short, unillustrated pieces in the Monthly Magazine beginning in December 1833, it was the idea of the publisher John Macrone to produce a series which combined text and image in the manner imitating the satirical series Life in London, which had appeared a decade earlier.17 The talent and renown of the graphic artist, George Cruikshank, were expected to generate attention and income at least in the same measure as the texts of a young and unknown author ; the equal position of text and picture 12 Cf. Anderson, Patricia. The Printed Image and the Transformation of Popular Culture 1790–1890. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. 2. 13 Cf. Sillars, Stuart. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960: Graphic Narratives, Fictional Images. London/New York: Routledge, 1995. 9. 14 Cf. Anderson. The Printed Image and the Transformation of Popular Culture 1790–1890. 3. 15 Cf. Sillars. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960. 11. 16 Cf. Cohen. Charles Dickens and his Original Illustrators. 4. 17 Cf. Sillars. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960. 11–12.

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was reflected in the early ideas for the title of the project such as Sketches by Boz and Cuts by Cruikshank.18 But Dickens managed to tilt the balance of power between the author and the illustrator in his next project, The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, which were begun in 1836. After the famous illustrator Robert Seymour had committed suicide following the technical and commercial failure of the first two issues, Dickens proposed to save the publication by reducing the role and the costs of illustration considerably – the publication was reformatted to a monthly issue of 32 pages of text accompanied by two illustrations.19 The young illustrator, Hablot Knight Browne, also known as Phiz, who was hired to illustrate the Pickwick Papers, lacked Seymour’s renown and artistic self-confidence and was content to follow Dickens’s instructions. The astonishing success of the Pickwick Papers – the final number in November 1837 sold 40,000 copies – sealed not only the lasting collaboration between Dickens and Phiz for future projects, but also established the illustrated serial novel as a commercially successful medium that would reign in the following decades.20 Subsequently, all of Dickens’s works, except Hard Times and Great Expectations, were published with pictures during their initial complete publication. A colorful illustration of the cover would attract attention in the shop window and the visual material was what the readers saw even before they read the text.21 While Dickens expected his multiple illustrators to generate attention, but not to compete with him, the illustrations nevertheless helped to establish the identity and the development of characters, they served as reminders of the plot, which could be accessed quickly without re-reading, and they enhanced the reading process in the family circle, where children could look at the pictures.22 Not only Dickens, but also other authors of the time saw illustrations as a key element in their work – William Ainsworth, Charles Lever, William Thackeray and Anthony Trollope also used this format. And although some contemporaries, such as the BrontÚs, Elizabeth Gaskell and George Eliot (after the failure of Romola), were highly critical of this practice,23 the effect of illustrated fiction was lost neither on editors nor on the ever-growing readership. Illustrations were now used so extensively that by the time of Dickens’s death in 1870, the market had been flooded with cheap illustrated new fiction, and the mere presence of illustrations would no longer set a work apart and would not guarantee high sales.24 Combined with the change of graphic style induced by the 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Cf. ibid. Cf. ibid.13. Cf. ibid. Cf. Cohen. Charles Dickens and his Original Illustrators. 8–9. Cf. ibid. Cf. Sillars. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960. 28. Cf. Cohen. Charles Dickens and his Original Illustrators. 229.

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Pre-Raphaelites in the late 1850s, which introduced the emphasis on aesthetic, academic training rather than on self-taught caricature skills,25 there was a change of attitude towards illustrated fiction. By the 1890s, it was largely specific segments of publishing such as children’s books, esoteric verse and the costly collector’s editions of classics rather than cheap popular fiction that could boast of professional illustrations.26 Yet apart from time and style, another important feature distinguished the illustrations of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice from the illustrated fiction of the mid-nineteenth century. The issue at stake was the author’s control over illustrations. Thackeray, formerly an aspiring illustrator, who had once offered his services to Dickens, produced his own images for Vanity Fair (1847–48). Dickens himself not only provided vivid graphic illustrations of places and characters in his texts, but also issued detailed orders to his illustrators, requesting revisions if he was not satisfied. The illustrators received the outline of the plot in advance, and Dickens specified exactly which scenes he wanted illustrated, what the illustrations should look like and what impression needed to be conveyed. Although unauthorized sketches were produced and sold as well, Dickens nevertheless exercised vast control over the presentation of his work.27 Jane Austen naturally did not have the luxury of controlling her subsequent illustrators, which made her work especially susceptible to the general vogue and the specific interpretation of the time. Furthermore, as Austen’s texts lacked the detailed verbal graphics of the later nineteenth-century authors, the pictorial presentation of her works gave reign to the imagination of her illustrators, while at the same time rendering them at odds with the non-graphic style of the text. Richard Bentley’s 1833 edition was the first one that attempted to visualize Pride and Prejudice through illustrations. Each Austen novel in Bentley’s Standard Novels series was embellished with a frontispiece and a vignette on the second page, steel-engraved by William Greatbatch after the artwork of George Pickering.28 Artistically conservative, these pictures were more related to the statics and dramatism of fashion plates and to the depictions of theater scenes than to the lively caricature-like sketches of the popular contemporary illustrators Cruikshank and Phiz. In the 1833 edition of Pride and Prejudice, the frontispiece (image 2) represents the conversation between Elizabeth and Mr. Bennet, where the former explains Darcy’s role in bringing about the marriage between Lydia and Wickham. Although the major conflicts of the novel have 25 Cf. Harvey, John R. Victorian Novelists and their Illustrators. London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 1970. 161. 26 Cf. Sillars. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960. 232. 27 Cf. Harvey. Victorian Novelists and their Illustrators. 6. 28 Cf. Maunder, Andrew. “Making Heritage and History : The 1894 Illustrated Pride and Prejudice.” In: Nineteenth Century Studies 20 (2006): 147–70, 148.

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Image 2. Frontispiece of the Richard Bentley 1833 edition of Pride and Prejudice, engraved by William Greatbatch after George Pickering. The caption reads: “She then told him what Mr. Darcy had voluntarily done for Lydia. He heard her with astonishment.”

already been resolved, the breaking of the news is represented as an affected theatrical moment. Gesticulating widely with both hands, Elizabeth is advancing diagonally, while the stunned Mr. Bennet appears to be holding his ground with his locked fingers and widely spread feet. On the vignette, Lady Catherine is berating the startled Elizabeth, by forcefully grabbing her hand and emphasizing her words with her pointing finger. The heavy garbs are characteristic of the 1830s rather than of the lighter gowns of the Regency period and the shadowed modeling and solid lines of dark rooms, thick foliage and weighty drapery invoke an atmosphere much more somber than the lightness of a country idyll that became identified with Austen’s works in the later nineteenth century.29 Though one may argue that such a representation is mismatched with the spirit 29 Cf. Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 65.

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of the novel, which Austen herself described as “rather too light, & bright, & sparkling”30, it nevertheless manages to generate suspense without giving away the plot and raises curiosity.

Images 3 and 4. Portraits of Jane Austen by Cassandra Austen (around 1810) and by James Andrews (1870)

The later decades saw an adaptation of illustration and cover design to the growing cheap book market. Until the 1870s, Pride and Prejudice was regularly re-printed, but it was by no means a bestseller. It was not until the publication of Austen-Leigh’s sentimental memoir in 1869 that Austen’s novels gained mass popularity.31 The verbal portrait of Jane Austen in Austen-Leigh’s memoir not only presented his aunt as a virtuous spinster, who wrote in-between household chores,32 but also literally altered her visual presentation: Cassandra Austen’s unfinished pencil and watercolor sketch of her sister from around 1810 (image 3) was re-worked by James Andrews (image 4) in order to be included in the 1870 edition of the memoir.33 If Cassandra’s original portrait shows Jane as tightmouthed, thin-lipped and looking rather sadly and sternly aside, with arms 30 Rogers, Pat. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. xxii–xxviii, xxii. 31 Cf. Johnson, Claudia L. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 211–26, 211. 32 Cf. Johnson. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” 211. 33 Cf. Kirkham, Margaret. “Portraits.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). Jane Austen in Context. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 68–79, 69, 76.

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rigidly crossed, the ‘improved’ portrait softened her expression, relaxed her arms, enlarged the eyes, made her lips fuller and added detail and refinement to her chair, nightcap and gown.34 Making Austen more presentable to the Victorian readers, the fictionalized portrait clearly lost some of its original resemblance, as several members of the Austen family recorded in private correspondence.35 Combined with the increase in scholarly attention, Austen’s books were now also actively marketed to audiences unfamiliar with her work. On the one hand, reviews, articles and introductory essays, complete with character studies and plot outlines sought to inform and educate the reader with cultural aspirations.36 On the other hand, cheap editions with garish covers, designed to attract attention, were published, for example, by Chapman and Hall and in Routledge’s ‘Railway Library’. These volumes were crudely manufactured and meant, for instance, for quick consumption on the train. They were packaged in glazed paper, which was often, but not necessarily yellow, with two or three additional colors, and the back was given to advertising.37 Thus, an 1883 Routledge edition of Pride and Prejudice produced an interesting combination – while its lower boards advertised patent medicines, its upper boards showed the sickeningly pompous scene of Mr. Collins proposing to Elizabeth.38 Another highlight came from the house of Chapman and Hall in 1872 (image 5). Here, the cover depicts a young woman of means sitting amidst an army camp and surrounded by three officers in Victorian army uniforms. The lady is coquettishly squinting at the viewer, while the young men are absorbed in giving attention to their companion. The yellowish figure of the lady and the red jacket of the handsome, mustachioed officer in the middle immediately draw attention. The picture refers, of course, to the scene played out in Lydia’s imagination as Mrs. Forster invites her to Brighton – “she saw herself seated beneath a tent, tenderly flirting with at least six officers at once”39. For the sake of effective presentation (and presumably to Lydia’s chagrin), the number of officers has been reduced from six to only three. The behavior that is in fact satirized and criticized in the book is here displayed at face value. Besides the incongruity of sartorial style, the choice of an entirely marginal and highly risqu¦ scene for its cover illustration

34 35 36 37

Cf. Kirkham. “Portraits.” 69, 76. Cf. Sutherland. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives. 112. Cf. Southam. “Introduction.” 31. Cf. Gilbert, Deirdre. “From Cover to Cover : Packaging Jane Austen from Egerton to Kindle.” In: Persuasions on-line 29,1 (2008): n.p. and Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 67. 38 Cf. Gilbert. “From Cover to Cover.” 39 Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. London/New York: Penguin, 2009 [1813]. 203.

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markets the book as a contemporary sensation novel, without any clue to the content, style or merit of the book.

Image 5. Cover illustration of the Chapman and Hall 1872 edition of Pride and Prejudice

The luxury collector’s editions from the 1890s broke radically with such marketing strategies. Rather than being presented as an intriguing reading for

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the train, Pride and Prejudice, along with other Austen novels, was now to be repackaged as valuable cultural heritage. These editions were both a reaction to the cult of Jane Austen in the 1870s and 80s and its gentrification – sets were designed with attention to fine detail, with thick paper, quaint typeface, decorated bindings, end-papers, title-pages and gilt edges.40 At the same time, these new, fully illustrated editions visualized, confirmed and propagated the interest in Austen’s novels as windows into a romanticized pastoral age, populated by well-mannered landed gentry. A rich representation of Regency details, such as dress, furniture and architecture became a token of an idealized past that was just out of reach.41 The interest in the plot and characters was supplemented by an interest in their lifestyles, producing visual equivalents of “a riot of homes and gardens, elegant mansions filled to bursting point with Chippendale furniture, tree-lined avenues, balls and parties, sleek carriages and thoroughbred horses with whimsical expressions”42. If this sounds reminiscent of opulent movie productions of Austen’s novels, it is: by the 1890s, the time of Austen’s novels was sufficiently distant to license its own material mythology, which the luxurious illustrations expressed and intensified. That such interpretation is a matter of projected fantasy rather than a ‘natural’ course produced by the novels becomes especially clear considering the apology for the paucity of domestic setting that Austen-Leigh found necessary to include in his memoir43 : At that time the dinner table presented a far less splendid appearance than it does now. […] [E]arly dinner hour had rendered candlesticks unnecessary, and silver forks had not come into general use. […] But a still greater difference would be found in the furniture of the rooms, which would appear to us lamentably scanty. […] There would often be but one sofa in the house, and that a stiff, angular, uncomfortable article. There were no deep easy-chairs, nor other appliances for lounging; for to lie down, or even to lean back, was a luxury permitted only to old persons or invalids. […] But perhaps we should be most struck with the total absence of those elegant little articles which now embellish and encumber our drawing-room tables.44

Such lack of the “elegant little articles” has been generously compensated for by illustrators. In the frontispiece of the 1894 George Allen edition, the elegant, but rather inexpressive and minor scene of Elizabeth reading Jane’s letters in the Hunsford Rectory is made interesting precisely by the addition of numerous decorative objects on the table, floor, windowsill and wall. The furniture itself is fine as well, transforming the rectory into an abode of affluence and decorative 40 41 42 43 44

Cf. Southam. “Introduction.” 59 and Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 149. Cf. Sutherland. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives. 6. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 150. Cf. Sutherland. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives. 342. Austen-leigh, James Edward. A Memoir of Jane Austen. London/New York: Macmillan, 1906. 29–31.

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style. In a similar manner, the sitting room of the rectory, presented to view during Darcy’s first proposal to Elizabeth, displays an elegant array of furniture, pictures, statuettes and other decorative objects, creating a ‘prettified’ setting for the emotional encounter. The 1895 illustration to the second chapter in the Macmillan edition by Charles Brock (image 6) transforms the residence of the Bennets into a collection of intricately modeled furniture, candlesticks, paintings and ornaments on the mantelpiece and along the walls. One could almost imagine that the opulence of the illustrations would in a way compensate for the costly price of the books, by remunerating the reader with full worth of constructed and re-constructed material luxury.

Image 6. “On opening the door, she perceived her sister and Mr. Bingley standing together over the hearth” by C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan).

The fact that such illustrations were an integral part of these editions rather than a mere gimmick is best exemplified by Hugh Thomson’s illustrations for the 1894 George Allen edition. Here, the name of the renowned illustrator appears right on the cover of the volume, under the title and the name of the author, triumphantly surrounded by feathers from the peacock’s tail (see image 1). The dedication, normally the privilege of the author, is equally produced by

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Thomson: in handwriting, the illustrator is dedicating his work to a friend, claiming, to a certain extent, the ownership of the volume.45 A year later, Charles Brock also placed his name on the cover of the 1895 Macmillan edition. Illustrations by a renowned graphic artist added value to the book: not only was it self-advertisement of the illustrator, but also an advertisement for the volume through the name of a well-known artist.46 The subjects of in-text illustrations by both Thomson and the Brocks are spread between the central incidents of the novel, such as the first encounter between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy, the introduction of Wickham in the street and Darcy’s letter to Elizabeth after his first proposal, and minor and marginal incidents, which are typically comical in nature. These include the knighting of Sir William Lucas, the offence that Darcy inflicted on Mrs. Long by sitting next to her “for half an hour without once opening his lips”47, or Lady Catherine sallying forth to scold her villagers into harmony and plenty (image 7). The clearly caricature-like spirit of the latter illustrations contrasts with the often more serious and elegant tone of the ones relating to the pivotal moments. Thus, one can argue that Austen’s apt mixture of comic and emotionally charged scenes is to a certain extent upheld.48 While earlier illustrations largely focused on somber and dramatic moments, the illustrators of the 1890s had revived the humor and satire of Pride and Prejudice. Such was also the emphasis of George Saintsbury’s preface to the 1894 edition, in which he praised humor as Austen’s primary talent and admired her minor comical characters such as Mr. Collins and Lady Catherine.49 Singular incidents seem to be even quite out of context – Thomson’s headpiece for chapter VIII (image 8), for instance, shows a young woman covering a screen in reference to Bingley’s idea of accomplished ladies constantly painting tables, covering screens and netting purses. Here, however, the scene is used in a markedly ‘prettified’ way, confirming to a certain extent the contemporary feminine ideal.50 Though one can argue that artists exploited these minor incidents to showcase their talent and inventiveness, it can also be motivated by a desire to expand the visual presentation besides merely following the cues of the text, in the way that contemporary ‘faithful’ film productions introduce visual extras into the framework of the text. Admittedly, none of the late nineteenth-century illustrations send Mr. Darcy swimming or fencing, but at

45 46 47 48 49

Cf. Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 70. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 152. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2009 [1813]. 17. Cf. Rogers. “Introduction.” lxxviii. Cf. Saintsbury, George: “Preface.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. London: George Allen, 1894. xvii. 50 Cf. Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 73.

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least Darcy and Mr. Gardiner do get to fish by the river, in a lightly sketched display of an English countryside idyll (image 9).

Image 7. “To scold them into harmony and plenty” by C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan).

Image 8. “Covering a Screen” by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen).

In addition to the usual method of accompanying specific scenes by adjacent illustrations, especially Thomson’s ornate initial letters and headpieces evaluate,

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Image 9. “Engaged by the River” by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen).

foreshadow and provide symbolic interpretations beyond the mere attempt to produce a one-to-one visual translation of a scene. Clearly, there was no danger in giving away the punch line – the costly illustrated edition was not meant for unsuspecting first-time readers, but rather for bibliophiles and connoisseurs. The famous opening sentence of Pride and Prejudice – “It is a truth universally acknowledged…” – becomes a foothold for a peacock and a putto (image 10), introducing two main themes of the novel – pride and love. The constellation of the two also hints at what is to be expected: the putto is tugging at one of the peacock’s tail feathers, while the disconcerted peacock is forced to look back, foreshadowing the conquest of pride by love. The ornate initial of chapter III (image 11) shows Mrs. Bennet bent over a fishing rod, with a large question mark for a hook – apparently, she is intently fishing for information about their new neighbor Mr. Bingley. The initial capital of Chapter XV (image 12) shows the well-groomed head of Mr. Collins as a hot air balloon, scaring away birds in its rise – suggesting his overblown self-image, pompous speech and the overly high hopes in the upcoming encounter with Elizabeth Bennet. Anticipating Elizabeth’s rejection of the unwelcome suitor, the amoretto before chapter XX tumbles and falls head-down, losing his bow in the process. The behavior of the

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putti, who are frequent inhabitants of ornate initials, reflects the hopes and trials in the various strands of the love plot. The initial “M” of chapter LIII (i. e. chapter XI of the third volume) features a lady forcefully tying the mouth of a young man – an artistic reflection on Elizabeth silencing Wickham regarding his supposed mistreatment by Darcy.

Images 10, 11 and 12. Ornate initials of chapter I, III and XV by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen).

Head-pieces before chapters are partly executed with similar humor and symbolic twist. Chapter XV is preceded by a picture of Mrs. Bennet arranging her daughters in front of a contemplating Mr. Collins (image 13). The fact that Mrs. Bennet presents her daughters as marketable goods is highlighted by the “Not for sale” sign above Jane’s head. Despite similarities of face and dress, one can infer that the girl with the book on the far right is Mary, the one next to her, who is coquettishly inclining her head and supporting it with a finger, is Lydia, the taller one with the hands primly folded in the lap – Elizabeth, and the most non-descript one, still in the arms of her mother – Kitty, who is also the vaguest one in the novel. The illustration reflects ironically on Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Collins, giving full reign to caricature while maintaining its aesthetic appeal to the contemporary taste. The head piece of chapter XXIV (image 14), which corresponds to the first chapter of the second volume, represents the struggle of Bingley’s love against the ill-will of his sisters and Mr. Darcy as a competition, a tug-of-war. With the blond Bingley and three defiant amoretti on one side, and the dark-haired Darcy and Bingley’s two sisters on the other, the competition is not carried out by equals and the rope is almost entirely on Darcy’s side. Clearly, Jane and Bingley are to be separated against the latter’s will. The depicted act of struggle, however, reflects favorably on Bingley’s character. Portrayed as an affable, but easily-influenced young man in the novel, here Bingley puts up a fight, which is perhaps more in the spirit of the Victorian ideal of masculinity than in accordance with Austen’s conception of his character. Of course, not all head-pieces are humorous or symbolic and many bear a more straightforward

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relation to the text, often with an explanatory caption that pinpoints the exact reference.

Images 13 and 14. Headpieces of chapter XV and chapter XXIV by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen)

But besides providing artistic comments on the sidelines, illustrators were also facing the task of producing credible and engaging representations of characters in their in-text illustrations. As in Austen’s text, which is scarce in physical descriptions, the appearance of characters, except caricatures, remains rather non-descript. Although this can be attributed to the technical limitations of the selected illustration style and/or to the deficiencies of the illustrators rather than to the wish of following the text, the features of, for example, Jane, Elizabeth and Georgiana are virtually the same, and identity needs to be established through the specific situation, dress and/or caption.51 There are no close-ups on faces, which would facilitate individual recognition; faces typically 51 Cf. Ray, Gordon N. The Illustrator and the Book in England from 1790 to 1914. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. 182.

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appear in profile or three-quarter view. But despite the often generic appearance, the arrangement of figures in space, their posture, body language and eye contact are employed to convey individual character, current emotions and the relation between figures. For example, in Charles Brock’s “No, no; stay where you are. You are charmingly grouped” (image 15), which illustrates a scene in the park of Netherfield in Chapter X, there is a sharp contrast between the static trio of Mr. Darcy, Caroline Bingley and Mrs. Hurst and the dynamic figure of Elizabeth. With their arms interlocked, the trio in midground is slowly edging away from the viewer along the rising diagonal. Somewhat sluggishly, they are turning around to look at Elizabeth, who hurries animatedly towards the viewer. Even though her face cannot be seen, her energetic movements break the static composition in the same way as her authentic repartees in the novel produce a sense of liveliness and intelligence.

Image 15. “No, no; stay where you are. You are charmingly grouped” by C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan).

Faithful to Austen’s principle of revealing her characters through interaction, illustrations often focus on moments of confrontation – between Mr. and Mrs.

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Bennet, Darcy and Elizabeth or Elizabeth and Lady Catherine.52 Here, Brock often achieves more dynamism and expression than the more static Thomson.53 For instance, when Darcy pronounces his famous verdict on Elizabeth – “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me”54 – Thomson (image 16) puts all three characters involved on the same level in the mid-ground, i. e. placing them so closely together that it becomes quite impossible for Elizabeth not to overhear the gentlemen talking right next to her in an otherwise empty room. Brock’s illustration (image 17) produces a more complex three-dimensional space with a main room and a doorway and moves the gentlemen in the background, as a part of a noisy party. This creates a semblance of distance from Elizabeth and makes the scene overall more plausible. While in Thomson’s sketch Darcy appears rather foolish, Brock makes him seem genuinely unpleasant.

Images 16 and 17. “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me” by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen) and C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan).

Darcy is also the character whose visual representation undergoes the greatest change in the course of the illustrations. As Elizabeth’s perception of Darcy’s character changes throughout the novel, his pompously supercilious, prominent hooked nose (in Brock’s version) and a ridiculous monocle, with 52 Cf. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 152. 53 Cf. Parker, Keiko. “Illustrating Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 22–27 and Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 75. 54 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2009 [1813]. 11.

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which his illustrators have endowed him, disappear in favor of more agreeable features and a more relaxed posture (images 18–21). The visual change is especially striking in Brock’s 1895 illustrations. In early images, such as in the drawing of Sir William Lucas presenting Elizabeth as a dancing partner to Darcy, neither Darcy’s heavy, curved posture, nor his upturned fleshy face with an aquiline nose suggest any kind of appeal (image 18). The initial unpleasantness of character is supplemented by ungainly looks. By contrast, Darcy’s features are considerably softened in the latter part of the novel: by the time he is shown to meet the Gardiners in the first chapter of the third volume, his posture becomes more elegant, his face is hidden in a bow. In the illustration of the lovers’ tÞte-—tÞte in the penultimate chapter, even his features soften and the nose becomes straighter ; his looks match his transformation into a romantic hero (image 21). The hooked nose and the puffed-up chest, however, make a comeback in Brock’s last drawing, which attempts to capture Darcy’s exposure to the excessive pleasantries of Sir William Lucas – as the illustrator suggests, Darcy has not been cured of arrogance altogether (image 20).

Images 18, 19, 20 and 21. The transformation of Mr. Darcy in the illustrations of C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan) and Hugh Thomson (1895, George Allen).

In this sense, the 1890s illustrations are far from the recent sexualizing of the hero. Produced by male illustrators (except Chris Hammond) for a male readership and prefaced by male critics, their focus was rather on the female heroines. Indeed, in his preface to the 1894 edition of Pride and Prejudice, George

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Saintsbury, a prolific critic, literary historian and later professor in Edinburgh55 wrote that Austen’s men “though limited, are true, and her women are, in the old sense, ‘absolute’ ” 56. He concludes his introduction with a provocative statement that Elizabeth Bennet, who has “nothing of the ‘New Woman’ about her”57, is the most marriageable young woman in English literature: “But to live with and to marry, I do not know that any one […] can come into competition with Elizabeth.”58 It has been argued that what gets lost especially in Thomson’s illustrations is the female perspective and Elizabeth’s point of view59 : thrust into a lavish period setting and presented in elegant poses, Elizabeth’s quick intellect and her unease at the woman’s position on the marriage market find no graphic representation. However, the greater dynamism and variation of facial expression in Brock’s illustrations do elevate Elizabeth beyond the mere decorative function – in the failed dancing scene in chapter VI, her reluctance to dance with Darcy clearly shows on her face, in the park scene in Chapter X (image 15) the dynamism of her figure positively contrasts with the stiffness of Darcy and his retinue. Both Thomson and Brock devoted a lot of attention to minor comical characters. If the features of Elizabeth, Jane and Bingley are standardized and the identity of characters is tied to specific scenes, characters such as Mrs. Bennet, Mr. Collins and Lady Catherine are readily recognizable through their caricatured exterior and exaggerated social faults. Lady Catherine, for example, is stout and commandeering, her posture snobbish and her overall absurdity heightened through a depiction of minor details of her behavior. While Brock (1895) displays her scolding a pair of villagers “into harmony and plenty” (image 7), in Thomson’s illustration to chapter LVI (volume III, chapter XIV) Lady Catherine is inspecting the faults of the house during her visit to the Bennets. The inappropriateness of her behavior is satirized further by her use of a magnifying glass, which makes her appear like an anachronistic crime investigator. Mr. Collins, whose Swiftian qualities were warmly praised by Saintsbury,60 is not only awkward in gestures and posture, but is also endowed with a large protruding nose. While Brock keeps his appearance as a tall and heavy-looking man (image 23), Thomson reduces his body proportions, bringing him closer to the stereotype of a servile bootlicker (image 22). Both illustrators, however, make Mr. Collins look considerably older – while he is in his mid-twenties in the novel, the more aged Mr. Collins in the illustrations by Thomson and Brock seems to be 55 56 57 58 59 60

Cf. Southam. “Introduction.” 214. Saintsbury. “Preface.” xvi. Ibid. xxii. Ibid. xxiii. Cf. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 158–59. Cf. Saintsbury. “Preface.” xvi–xvii.

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suffering from hair loss. These caricatures heighten Austen’s irony, intensifying the comic side of Pride and Prejudice.

Images 22 and 23. Mr. Collins proposing to Elizabeth by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen) and C.E. Brock (1895, Macmillan).

The light aspects of the text are also highlighted by a number of circumstantial scenes that induce a general sense of ease and conviviality. Thomson’s illustration of the preface (image 24) shows a serene pastoral scene with a gentleman, lady and child observing a kite in the sky. Bearing no direct connection to the content of the novel but featuring period costumes, the scene rather serves to establish the mood of daydreaming and nostalgia, transporting the viewer into a fantasy of the idyllic past.61 Throughout the novel, Thomson produces displays of Bingley’s horses and carriage, Bingley and Darcy riding on horseback and the Gardiners’ well-behaved children standing on the stairs in anticipation of Elizabeth’s arrival. Both Thomson and Brock show a young Lucas fantasizing about a pack of foxhounds and a bottle of wine that he would indulge in if he was as rich as Mr. Darcy. The domestic bliss of the Gardiners is especially pronounced in Brock’s work – there is both the scene of the distribution of presents upon their arrival at Longbourn and an affectionate reunion with their own children. There is a general sense of affluence and decorum. In tune with contemporary readings of Pride and Prejudice, these visual interpretations of Austen’s novels pay no attention to some aspects that are today recognized as the critical undercurrents of the novel. For example, in the farce of the Bennets’ domestic life, especially Thomson portrays Mr. Bennet as a thoroughly positive character. If Mrs. Bennet appears as a caricature of a vulgar matron, Mr. Bennet is witty and self-confident, even handsome. While Saintsbury praised Mr. Bennet’s “epicurean delight in dissecting, in displaying”62 61 Cf. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 157. 62 Saintsbury. “Preface.” xiv.

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Image 24. Illustration to the preface by Hugh Thomson (1894, George Allen).

fools, which he also attributed to Austen herself, later critics such as Mary Burgan63 and Barbara Seeber64 emphasized Mr. Bennet’s callousness towards his wife, his lack of involvement in the upbringing of his daughters and his unwillingness or inability to mend his family’s financial situation. These cues for a negative evaluation of Mr. Bennet, which appear both covertly throughout the novel and overtly in Elizabeth’s lament over her father’s indolence in chapter XLVIII (volume III, chapter VI), are ignored both by Thomson and by Brock. Similarly, the precarious position of unmarried women with a low income is treated in jest only, by caricaturing Mrs. Bennet’s matrimonial pursuits for her daughters or by showing Charlotte Lucas coyly submitting to Mr. Collins’s “love and eloquence”65. Visually casting Pride and Prejudice as light period drama, the seriousness of financial and social concerns disappears in the general atmosphere of humor and Regency pastorality. Although the illustrated volumes received a lot of contemporary praise for their charming presentation of Pride and Prejudice66 and the successful sales ensured periodic reprints, the dissenting voices also became louder. While Henry James attacked the commercialization of Austen in general, others specifically targeted illustrations. Arnold Bennet complemented Thomson’s elegant style, yet he argued that “Jane Austen’s art cannot be aided” and that “those who 63 Burgan, Mary A. “Mr. Bennet and the Failures of Fatherhood in Jane Austen’s Novels.” In: Journal of English and Germanic Philology 74 (1975): 536–52. 64 Seeber, Barbara K. “A Bennet Utopia: Adapting the Father in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions on-line 27 (2007): n.p. 65 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2009 [1813]. 108. 66 Cf. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 152–54.

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are sealed of the tribe of Jane Austen”67 do not want her stories illustrated. Similarly, in their reaction to a 1898 edition of Sense and Sensibility, illustrated by the Brock brothers, the Academy reacted not to the specific form of illustrations, but to their mere presence: “We long have been convinced that Jane Austen’s characters refuse to fit any artist’s mould”.68 As the market became saturated with gift-editions of novels, the ‘chocolate-box’ style of illustration came under fire as well. In October 1909, The New York Times published an article with the title “Gaudy Pictures for New Novels”,69 which attacked the popular style of ‘prettified’ and sentimental illustrations. The publishers were accused of thrusting literature down the public’s throat by appealing to the lowest regiments of public taste – idealism and sentimentalism. Other critical voices focused on the fact that illustrations would be spread out evenly throughout the book (while significant events were not always distributed regularly) and that the necessarily pretty heroine must be featured as often as possible. The practice of acquiring expensive editions of classics for display rather than for actual reading was also increasingly criticized.70 When Arthur Platt, professor of classics, advised Robert William Chapman regarding the planned scholarly edition of Austen’s works that would appear in 1923, he wrote: “For God’s sake don’t have any pictures. The miscreants who illustrate Jane Austen will have a special bolgia to themselves in the next world”71. Yet although Chapman’s edition of Pride and Prejudice did not attempt to provide portraits of Elizabeth and Darcy, neither could it defy the appeal of visual information altogether. Artistic illustrations may have been discarded as sentimental Victorian kitsch, but it was another kind of pictures that were now called upon to recreate the authentic atmosphere of Austen’s novels. Blending keepsake tradition with scholarship, the edition appeared with beautifully presented plates of contemporary costumes, carriages and locations, manuals of dancing and gardening as well as tradesmen’s advertisements.72 An attempt to elevate the true, scholarly understanding of the text beyond the sentimental idolatry of the broader Austen cult, Chapman’s edition in a way still catered to the notion of Regency splendor by providing a somewhat more general visual frame. Though the readers were in effect invited to put their own faces on the memorable characters of Pride and Prejudice, they were given the clothes and the setting to dress and locate their characters. 67 68 69 70 71 72

Both in Southam. “Introduction.” 59. Ibid. 60. Anon. “Gaudy Pictures for New Novels.” In: The New York Times, 23 October, 1909. Cf. Gilbert. “From Cover to Cover.” In Sutherland. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives. 32. Cf. Maunder. “Making Heritage and History.” 161 as well as Caroll and Wiltshire. “Jane Austen Illustrated.” 75.

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The opulent illustrated gift editions of Pride and Prejudice from the 1890s may not necessarily correspond to the visual taste of the 21st century. Yet they do represent the first large-scale printed transmedial adaptation of the novel that added an extensive graphic dimension to the text. They both expressed and intensified the novel’s popularity and propagated Austen’s status as a valuable icon of British culture. Both a transposition of narrative into image and a combination of both media into an intermedial experience,73 the resulting volume at once modified the text and invited its readers to compare their interpretation of a scene to that of the illustrator. Although the interaction of the ‘sister arts’ – writing and painting – is not among Austen’s main themes,74 a visual image does play an important role in Pride and Prejudice. During Elizabeth’s visit in Pemberley, it is in front of Mr. Darcy’s picture in the family gallery that the various verbal portraits that she receives throughout the novel – through Wickham, Darcy’s own letter and ultimately through the housekeeper, Mrs. Reynolds – are distilled and evaluated. “At last it arrested her – and she beheld a striking resemblance to Mr. Darcy, with such a smile over the face, as she remembered to have sometimes seen, when he looked at her.”75 The contemplation of the painted smile immediately summons Darcy himself, now transformed in Elizabeth’s understanding into a character as pleasant as his portrait suggested. And in a similar sense, the visual images of Darcy, Elizabeth, and Pemberley have become important vehicles of cultural production by both documenting and creating the ever-developing reactions to the novel from the 1890s onwards.

References Anderson, Patricia. The Printed Image and the Transformation of Popular Culture 1790–1890. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994. Anon. “Gaudy Pictures for New Novels.” In: The New York Times, 23 October, 1909. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. London: George Allen, 1894 [1813]. – Pride and Prejudice. London: Macmillan, 1895 [1813]. – Pride and Prejudice. London/New York: Penguin, 2009 [1813]. Austen-Leigh, James Edward. A Memoir of Jane Austen. London/New York: Macmillan, 1906. Bertelsen, Lance. “Jane Austen’s Miniatures: Painting, Drawing, and the Novels.” In: Modern Language Quarterly 45,4 (1984): 350–72. 73 Cf. Rajewsky, Irina O. “Intermediality, Intertextuality, and Remediation: A Literary Perspective on Intermediality.” In: Interm¦dialit¦s 6 (2005): 43–64, 51–52. 74 Cf. Bertelsen, Lance. “Jane Austen’s Miniatures: Painting, Drawing, and the Novels.” In: Modern Language Quarterly 45,4 (1984): 350–72, 350–51. 75 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2009 [1813]. 218.

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Burgan, Mary A. “Mr. Bennet and the Failures of Fatherhood in Jane Austen’s Novels.” In: Journal of English and Germanic Philology 74 (1975): 536–52. Caroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Jane Austen, Illustrated.” In: Claudia L. Johnson and Clara Tuite (eds.). A Companion to Jane Austen. Chichester : Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. 62–77. Cohen, Jane. Charles Dickens and his Original Illustrators. Columbus, OH: Ohio State University Press, 1980. Gilbert, Deirdre. “From Cover to Cover : Packaging Jane Austen from Egerton to Kindle.” In: Persuasions online 29,1 (2008): n.p. Harvey, John R. Victorian Novelists and their Illustrators. London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 1970. James, Henry. “Extract from ‘The Lesson of Balzac.’ ” [1905]. In: Ian Littlewood (ed.). Jane Austen: Critical Assessments. Vol. I. Mountfield: Helm Information, 1998. 436–38. Johnson, Claudia L. “Austen Cults and Cultures.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 211–26. Kirkham, Margaret. “Portraits.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). Jane Austen in Context. Cambridge/ New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 68–79. Maunder, Andrew. “Making Heritage and History : The 1894 Illustrated Pride and Prejudice.” In: Nineteenth Century Studies 20 (2006): 147–70. Parker, Keiko. “Illustrating Jane Austen.” In: Persuasions 11 (1989): 22–27. Rajewsky, Irina O. “Intermediality, Intertextuality, and Remediation: A Literary Perspective on Intermediality.” In: Interm¦dialit¦s 6 (2005): 43–64. Ray, Gordon N. The Illustrator and the Book in England from 1790 to 1914. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. Rogers, Pat. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006. xii–lxxviii. Saintsbury, George. “Preface.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. London: George Allen, 1894. ix–xxiii. Seeber, Barbara K. “A Bennet Utopia: Adapting the Father in Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions online 27 (2007): n.p. Sillars, Stuart. Visualisation in Popular Fiction 1860–1960: Graphic Narratives, Fictional Images. London/New York: Routledge, 1995. Soria, Cinthia Garc†a. “Austen Illustrators Henry and Charles Brock.” Online on Molland’s Circulating Library, 2012. http://mollands.net/etexts/other/brocks.html (accessed 30 November, 2013). Southam, B.C. “Introduction.” In: B.C. Southam (ed.). Jane Austen: The Critical Heritage 1870–1940. Vol. II. London/New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1987. 1–158. Sutherland, Kathryn. Jane Austen’s Textual Lives: From Aeschylus to Bollywood. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.

Uwe Baumann

Elizabeth Bennet, Liebe und Ehe – Untersuchungen zu Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice und den deutschen Übersetzungen des Romans Mulieri carissimae totius meae vitae, qua nullam pulchriorem vidi, nullam prudentiorem umquam aut amabiliorem cognovi, qua quidem amissa nihil omnino valeret.

I. In ihrem Essay „Translations“ im Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice (2013) stellt Gillian Dow einleitend fest: […] Austen’s current omnipresence in translation can be said to be a predominantly late twentieth-century and twenty-first century phenomenon, mirroring the AngloAmerican cult of Austen. And it is only in the late twentieth century that the dominance of Austen’s second novel, against other works, becomes established in translations into other languages.1

So insgesamt wohl zutreffend, wenngleich nicht überraschend, eine solche Aussage sein mag, erstaunlich ist, dass deutsche Übersetzungen von Pride and Prejudice von Gillian Dow nahezu vollständig ignoriert werden. Lediglich Louise Marezolls Übersetzung von 1830 findet überhaupt Erwähnung; tatsächlich konstituieren die neun deutschen Übersetzungen von Pride and Prejudice,2 von 1 Dow, Gillian. „Translations.“ In: Janet Todd (Hg.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 122–36, 122. 2 Vgl. [Austen, Jane]. Stolz und Vorurteil, ein Roman frei nach dem Englischen von Louise Marezoll, drei Theile. Leipzig: C.H.F. Hartmann, 1830; Austen, Jane. Elizabeth und Darcy. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Karin von Schab. Berlin: Frundsberg Verlag, 1939; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Margarete Rauchenberger. Köln: Josef Schaffrath Verlag, 1948; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Ilse Krämer. Zürich: Manesse Verlag, 1948; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen und bearbeitet von Helmut Holscher. Wilhelmshaven: Hera Verlag, 1951; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Werner Beyer. Leipzig: Paul List Verlag, 1965; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Werner Beyer. Leipzig/Weimar : Gustav Kiepen-

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denen die meisten auch noch mehrfach nachgedruckt und/oder in Überarbeitung wieder aufgelegt wurden, einen – im Vergleich zu den übrigen Zielsprachen – der längsten Kometenschweife.3 Die Erstveröffentlichungsdaten der deutschen Pride and Prejudice-Übersetzungen bieten darüber hinaus keine Bestätigung für die These, die Omnipräsenz von Jane Austens Romanen in Übersetzungen sei in erster Linie ein Phänomen des späten 20. und 21. Jahrhunderts, erschienen doch immerhin sieben der neun Übersetzungen vor 1980: 1830, 1939, 1948, 1948, 1951, 1965, 1977, 1997 und 2003. Die äußere bibliographische Übersetzungsgeschichte der Romane der Jane Austen ins Deutsche ist recht gut bekannt,4 allerdings fehlt es an – diese äußere Übersetzungsgeschichte – ergänzenden Studien zur inneren Übersetzungsgeschichte, Studien, die theorie- und kriterienbasiert analysieren, wie Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice im Detail übersetzt wurde.5 Grundzüge einer solchen ambitionierten Studie sollen im Folgenden heuer Verlag, 1986; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Ursula und Christian Grawe. Nachwort und Anmerkungen von Christian Grawe. Stuttgart: Reclam, 1977; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Helga Schulz. München: dtv, 1997; Austen, Jane. Stolz und Vorurteil. Aus dem Englischen übertragen von Andrea Ott. Nachwort von Elfi Bettinger. Zürich: Manesse, 2003. Im Folgenden werden die Übersetzungen im Text mit dem jeweiligen Nachnamen des Übersetzers gekennzeichnet. 3 Vgl. zur Terminologie die Studien von Frank, Armin P. „Theories and Theory of Literary Translation.“ In: Joseph P. Strelka (Hg.). Literary Theory and Criticism: Festschrift Presented to Ren¦ Wellek. Bern/Frankfurt a.M./New York: Peter Lang, 1984. 203–21; Frank, Armin P. „Towards a Cultural History of Literary Translation: An Exploration of Issues and Problems in Researching the Translational Exchange between the USA and Germany.“ In: REAL 4 (1986): 317–80; Frank, Armin P. Die literarische Übersetzung. Der lange Schatten kurzer Geschichten. Amerikanische Kurzprosa in deutschen Übersetzungen. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1989; Frank, Armin P. „Literarische ,Unbestimmtheit‘ und sprachliche Anisomorphie: Zum Thema Übersetzungskritik als Literaturkritik.“ In: Ulrich Horstmann und Wolfgang Zach (Hgg.). Kunstgriffe. Festschrift für Herbert Mainusch. Frankfurt a.M. et al.: Peter Lang, 1989. 82–91. 4 Vgl. insbes. Bautz, Annika. „The Reception of Jane Austen in Germany.“ In: Anthony Mandal und Brian Southam (Hgg.). The Reception of Jane Austen in Europe. London: continuum, 2007. 93–116 und 359–63; Bautz, Annika. The Reception of Jane Austen and Walter Scott. London: continuum, 2007; Chambers, Helen. „Nineteenth-Century German Translations of Jane Austen.“ In: Norbert Bachleitner (Hg.). Beiträge zur Rezeption der britischen und irischen Literatur des 19. Jahrhunderts im deutschsprachigen Raum. Amsterdam/Atlanta: Rodopi, 2000. 231–54; Fahnestock, Mary L. The Reception of Jane Austen in Germany : A Miniaturist in the Land of Poets and Philosophers. Ann Arbor : Diss. University of Indiana, 1982. 5 Als Modellstudien verdeutlichen Stefanie Hohns Analyse von Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre (Hohn, Stefanie. Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre in deutscher Übersetzung: Geschichte eines kulturellen Transfers. Tübingen: Narr, 1998.) in deutscher Übersetzung und die exemplarischen Studien zu (den) deutschen Übersetzungen der Romane von Charles Dickens die weitreichenden Erkenntnismöglichkeiten solcher Untersuchungen (u. a. Bick, Wolfgang. Idealisierung und Zeitkritik bei Dickens als Übersetzungsproblem, untersucht an Pickwick Papers und Oliver Twist unter Berücksichtigung der deutschen Romandiskussion im 19. Jahrhundert. Göttingen: Diss., 1989; Czennia, Bärbel. „Zum Aussagewert motivge-

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skizziert werden, wobei der konkreten und exemplarischen Analyse einzelner Übersetzungen Überlegungen zur theoretischen Kontextualisierung und zur Auswahl der Analyse-Kriterien vorausgehen müssen.

II. Neben punktuellen Beobachtungen in den bereits erwähnten Studien von Bautz (2007), Chambers (2000) und Fahnestock (1982) sind es insbesondere drei Diplomarbeiten, die als Prolegomena zu einer Studie zur inneren Übersetzungsgeschichte von Pride and Prejudice gelten dürfen: Hentschel (1994), Mazurov‚ (2008) und Nazar (2009).6 Alle drei Arbeiten wählen für ihre Untersuchungen im Grunde ein analoges theoretisch-methodisches Design, wenngleich mit signifikanten Unterschieden in der für die analytisch-praktischen Untersuchungen zugrunde gelegten Textmenge. Gegründet auf die primär sprachwissenschaftlich fokussierten übersetzungskritischen Modelle von Reiß (1971; 1983) und Ammann (1990; 1995)7 untersucht und vergleicht Nazar (2009) die polnische schichtlicher Übersetzungsstudien.“ In: Target. International Journal of Translation Studies 4,1 (1992): 71–96; Czennia, Bärbel. Figurenrede als Übersetzungsproblem. Untersucht am Romanwerk von Charles Dickens und ausgewählten deutschen Übersetzungen. Frankfurt a.M.: Peter Lang, 1992; Markus, Helmut. „Zum Aussagewert der Untersuchung kleiner Textmengen. Analyse eines expanded simile und seiner Übersetzungsvarianten (Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers, Kap. 2).“ In: Brigitte Schultze (Hg.). Die literarische Übersetzung: Fallstudien zu ihrer Kulturgeschichte. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1987. 198–213; Wolpers, Theodor. „Dickens’ poetischer Realismus im Stilwandel deutscher Übersetzungen. Zu Variationen eines Großstadtbildes.“ In: Brigitte Schultze (Hg.). Die literarische Übersetzung. Fallstudien zu ihrer Kulturgeschichte. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1987. 178–97.). Vgl. ebenfalls Gleba, Kerstin. „Der Autor als ,bad citizen‘ oder als ,Totengräber der Fiktion‘, die wir ,historische Wahrheit‘ nennen‘ – Don DeLillos Roman Libra im Echo der US-amerikanischen und deutschen Presse.“ In: Uwe Baumann (Hg.). Literaturimport transatlantisch. Tübingen: Narr, 1997. 75–117; Nover, Peter. „ , An armour-clad hero on a plump and feminine horse‘: Wie die Ermittlerfigur in der deutschen Übersetzung von Robert B. Parkers The Godwulf Manuscript ihren Charakter verändert.“ In: Uwe Baumann (Hg.). Literaturimport transatlantisch. Tübingen: Narr, 1997. 119–51. 6 Hentschel, E. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe: Untersuchungen zu Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice und den deutschen Übersetzungen des Romans. Düsseldorf: Diplomarbeit, Universität Düsseldorf, 1994; Mazurová, Svatava. Translation and Analyses of Jane Austen’s Book Pride and Prejudice. Brno: Diplomarbeit, Masaryk Universität in Brno, 2008; Nazar, Paul. Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice – eine funktionale Kritik der deutschen und polnischen Übersetzung anhand des Modells von Margaret Ammann. Wien: Diplomarbeit, Universität Wien, 2009. 7 Reiß, Katharina. Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Übersetzungskritik. Kategorien und Kriterien für sachgerechte Beurteilung von Übersetzungen. München: Hueber, 1971; Reiß, Katharina. Texttyp und Übersetzungsmethode: Der operative Text. 2. Aufl. Heidelberg: Groos, 1983; Ammann, Margret. „Anmerkungen zu einer Theorie der Übersetzungskritik und ihrer praktischen Anwendung.“ In: TEXTconTEXT 5 (1990): 209–50; Ammann, Margret. Kom-

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Übersetzung von Magdalena Gawlik-Malkowska8 mit der deutschen Übersetzung von Werner Beyer (1965) anhand von acht, jeweils eine knappe Seite umfassenden, exemplarischen Textpassagen.9 Die tschechische Übersetzung des Romans von Eva Kondrysov‚10 analysiert Mazurov‚ (2008), angelehnt an das übersetzungstheoretische Modell von Dagmar Knittlov‚,11 nachdem sie zuvor den Ausgangstext in aller Knappheit vorgestellt12 und die Schwerpunkte ihrer Übersetzungsanalyse expliziert hat.13 Eine detailreiche, sorgfältige Analyse des Romans Pride and Prejudice eröffnet die Studie von Hentschel (1994), bevor sie eine historisch-deskriptive Analyse von sechs Übersetzungen (Louise Marezoll (1830), Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), Ilse Krämer (1948), Helmut Holscher (1951), Werner Beyer (1965), Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977)) vorlegt. Die methodische Gründung in der primär im ehemaligen Göttinger SFB 309 („Die literarische Übersetzung“) programmatisch entwickelten historisch-deskriptiven Übersetzungsforschung und die detaillierten Begründungen für die Auswahl der analysierten Einzelaspekte des Romans zeitigen weitreichende Ergebnisse,14 deren Bedeutung für die innere Übersetzungsgeschichte von Pride and Prejudice in der Sache kaum überschätzt werden kann. Ohne die sprach- und/oder übersetzungswissenschaftlich basierten Übersetzungstheorien marginalisieren zu wollen,15 wird man festhalten dürfen, dass

8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15

munikation und Kultur : Dolmetschen und Übersetzen heute. Frankfurt a.M.: IKO-Verlag für Interkulturelle Kommunikation, 1995. Austen, Jane. Duma i Uprzedzenie. Übersetzung von Magdalena Gawlik-Malkowska. Warschau: Prûszyn´ski i S-ka Verlag, 2005. Vgl. Nazar. Jane Austens Pride and Prejudice. 49ff: „Diese Textpassagen werden ganz besonders unter Berücksichtigung der intratextuellen Textkohärenz, ihrer Wirkung auf den Leser und die intertextuelle Textkohärenz geprüft“. ˇ esky´ Teˇsˇ†n: AcadeAusten, Jane. Py´cha a prˇedsudek. Übersetzung von Eva Kondrysov‚. C mia, 2003. Knittlová, Dagmar. K teorii i praxi prˇekladu. Olomouc: Univerzita Palack¦ho, 2003; Mazurová. Translation and Analyses of Jane Austen’s Book Pride and Prejudice. 18ff. Mazurová. Translation and Analyses of Jane Austen’s Book Pride and Prejudice. 7–17. Der eigentliche Analyseteil der Studie (Mazurová. Translation and Analyses of Jane Austen’s Book Pride and Prejudice. 18ff.), der eigenen Übersetzungen exemplarischer Textpassagen vorausgeht (32ff), bleibt vergleichsweise knapp; er gliedert sich nach „1. Traditional methods of translating (Transposition, Modulation, Equivalence, Adaptation, Amplification, Explication, Pretermission, Compensation), 2. Interjections, 3. Addressing, und 4. Use of Italics“. Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. bes. 48ff. Vgl. den knappen Überblick bei Baumann, Uwe. „Übersetzungstheorien.“ In: Ansgar Nünning (Hg.). Metzler Lexikon Literatur- und Kulturtheorie, Ansätze – Personen – Grundbegriffe. 5. Aufl. Stuttgart/Weimar : Metzler, 2013. 771–75. Vgl. insgesamt auch Hohn. Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre in deutscher Übersetzung. 17–34. Vgl. u. a. auch Albrecht, Jörn. Literarische Übersetzung: Geschichte, Theorie, Kulturelle Wirkung. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1998; Ammann. „Anmerkungen zu einer Theorie der Übersetzungskritik und ihrer praktischen Anwendung.“; Ammann. Kommunikation und Kultur ;

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Apel, Friedmar und Annette Kopetzki. Literarische Übersetzung. 2. Aufl. Stuttgart: Metzler, 2003; Berger, Klaus und Hans-Michael Speier (Hgg.). Im Übersetzen leben. Übersetzen und Textvergleich. Tübingen: Narr, 1986; Broeck, Raymond van den. „Second Thoughts on Translation Criticism. A Model of its Analytic Fiction.“ In: Theo Hermans (Hg.). The Manipulation of Literature. Studies in Literary Translation. London: Croom Helm, 1985. 54–62; Catford, John C. A Linguistic Theory of Translation: An Essay on Applied Linguistics. 4. Aufl. London: Oxford University Press, 1974; Dizdar, Dilek. Translation: Um- und Irrwege. Berlin: Frank & Timme, 2006; Engelhardt, Maike. Techniken und Strategien bei der Übertragung von englischen Texten ins Deutsche. Oldenburg: BIS-Verlag der Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, 2013; Even-Zohar, Itamar. „Translation Theory Today. A Call for Transfer Theory.“ In: Poetics Today 2,4 (1981): 1–7; Gentzler, Edwin. Contemporary Translation Theories. London/New York: Routledge, 1993; Harhoff, Gabriele. Grenzen der Skopostheorie von Translation und ihrer praktischen Anwendbarkeit. Frankfurt a.M. et al.: Peter Lang, 1991; Holmes, James S. „Describing Literary Translations: Models and Methods.“ In: James S. Holmes, Jose Lambert; Raymond van den Broeck (Hgg.). Literature and Translation, New Perspectives in Literary Studies. Leuven: Acco, 1978. 69–82; Holmes, James S. „The State of Two Arts: Literary Translation and Translation Studies in the West Today.“ In: Translated! Papers on Literary Translation and Translation Studies, Approaches to Translation Studies 7 (1988): 103–11; Homel, David und Sherry Simon (Hgg.). Mapping Literature: The Art and Politics of Translation. Montreal: V¦hicule Press, 1988; Jäger, Gert. Translation und Translationslinguistik. Leipzig: Niemeyer, 1975; Kelly, Louis G. The True Interpreter. A History of Translation Theory and Practice in the West. Oxford: St. Martin’s Press, 1979; Kloepfer, Rolf. Die Theorie der literarischen Übersetzung. München: Fink, 1967; Koller, Werner. Einführung in die Übersetzungswissenschaft. 4. Aufl. Heidelberg: Quelle & Meyer, 1992; Lefèvre, Andr¦. „Why waste our times on rewrites.“ In: Theo Hermans (Hg.). The Manipulation of Literature: Studies in Literary Translation. London: Croom Helm, 1985. 215–43; Nida, Eugene A. Toward a Science of Translating, with Special Reference to Principles and Procedures Involved in Bible Translating. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1964; Nord, Christiane. Textanalyse und Übersetzen. Theoretische Grundlagen, Methoden und didaktische Anwendung einer übersetzungsrelevanten Textanalyse. 3. Aufl. Tübingen: Groos, 1995; Reiß. Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Übersetzungskritik; Reiß. Texttyp und Übersetzungsmethode; Reiß, Katharina und Hans J. Vermeer (Hgg.). Grundlegung einer allgemeinen Translationstheorie. Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1984; Savory, Theodore. The Art of Translation. 2. Aufl. Boston: Jonathan Cape, 1968; Snell-Hornby, Mary. Translation Studies: An Integral Approach. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 1988; Stolze, Radegundis. Grundlagen der Textübersetzung. Heidelberg: Groos, 1982; Stolze, Radegundis. Übersetzungstheorien: Eine Einführung. Tübingen: Narr, 1994; Störig, Hans J. (Hg.). Das Problem des Übersetzens. Darmstadt: Groverts, 1963; Toury, Gideon. „The Nature and Role of Norms in Literary Translation.“ In: James S. Holmes, Jose Lambert und Raymond van den Broeck (Hgg.). Literature and Translation. New Perspectives in Literary Studies. Leuven: Acco, 1978. 83–100; Toury, Gideon. In Search of a Theory of Translation. Tel Aviv : Porter Institute for Poetics and Semiotics, Tel Aviv University, 1980; Toury, Gideon. „Translation, Literary Translation and Pseudotranslation.“ In: Comparative Criticism 6 (1984): 73–85; Wilss, Wolfram. Übersetzungswissenschaft: Probleme und Methoden. Stuttgart: Klett, 1977; Wilss, Wolfram (Hg.). Übersetzungswissenschaft. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1981. Vgl. ebenfalls Kittel, Harald, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004; Kittel, Harald, Juliane House, Brigitte Schultze et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2008; Kit-

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die vom Göttinger SFB veröffentlichten programmatischen Aussagen16 und Forschungsergebnisse17 einen kleinen Paradigmenwechsel vorbereiteten,18 nach dem eine literaturwissenschaftlich basierte Übersetzungsforschung sich weitgehend von der primär sprachwissenschaftlich begründeten Forderung nach tel, Harald, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2011. 16 Vgl. bes. Frank. „Towards a Cultural History of Literary Translation.“ 317–80. 17 Vgl. u. a. Bick. Idealisierung und Zeitkritik bei Dickens als Übersetzungsproblem; Czennia. „Zum Aussagewert motivgeschichtlicher Übersetzungsstudien“; Czennia. Figurenrede als Übersetzungsproblem; Frank. Die literarische Übersetzung; Frank, Armin P. und Erika Hulpke. „Poes deutscher Rabenhorst: Erkundung eines übersetzungsgeschichtlichen Längsschnitts, Teil I (1853–1891).“ In: Brigitte Schultze (Hg.). Die literarische Übersetzung. Fallstudien zu ihrer Kulturgeschichte. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1987. 96–148; Markus. „Zum Aussagewert der Untersuchung kleiner Textmengen.“ und Wolpers. „Dickens’ poetischer Realismus im Stilwandel deutscher Übersetzungen.“ Vgl. insgesamt die Sammelbände der Göttinger Beiträge zur Internationalen Übersetzungsforschung (Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1987ff). 18 Den Paradigmenwechsel in der Übersetzungsforschung bestätigen nachdrücklich die Beiträge von Frank, Armin P. „Translation Research from a Literary and Cultural Perspective: Objectives, Concepts, Scope.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 790–851; Frank, Armin P. „Literary Translation as Art.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 852–59; Frank, Armin P. „Versification and Stanza Formation: Towards a Transfer Approach.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 962–80; Schultze, Brigitte. „Kontexte in der literarischen Übersetzung.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 860–69; Schultze, Brigitte. „Kulturelle Schlüsselbegriffe und Kulturwörter in Übersetzungen fiktionaler und weiterer Textsorten.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 926–36; Schultze, Brigitte. „Spielarten von Intertextualität in literarischen Übersetzungen.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 948–61; Kerzel, Martina und Brigitte Schultze. „Anrede und Titulatur in der Übersetzung.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 936–48; Czennia, Bärbel. „Erzählweisen in literarischer Prosa und ihre Übersetzung.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 987–1007; vgl. insgesamt auch Kittel, Frank und Greiner (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction. (2004); Kittel, House und Schultze (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction. (2008); Kittel, Frank und Greiner (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction. (2011).

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Äquivalenz19 verabschiedete. Der im SFB entwickelte Ansatz versucht literaturund sprachwissenschaftliche Ansätze zu harmonisieren, fasst jedoch explizit „eine Übersetzung als das jeweils personen- und zeitgebundene, oft die speziellen Rezeptionsbedingungen ihrer Zeit reflektierende integrale Verständnis des Werks auf, das freilich nicht, wie eine literaturwissenschaftliche Interpretation, metasprachlich, sondern grundsätzlich literatursprachlich formuliert ist“.20 Angesichts eines solchen Verständnisses von Übersetzung als ,Interpretation‘21 kann es im Rahmen eines Übersetzungsvergleichs, einer Übersetzungskritik nicht primär darum gehen, ,Fehler‘ aufzudecken, Abweichungen mit nicht übereinstimmenden grammatischen Kategorien der Ausgangs- und Zielsprache (wie z. B. Aspekt oder Tempus-System) zu erklären und/oder eine Übersetzung nur Satz für Satz oder Absatz für Absatz mit dem Ausgangstext zu vergleichen.22 Vielmehr sollten der Gesamtzusammenhang des Originalwerks und der Übersetzung, der historische und kulturelle Kontext, die vom Übersetzer vertretene Übersetzungstheorie und -strategie,23 der persönliche Stil des Übersetzers und vor allem die literarischen Konsequenzen der Abweichungen gegenüber dem Ausgangstext, die in einer Übersetzung notwendigerweise auftreten, Berücksichtigung finden. Ganz in diesem Sinne formuliert Armin Paul Frank die folgenden Schwerpunkte für eine sinnvolle historisch-deskriptive Übersetzungsforschung: […] the best evaluation of a translation is tantamount to a complete and non-judgmental description of the ways in which its structure and, hence, meaning have been affected by the act of translation. What parts of the original potential for meaning were lost in the process? What aspects or dimensions have been added? In what ways does the potential for understanding and response represented by the translation differ from

19 Vgl. etwa Reiß. Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Übersetzungskritik. 34–49 und Neubert, Albrecht und Gert Jäger (Hgg.). Äquivalenz bei der Translation. Übersetzungswissenschaftliche Beiträge. Leipzig: Verlag Enzyklopädie, 1982. Im Folgenden greife ich auf einzelne frühere Formulierungen (Baumann, Uwe. „Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre in deutscher Übersetzung: Eine Längsachsenstudie.“ In: Anglistik 5,2 (1994): 22–38, bes. 22–23) zurück. 20 Frank und Hulpke. „Poes deutscher Rabenhorst.“ 105. 21 Vgl. hierzu nochmals Frank. Die literarische Übersetzung. 5: „Auf jeden Fall heißt Literatur übersetzen nicht Sprache, auch nicht Text übersetzen, sondern eine – wenn auch nicht unbedingt vorausbedachte und kohärente – Interpretation eines literarischen Werks, gelegentlich modifiziert durch politische, ethische oder religiöse Rücksichten oder Rücksichten auf ein bestimmtes Zielpublikum und oft durch Reaktionen auf Vorläuferübersetzungen. Eine solche nicht metasprachliche, sondern zumindest dem Anspruch nach literatursprachliche Interpretation ersetzt unter unvermeidlicher Veränderung des Bedeutungspotentials das übersetzte Werk für die in der zweiten Sprache, Literatur und Kultur lebenden Leser“. 22 Vgl. Frank. „Towards a Cultural History of Literary Translation.“ bes. 322. 23 Nicht selten wird dies durch Vor- oder Nachworte der Übersetzer, in denen diese ihre Strategien aufdecken, erleichtert.

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that offered by the original? How much, and what kind, of a literary work of art did the translation turn out to be?24

Dieses Konzept einer historisch-deskriptiven Übersetzungsforschung erhebt den ausgangssprachlichen Text explizit zur Norm für die Beschreibung der Übersetzung25 und konzentriert diese Beschreibung implizit auf die notwendigen Abweichungen hinsichtlich eines angestrebten, aber prinzipiell nicht erreichbaren Ziels von Wirkungsäquivalenz. In der Konsequenz führt dieser Ansatz zu einer Kulturgeschichte der Übersetzung, die – stark vereinfacht – die Fragen klärt, wann und wie oft ein Werk übersetzt worden ist und wie es übersetzt worden ist; eine Kulturgeschichte der Übersetzung, die selbst wiederum zum unverzichtbaren Baustein für eine allgemeine Geschichte des kulturellen Transfers (zwischen zwei Sprachen, Literaturen und Kulturen), schließlich der Rezeption von Literatur und Kultur allgemein würde.26 So überzeugend das Konzept der transferorientierten historisch-deskriptiven Übersetzungsforschung auch ist, es stößt in der konkreten Anwendung auf umfangreichere Texte, z. B. den Roman Pride and Prejudice, und längere Übersetzungskometenschweife (neun deutsche Übersetzungen) an arbeitsökonomische Grenzen. Die argumentative Reichweite von Untersuchungsergebnissen, die sich der Analyse vereinzelter exemplarischer Textpassagen verdanken, ist dabei von vornherein begrenzt, wie ein Beispiel dokumentieren soll:

(0)

Pride and Prejudice, 51

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

24 Frank. „Theories and Theory of Literary Translation.“ 218. Vgl. ebenfalls Frank. „Towards a Cultural History of Literary Translation.“ 25 Vgl. Frank, Armin P. „Understanding Literature via Translation: The Study of Literary Translation as Hermeneutic Device.“ In: Literatur in Wissenschaft und Unterricht 21,1 (1988): 33–37, 36: „as a norm for describing translation“. 26 Eine schöne Bestätigung dieser Konzeptualisierung bietet der Band von Mandal, Anthony und Brian Southam (Hgg.). The Reception of Jane Austen in Europe. London: continuum, 2007 (in der Schriftenreihe ,The Reception of British and Irish Authors in Europe‘), in dem durchgängig die Übersetzungen in die diversen Zielsprachen eine entscheidende Rolle spielen. Vgl. ebenfalls Kittel, House und Schultze (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction. (2008); Kittel, Frank und Greiner (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction. (2011).

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Louise Marezoll (1830), I, 3

Nichts ist leichter vorauszusetzen, als daß ein junger, reicher, unverheiratheter Mann vor allen andern Dingen eine Frau bedarf.

(2)

Karin von Schab (1939), 5

Es ist eine Wahrheit, über die sich alle Welt einig ist, daß ein unbeweibter Mann von einigem Vermögen unbedingt auf der Suche nach einer Lebensgefährtin sein muß.

(7)

Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 5

Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Tatsache, dass ein alleinstehender Mann im Besitz eines hübschen Vermögens nichts dringender braucht als eine Frau.

(9)

Andrea Ott (2003), 5

Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Wahrheit, daß ein Junggeselle im Besitz eines schönen Vermögens nichts dringender braucht als eine Frau. Louise Marezoll konnte nicht ahnen, dass der Ironie gesättigte Eingangssatz des Romans als programmatisches, die Erwartungen der Leserschaft auf die zentrale Thematik ,Werbung und Ehe‘ einstimmendes Statement der Erzählinstanz zu einem der berühmtesten Sätze der englischen Erzählliteratur werden sollte. Die Übersetzung Marezolls hat ihren eigenen Rhythmus, weist jedoch entscheidende Abweichungen zum Ausgangstext auf: Zunächst fällt der zentrale Aspekt eines allgemein akzeptierten („universally acknowledged“) gesellschaftlichen Konsens weg; der Mann, im Ausgangstext durch „in possession of a good fortune“ näher spezifiziert, wird in der Übersetzung durch die Adjektive „reich“ und „jung“ charakterisiert, wiewohl Jugend weder an dieser Stelle noch insgesamt im Roman eine Voraussetzung für Eheschließung ist.27 Darüber hinaus formuliert der Satz in der Übersetzung eine Wertehierarchie, „vor allen andern Dingen“, obwohl der Satz des Ausgangstexts keineswegs eine Gattin an die erste Stelle auf dem „Wunschzettel des Unbeweibten“28 rückt: „must be in want of a 27 Vgl. Chambers. „Nineteenth-Century German Translations of Jane Austen.“ bes. 239. 28 Bahners, Patrick. „Es fing an, als sie mich ansprach. Da war ich gleich verloren: ,Stolz und

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wife“.29 Die gleiche signifikante Abweichung vom Ausgangstext weisen im übrigen auch die beiden anderen zitierten Übersetzungen, von Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977) und Andrea Ott (2003), auf, wohingegen die Übertragung von Karin von Schab eine lexikalisch („Lebensgefährtin“) und kontextuell nicht überzeugende Variante für wife („Ehefrau“) bietet. Die Analysen solcher Abweichungen an isolierten exemplarischen Textpassagen erlauben selbst beim Rekurs auf längere Abschnitte oder eine größere Menge einzelner Textpassagen allenfalls Tendenzaussagen über die einzelnen Übersetzungen eines Kometenschweifs. Abhilfe und eine deutlich besser gegründete Beschreibung und Bewertung von Übersetzungen ermöglichen speziell bei längeren Erzähltexten sogenannte ,Längsachsenstudien‘. Solche Längsachsen können streng formaler Natur sein, etwa Figurenrede,30 Leser/innen-Anreden,31 Erzähler/innen-Kommentare, oder auch einzelne Metaphern, Vergleiche und Motive fokussieren,32 oder sich auf größere Motivkomplexe (etwa Landschafts- und Wetterschilderungen)33 oder einzelne, zentrale Figuren konzentrieren.34 Welche Längsachsen für die Analyse der Übersetzungen von Pride and Prejudice im Rahmen der transferorientierten historisch-deskriptiven Überset-

29

30 31 32 33

34

Vorurteil‘ in redseliger Übersetzung.“ In: FAZ (18. 03. 2003) (letzter Zugriff: 11. Februar 2015). Vgl. Bahners. „ , Stolz und Vorurteil‘ in redseliger Übersetzung.“: „Der Alleinstehende braucht Gesellschaft. Dieses Bedürfnis ist nicht schwächer oder stärker als andere Triebe, sondern absoluter Natur. Es existiert, solange es nicht befriedigt ist. […] Der Denkstil stammt aus der natürlichen Theologie des achtzehnten Jahrhunderts, die sich nicht zu fein war, am Geschlechtstrieb die Schöpfungsökonomie zu demonstrieren. Die metaphysische These von der Unfertigkeit des Individualismus gibt es auch in einer biblischen Variante: Es ist nicht gut, daß der Mensch allein sei. In den vier Buchstaben des Wörtchens ,want‘ liegen subjektives Wünschen und objektives Bedürfnis beschlossen“. Vgl. Czennia. „Zum Aussagewert motivgeschichtlicher Übersetzungsstudien.“; Czennia. Figurenrede als Übersetzungsproblem. Vgl. Baumann. „Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre in deutscher Übersetzung.“ Vgl. Markus. „Zum Aussagewert der Untersuchung kleiner Textmengen.“; Wolpers. „Dickens’ poetischer Realismus im Stilwandel deutscher Übersetzungen.“ Vgl. die funktionsgeschichtlich fokussierten Überblicksdarstellungen von Kullmann, Thomas. Vermenschlichte Natur : Zur Bedeutung von Landschaft und Wetter im englischen Roman von Ann Radcliffe bis Thomas Hardy. Tübingen: Niemeyer, 1995 und Schröder, Priska. Landschaftsbild – Wirklichkeitsbild: Zur Funktion von Natur und Landschaft im Roman von Charlotte Smith, Ann Radcliffe, Jane Austen und Charlotte und Emily BrontÚ. Marburg: Diss., 1987. Vgl. insgesamt die Studie von Hohn. Charlotte BrontÚs Jane Eyre in deutscher Übersetzung, die ihre Untersuchung von Jane Eyre auf drei – dann weiter ausdifferenzierte – Längsachsen konzentriert: 1. Figurenkonstellation (Brocklehurst – Helen – Jane; Rochester – Bertha – Jane; St. John – Jane), 2. Natürliches – Übernatürliches: die Natur als Spiegel für die Identitätsprozesse (Elementare Welt: Feuer und Wasser ; Der natürliche Raum: Jahreszeit und Wetter, Pflanzen und Tiere; Kosmische Welt: der Mond), 3. Erzähltechnik (Selbstreflexionen; Leseranreden).

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zungsanalyse besonders lohnend sind, vermag nur eine knappe Analyse des Ausgangstexts bereitzustellen, der Norm, dem Richtmaß für die Beschreibung der Übersetzung.

III. Bereits der berühmte Eingangssatz gibt die zentrale Thematik des Romans vor : Ehe und Liebe. Elizabeth Bennet, die zweitälteste der fünf Töchter der Familie Bennet, ist die Protagonistin und zeichnet sich dadurch aus, dass sie erstens in jedem Kapitel präsent ist, dass sie zweitens die zentrale Fokalisationsinstanz ist, deren Ansichten drittens weitgehend mit der der listig-ironischen Erzählinstanz übereinstimmen.35 Die Protagonistin Elizabeth Bennet und ihr schwieriger Weg 35 Vgl. dazu u. a. Anderson, Walter E. „Plot, Character, Speech, and Place in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Nineteenth-Century Fiction 30,3 (1975): 367–82; Brosch, Renate. Eleganz und Autonomie: Die Auffassung vom Weiblichen bei Jane Austen. Heidelberg: Winter, 1984; Carson, Susannah (Hg.). A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen. New York: Random House, 2009; Cho, Ailee. „The Social Meaning of Marriage in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: The Journal of English Language and Literature 39,3 (1993): 529–47; Eberle, Hannah. „How Jane Austen Uses Marriage to Get What She Wants.“ In: Pursuit 3,1 (2011): 1–19; Gard, Roger. Jane Austen’s Novels: The Art of Clarity. New Haven/London: Yale University Press, 1992. bes. 96ff; Foster Stovel, Nora. „Famous Last Words: Elizabeth Bennet Protests Too Much.“ In: Bruce Stovel und Lynn Weinlos Gregg (Hgg.). The Talk in Jane Austen. Edmonton: University of Alberta Press, 2002. 183–203; Gillie, Christopher. A Preface to Jane Austen. London: Longman, 1974. bes. 98ff; Glage, Liselotte. Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice. München: UTB, 1984. bes. 39ff; Horwitz, Barbara J. Jane Austen and the Question of Women’s Education. New York et al.: Peter Lang, 1991. bes. 119ff; Jehmlich, Reimer. Jane Austen. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1995; Kirkham, Margaret. Jane Austen. Feminism and Fiction. Totowa, NJ: Barnes and Noble Books, 1983; Marshall, David. „Unfolding Characters: Attention and Autobiography in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Rivka Swenson und Elise Lauterbach (Hgg.). Imagining Selves: Essays in Honor of Patricia Meyer Spacks. Newark: University of Delaware Press, 2008. 209–34; McDonald, Kelly M. „Pemberley’s Welcome, or an Historical Conjecture upon Elizabeth Darcy’s Wedding Journey.“ In: Persuasions On-Line 30 (2009): keine Seitenzählung; Nachumi, Nora. „ , I Am Elizabeth Bennet‘: Defining One’s Self through Austen’s Third Novel.“ In: Pedagogy : Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture 4,1 (2004): 119–24; Newton, Judith L. „Power and the Ideology of ,Woman’s Sphere‘.“ In: Devoney Looser (Hg.). Jane Austen and Discourses of Feminism. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995. 880–95; Pikoulis, John. „Jane Austen: The Figure in the Carpet.“ In: Nineteenth-Century Fiction 27,1 (1972): 38–60; Rohmann, Gerd. „Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice: Auktorialer Kommentar und Perspektivtechnik.“ In: Die Neueren Sprachen 69 (1970): 455–61; Schneider, Matthew. „Card-Playing and the Marriage Gamble in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Dalhousie Review 73,1 (1993): 5–17; Schrick, Annegret. Jane Austen und die weibliche Modellbiographie des 18. Jahrhunderts: Eine strukturelle und ideologiekritische Untersuchung zur Zentralfigur bei Jane Austen. Trier: WVT, 1986; Shaffer, Julie. „Familial Love, Incest, and Female Desire in Late Eighteenth- and Early-Nineteenth-Century British Women’s Novels.“ In: Criticism: A Quarterly for Literature and the Arts 41,1 (1999): 67–99;

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zu Selbsterkenntnis und zum Liebes- und Eheglück mit Darcy wäre eine, wenn nicht die zentrale Längsachse des Romans; arbeitsökonomisch wäre freilich mit der Wahl dieser Längsachse für die Detailanalyse nicht viel gewonnen, da die zu untersuchende Textmenge sich immer noch auf gut 50 % des gesamten Romans beliefe. Es gilt also – arbeitsökonomisch – innerhalb dieser Längsachse weiter zu reduzieren. Das Romangeschehen ist – u. a. entsprechend der Dialogstruktur des Romans – arm an äußeren, jedoch reich an inneren Aktionen: Es wird primär kommuniziert, reflektiert und bilanziert, Einsichten gewonnen und verworfen, Vorurteile formuliert, Urteile gefällt, begründet und revidiert, um Übereinstimmungen gerungen oder Unvereinbarkeit der Ansichten konstatiert.36 Die Erzählung der inneren Geschehensabläufe wird weitgehend durch Abstrakta, die moralische Wertvorstellungen vermitteln, strukturiert: The most striking feature of Jane Austen’s vocabulary is this group of terms, pointing in the same direction: criteria of worth by means of which her characters, and the types and tendencies they represent, may be assessed. It is no exaggeration to describe these words as key-words […].37

Konsequenz der darstellerischen Konzentration auf die inneren, geistigen Geschehensabläufe ist, dass durchgängig Verben des Sagens und Denkens im Vordergrund stehen.38 Darüber hinaus ist unverkennbar, dass Jane Austen – unabhängig davon, ob ihre zentrale Fokalisationsinstanz Elizabeth oder ihre Erzählinstanz für die jeweilige Formulierung verantwortlich zeichnet – sehr präzise und differenziert Kernbegriffe (key-words) und bedeutungsverwandte Varianten einsetzt, die innerhalb eines Wortfeldes zu den gesamten Roman durchziehenden Leitmotiven ausgestaltet sind und die innerhalb des Romans aus der Zuordnung zu Charakteren eigene textspezifische Wort- und WertSternberg, Claudia. „Domestic Fiction(s). Ehe und Partnerschaft bei Jane Austen, den BrontÚs und George Eliot.“ In: Hiltrud Gnüg und Renate Möhrmann (Hgg.). Frauen Literatur Geschichte: Schreibende Frauen vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart. 2. Aufl. Stuttgart/ Weimar : Metzler, 1999. 92–103; Weinsheimer, Joel. „Chance and the Hierarchy of Marriages in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: English Literary History 39,3 (1972): 404–19 und White, Laura M. „Jane Austen and the Marriage Plot: Questions of Persistence.“ In: Devoney Looser (Hg.). Jane Austen and Discourses of Feminism. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995. 71–86. 36 Vgl. Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. 33. 37 Page, Norman. The Language of Jane Austen. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1972. 55. Vgl. ebenso Phillipps, Kenneth C. Jane Austen’s English. London: Andr¦ Deutsch, 1970. 13: „Jane Austen’s precise and confident use of abstract nouns has recently attracted considerable critical attention that indicates an increased awareness of her seriousness as a writer. The study of key-words like rational, elegance and mind gives us insights whereby we deepen our appreciation of her world“. 38 Die sehr selten von der Erzählinstanz benutzten Verben der Bewegung (wie z. B. jump, spring, run, ramble) beschreiben nur Elizabeth und akzentuieren ihre ungewöhnliche Vitalität (vgl. z. B. Pride and Prejudice 79 und 98).

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hierarchien zeitigen. Aus der Vielzahl solcher leitmotivisch funktionalisierten Längsachsen bietet sich für die weiteren Überlegungen einerseits das Wortfeld „love“ an, andererseits das Leitmotiv der „liveliness“, das insbesondere Elizabeth Bennet charakterisiert.39 Das Lexem „love“ ist dem wahren, wohlbegründeten und tiefen Gefühl, dem einzigen, das eine sinnvolle und beständige, in gegenseitiger Achtung und Respekt gründende Partnerschaft (und Ehe) garantiert, vorbehalten.40 „Love“ allein verbindet nur Elizabeth und Darcy,41 die Beziehung zwischen Jane und Bingley wird mit affection und love beschrieben.42 Mr. und Mrs. Gardiner werden ebenfalls von Elizabeth und Darcy mit love ausgezeichnet (vgl. Pride and Prejudice 396), wohingegen die Gefühle für und von Mr. Collins lediglich mit regard, attachment und von Elizabeth überaus zurückhaltend mit accept und make happy beschrieben werden.43 Die Protagonistin und die Erzählinstanz definieren im Text love als „pure and elevating passion“ (Pride and Prejudice 186), die sich auf „gratitude and esteem“ gründet (Pride and Prejudice 296).44 Der Liebe auf den ersten Blick wird von Elizabeth eine klare Absage erteilt: „[…] not the work of a day, but had stood the test of many months suspense […]“.45 Noch klarer und sowohl definitorisch ins Allgemeine gewendet als auch konkret auf Elizabeth bezogen hält auch die Erzählinstanz fest:

39 Als weitere zentrale Längsachse böten sich das Wortfeld der Vernunft mit seinen bedeutungsverwandten Wörtern und Antonymen (prudence, judgement, wisdom, sense, proper way of thinking) an, oder auch eine Längsachse der Kontrastrelationen (natural vs. artificial, formal, falsely adorned, awkward taste oder auch talents vs. accomplishments). Vgl. hierzu insgesamt Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. bes. 35–41. 40 Bezeichnenderweise konzeptualisiert Elizabeth die ,Gefühle‘ ihrer Eltern lediglich als affection (Pride and Prejudice 262): „Her father captivated by youth and beauty, and that appearance of good humour, which youth and beauty generally give, had married a woman whose weak understanding and illiberal mind, had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her. Respect, esteem, and confidence, had vanished for ever ; and all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown“. Vgl. zum Kontext Appendix (4.0). 41 Vgl. Pride and Prejudice 221, 276, 285, 351 und 385 (vgl. zum Kontext Appendix (7.0)). 42 Vgl. Pride and Prejudice 175 und 359: „ ,Would you believe it, Lizzy, that when he went to town last November, he really loved me, and nothing but a persuasion of my being indifferent, would have prevented his coming down again!‘ “ . 43 Vgl. Pride and Prejudice 163, 174, 212. Dass Mr. Collins selbst, nach der Ablehnung seines törichten Antrags durch Elizabeth, seine ,Gefühle‘ als love klassifiziert, unterstreicht nur durch die pompöse, phrasenhafte Formel, dass er weder die Situation noch Elizabeth angemessen zu beurteilen in der Lage ist (Pride and Prejudice 150): „ , As I must therefore conclude that you are not serious in your rejection of me, I shall chuse to attribute it to your wish of increasing my love by suspense, according to the usual practice of elegant females‘ “ . 44 Vgl. insgesamt auch Pride and Prejudice 325 und 384–85 (Texte Appendix (6.0) und (7.0)). 45 Pride and Prejudice 385 (vgl. zum Kontext Appendix (7.0)); vgl. ebenfalls Pride and Prejudice 296–97.

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If gratitude and esteem are good foundations of affection, Elizabeth’s change of sentiment will be neither improbable nor faulty. But if otherwise, if the regard springing from such sources is unreasonable or unnatural, in comparison of what is so often described as arising on a first interview with its object, and even before two words have been exchanged [Hervorhebung U.B.], nothing can be said in her defence, except that she had given somewhat of a trial to the latter method, in her partiality for Wickham, and that its ill-success might perhaps authorize her to seek the other less interesting mode of attachment. (Pride and Prejudice 296)46

Elizabeth, der schon gleich zu Anfang des Romans von ihrem Vater und der Erzählinstanz gleichermaßen schnelle Auffassungsgabe, Temperament und Schlagfertigkeit bescheinigt werden (vgl. Pride and Prejudice 52, 63, 87), bezaubert zuerst Darcy mit ihren dunklen Augen, ihrem ungewöhnliche Klugheit ausstrahlenden Gesichtsausdruck und ihrer Anmut.47 Darcy, von Elizabeth, nachdem die beiden schließlich zueinander gefunden haben, gefragt, warum er sich in sie verliebt habe, antwortet: „For the liveliness of your mind, I did“ (Pride and Prejudice 388). Dieser ihrer liveliness hatte Elizabeth selbst schon zuvor (in einem inneren Monolog) eine zentrale Funktion in der ersehnten, aber nicht mehr für möglich gehaltenen Verbindung zu Darcy zugeschrieben: She began now to comprehend, that he was exactly the man, who, in disposition and talents, would most suit her. His understanding and temper, though unlike her own, would have answered all her wishes. It was an union that must have been to the advantage of both; by her ease and liveliness, his mind might have been softened, his manners improved, and from his judgment, information, and knowledge of the world, she must have received benefit of greater importance.48

Elizabeth, der von der Erzählinstanz schon ganz zu Anfang in direkter Charakterisierung eine „lively, playful disposition, which delighted in any thing ridiculous“ (Pride and Prejudice 59) attestiert wird, hebt sich durch ihr lebhaftes Temperament und ihre selbstbewusste Intelligenz deutlich von ihren Schwestern (und den übrigen jungen Frauen des Romans) ab, wiewohl sie sich bei der Einschätzung von Situationen und Charakteren gelegentlich täuscht. Insgesamt wird Elizabeth durch das Leitmotiv der liveliness gekennzeichnet, das – neben temperamentvoller, selbstbewusster Lebhaftigkeit, körperlicher Beweglichkeit und flinker Auffassungsgabe – auch auf „gaiety, zest and a sense for fun“ verweist und damit zugleich die Beziehung zwischen liveliness und spirits betont: „to be in (good) spirits implies cheerfulness and animation – qualities which make an 46 Diese kritische Einschätzung der Liebe auf den ersten Blick („unreasonable“, „unnatural“) mag exemplarisch ein zentrales Detail der Erzählstruktur und der Sympathielenkung Jane Austens verdeutlichen, indem im Detail vorgeführt wird, wie die Überzeugungen und Konzeptualisierungen Elizabeths und der Erzählinstanz einander korrespondieren. 47 Vgl. Pride and Prejudice 70 (vgl. zum Kontext Appendix (2.0)). 48 Pride and Prejudice 325 (vgl. zum Kontext Appendix (6.0)).

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important contribution both to personal happiness and to social intercourse“.49 Und dennoch kann liveliness, wenn sie nicht durch Rationalität und Reflexion gezähmt wird, zu „wildness“ entarten,50 wie das Beispiel Lydia expliziert. Lydias Gefühle werden von Elizabeth als „naturally lively enough“ (Pride and Prejudice 300) bezeichnet, Lydia selbst wird wiederholt als „self-willed and careless“ (Pride and Prejudice 241), „wild“, „vain, ignorant, idle, and absolutely uncontrolled“ (Pride and Prejudice 258)51 charakterisiert, was sie mit ihrer „fine complexion and good-humoured countenance“ und ihren „high animal spirits“ (Pride and Prejudice 90–91) zum erklärten Liebling ihrer törichten52 Mutter macht. Die zwei leitmotivischen Längsachsen love und liveliness und ihre Gestaltung in den neun Übersetzungen stehen im Folgenden im Mittelpunkt der historischdeskriptiven Analyse; die Untersuchung dieser Längsachsen wird darüber hinaus durch den Detailvergleich eines exemplarischen Kapitels des Romans ergänzt. Aus einer ganzen Reihe von Gründen53 bietet sich dafür Kapitel 43, Elizabeths Begegnung mit dem Herrenhaus und Park von Pemberley, besonders an. Bei ihrem Rundgang durch Pemberley Park und Pemberley House erschließen sich Elizabeth Schritt für Schritt Bedeutung und Natur des Anwesens und damit zugleich Charakter und Natur Darcys,54 so dass sie gegen Ende des 49 Stokes, Myra. The Language of Jane Austen. Basingstoke/London: Macmillan, 1991. 46 und 48. Vgl. in diesem Kontext auch die ,Warnung‘ von Mr. Bennet an Elizabeth (Pride and Prejudice 385): „Lizzy, I know that you could be neither happy nor respectable, unless you truly esteemed your husband; unless you looked up to him as a superior. Your lively talents would place you in the greatest danger in an unequal marriage“. 50 Vgl. Tanner im Vorwort zu Pride and Prejudice 39: „Elizabeth’s special quality is more often referred to as ,liveliness‘; this is what Darcy is said to lack (his understanding – i. e. rational consciousness – is apparently impeccable), and it is the main quality that Elizabeth will bring to the marriage. It is a fine point, and not perhaps a fixed one, at which liveliness becomes wildness, yet the latter is a menace to society, while without the former society is merely dull“. 51 Wie schon zuvor (Pride and Prejudice 241) fokussiert diese Charakterisierung Lydia und Kitty gleichermaßen. 52 Vgl. die direkte Charakterisierung durch die Erzählinstanz im Eingangskapitel (Pride and Prejudice 53): „Her mind was less difficult to develope. She was a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper. When she was discontented she fancied herself nervous. The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news“. Vgl. ebenfalls Pride and Prejudice 262 (zum Kontext Appendix (4.0)). 53 Das Kapitel, mit der pittoresken Beschreibung des Anwesens und des Parks, die zugleich als zentrale Metapher Darcy charakterisiert (vgl. u. a. Schröder. Landschaftsbild – Wirklichkeitsbild. 130), mit ihren Adjektiven, die gleichermaßen Anwesen, Park und seinen Herren beschreiben, stellt – wie auch der Wechsel zwischen Bericht der Erzählinstanz, inneren Monologen der Fokalisationsinstanz und wiederholt eingeschalteter wörtlicher Reden – die Übersetzer/innen vor besondere Herausforderungen. 54 Vgl. Tanner im Vorwort zu Pride and Prejudice 24: „In this case the grounds, the house, the portrait, all bespeak the real man – they represent a visible extension of his inner qualities, his true style“.

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Romans auf Janes Frage, seit wann sie Darcy liebe, antwortet: „It has been coming on so gradually, that I hardly know when it began. But I believe I must date it from my first seeing his beautiful grounds at Pemberley“ (Pride and Prejudice 382).55

IV. (1).

Louise Marezoll (1830)

Louise Marezolls Übersetzung von Pride and Prejudice erschien 1830 in Leipzig (C.H.F. Hartmann) unter dem Titel Stolz und Vorurtheil mit dem Vermerk Ein Roman frei nach dem Englischen, ohne Jane Austen als Autorin zu erwähnen, in drei Bänden. Trotz des Vermerks frei nach liegt eine streckenweise recht genaue Übersetzung vor, die sich in Einteilung und Anzahl der Kapitel und zumeist auch der Absätze am Ausgangstext orientiert. Dennoch weist die Übersetzung bereits auf der Ebene der Makrostruktur signifikante Abweichungen im Vergleich zum Ausgangstext auf: die zielsprachige Textfassung ist gekürzt; zumeist entfallen Dialogpassagen, die teilweise jedoch inhaltlich, dann aber durch die auktoriale Erzählinstanz wiedergegeben werden. Weitgehend unangetastet bleiben nur die Dialoge zwischen Elizabeth und Darcy ; insgesamt zeitigen die Kürzungen die Konsequenz, dass sich die Charakterzeichnung der Protagonistin verändert, weil primär die Gespräche und inneren Monologe, in denen ernsthaftere Fragen und Wertvorstellungen fokussiert werden, entweder entfallen oder knapp zusammengefasst werden (etwa die Gespräche zwischen Elizabeth und Mrs. Gardiner (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 26), Elizabeths Analyse von Charlottes Situation (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 28), Elizabeths innerer Monolog über die ihr inzwischen unmöglich scheinende Verbindung zu Darcy (Pride and Prejudice 325), die Überlegungen zur Verbindung ihrer Schwester Jane mit Bingley (Pride and Prejudice 357) und der innere Monolog, in dem Elizabeth ihre neuerliche Begegnung mit Darcy in Pemberley und Lambton bilanziert (Pride and Prejudice 296–97)). Da diese entfallenen oder stark gekürzten Passagen die Wertvorstellungen explizieren, die Elizabeths Verständnis von Liebe und Ehe prägen, entfallen damit wesentliche Details, deren Streichung sich auch auf die zu untersuchenden Längsachsen nachteilig auswirkt. Die von Jane Austen präzise ausdifferenzierten Grade von Zuneigung ignoriert Marezoll weitgehend: Regard (Pride and Prejudice 222; Marezoll, II, 91) und attachment (Pride and Prejudice 163; Marezoll, I, 179) werden ebenso wie 55 Vgl. insgesamt auch Tanner im Vorwort zu Pride and Prejudice 22–25; Brosch. Eleganz und Autonomie. bes. 204.

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like und love (Pride and Prejudice 385; Marezoll, III, 207) mit Liebe übersetzt; affection wird darüber hinaus einmal zielsprachig zur Liebeserklärung (Pride and Prejudice 221; Marezoll, II, 90). Das Leitmotiv liveliness/lively wird anfangs mit von Natur heiter und fröhlich (Pride and Prejudice 130; Marezoll, I, 125) und in der Folge mit lebhaft/Lebhaftigkeit (Pride and Prejudice 325, 385, 388, 395; Marezoll, III, 105, 208, 214, 225) übersetzt; die Lexeme heiter und fröhlich klingen verharmlosend und lassen daher die mögliche Gefährdung einer Entartung zu wild/wildness nicht erkennen. Der Verweis auf Lydias liveliness wurde gestrichen (Pride and Prejudice 300), und Mr. Bennets ,Warnung‘ vor der möglichen Gefährdung ihres Eheglücks durch Elizabeths lively talents (Pride and Prejudice 385; Marezoll, III, 208) wurde leicht gekürzt, so dass insgesamt nur konstatiert werden kann, dass den Leserinnen und Lesern der Übersetzung die kluge Strenge und ausdifferenzierte Komplexität dieser Längsachse vorenthalten wird. Kapitel 43 ist leicht gekürzt, neben etlichen lexikalischen Abweichungen (etwa Schloss für house, Gebieter und Unterthanen für master und tenants), sind es vornehmlich die vorgenommenen Streichungen in den inneren Monologen Elizabeths, die einerseits zu einem weitgehenden Verlust spezifischer Gestaltungsmittel wie Rhetorik und erlebter Rede führen und die andererseits die von Elizabeth wahrgenommenen und ihre Einschätzung von Darcy nachhaltig korrigierenden Korrespondenzen zwischen Anwesen und Besitzer marginalisieren.

(2).

Karin von Schab (1939)

Bereits der Titel der Übersetzung von Karin von Schab (Elisabeth und Darcy) rückt die Liebesgeschichte zwischen Elizabeth und Darcy in den Mittelpunkt des Interesses. Symptome dieser Akzentuierung sind immer wieder intensivierende Übersetzungen von attachment mit Liebe (u. a. Pride and Prejudice 68; von Schab, 26)56, interest mit Neigung (u. a. Pride and Prejudice 345; von Schab, 349), gladly and gratefully mit mit aller Dankbarkeit und Liebe (Pride and Prejudice 325; von Schab, 323). Der Schluss von Kapitel 43, insbesondere mit der Ergänzung „sie hatte für nichts anderes Gedanken als für Darcy und immer wieder Darcy“ (von Schab, 270), die sich signifikant von der klaren, nüchternen und 56 Vgl. weitere Beispiele (mit dem jeweiligen Kontext) im Appendix 4.2., 6.2 und 7.2. Vgl. insbes. die Einschätzung der Ehe von Lydia und Wickham in einem inneren Monolog Elizabeths (Pride and Prejudice 325: „[…] a couple who were only brought together because their passions were stronger than their virtue“), die in der Übersetzung (und damit in der Wertung Elizabeths) signifikant verwerflicher erscheint (von Schab 324): „[…] ein Paar, […] das nur zueinander gefunden hatte, weil triebhafte Leidenschaft über die Tugend den Sieg davontrug“.

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doch Elizabeths Erstaunen vermittelnden Sprache der Erzählinstanz abhebt (Pride and Prejudice 279: „[…] and she could do nothing but think, and think with wonder, of Mr. Darcy’s civility, and above all, of his wishing her to be acquainted with his sister“), mag diese Tendenz der Gefühlsintensivierung exemplarisch illustrieren. Korollar dieser allgemeinen Tendenz ist, dass damit im Kontext der Längsachsen und der Leitmotive nahezu Beliebigkeit vorherrscht, wie z. B. die Übersetzungen von liveliness/lively mit lustig und heiter, gute Laune oder Übermut bezeugen (Pride and Prejudice 59, 130, 388; von Schab, 15, 99, 401); respect und esteem werden nicht unterschieden (Pride and Prejudice 166, 174, 262; von Schab, 137, 145, 249). Diese weitgehende Nichtberücksichtigung der klaren, wenngleich komplexen Ausgestaltung der untersuchten Längsachsen Jane Austens zeitigt – neben einigen erstaunlichen Kürzungen57 (und Verwechselungen58) – fatale Konsequenzen, wie nachdrücklich die Übersetzung des summarischen Berichts der Erzählinstanz über die Ehe der Eltern von Elizabeth explizieren soll: Mr. Bennet hatte eine Frau geheiratet, „whose weak understanding and illiberal mind, had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her“ (Pride and Prejudice 262), was die Übersetzung freundlicher (und im Kontext der Längsachse, mit der klaren Differenzierung von love, affection und esteem, unangemessen) wiedergibt: „deren beschränkter und kleinlicher Verstand sehr bald schon jeder wirklichen Liebe ein Ende bereitete“ (von Schab, 249).59 Einzelne lexikalisch überzeugende Übersetzungslösungen (z. B. Pride and Prejudice 325; von Schab, 324) können insgesamt die Schwächen dieser Übersetzung, die in der einseitigen Akzentuierung der Liebesgeschichte, den Kürzungen und der Nichtberücksichtigung der klugen, lexikalisch ausdifferenzierten Längsachsen des Ausgangstexts gründen, nicht kompensieren.

57 Die Kürzung wichtiger Textstellen, wie z. B. der Hinweis auf Elizabeths spontanes Überschreiten der Grenzen des decorum (Pride and Prejudice 165; von Schab 136), oder auf die Gründung von Liebe in gratitude and esteem (Pride and Prejudice 296; von Schab 290), erscheint gerade mit Blick auf die insgesamt vorherrschende Akzentuierung der Liebesgeschichte wenig konsequent. 58 Mr. Darcy mit Mr. Wickham zu verwechseln (Pride and Prejudice 181; von Schab 155) ist zwar nur ein punktuelles Versehen, im Kontext der gesamten Stelle jedoch unverzeihlich. 59 Die Tendenz der Gefühlsintensivierung der Übersetzung lässt sich durch zahllose Beispiele untermauern; ein letztes mag jedoch an dieser Stelle genügen, das zugleich die gelegentlich zu beobachtende Tendenz zu umgangssprachlich markierten Formulierungen illustrieren kann: „[…] all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown“ (Pride and Prejudice 262) wird zu „alle seine Aussichten auf eine einigermaßen glückliche Ehe wurden so über den Haufen geworfen“ (von Schab 249).

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Margarete Rauchenberger (1948)

Margarete Rauchenbergers Übersetzung präsentiert Jane Austens Roman unter dem Titel Stolz und Vorurteil leicht gekürzt: Einzelne Satzelemente, Einschübe, adverbiale Bestimmungen und Relativsätze entfallen immer wieder, längere Perioden werden zu kürzeren umgestaltet. Syntaktische Übersetzungsprobleme werden durch diese „Übersetzungsstrategie“ vielleicht entschärft, insgesamt jedoch verliert die Übersetzung damit deutlich an Profil, zumal es auch Schlüsselbegriffe und Leitmotive sind, die diesen Streichungen geopfert werden. So entfallen z. B. in Elizabeths Reflektionen über Charlottes Ehe in der Übersetzung die für die Ehekonzeption der Protagonistin so bedeutsamen und die Ehe zwischen Charlotte und Mr. Collins entlarvenden Lexeme unsuitable match und distressing (Pride and Prejudice 166). Die Streichungen zeitigen auch für die beiden zu untersuchenden Längsachsen fatale Konsequenzen. So wird das leitmotivische lively zweimal nicht übersetzt (Pride and Prejudice 193, 385; Rauchenberger, 171, 389), so dass die von Mr. Bennet angedeutete moralische und materielle Gefährdung durch die potentielle Entartung von lively zu wild durch die Übersetzung Gaben für lively talents, seelische Gefahr für greatest danger und die Auslassung von discredit and misery schlicht unterschlagen wird. Die Übersetzung von liveliness of mind mit Lebhaftigkeit des Verstandes (Pride and Prejudice 388; Rauchenberger, 393) beschränkt liveliness auf Kopf und Verstand, wiewohl mind Herz und Gefühl ebenso inkludiert. Die Streichung des Lexems wild in Elizabeths Wertung des Verhaltens ihrer Schwestern Lydia und Kitty (Pride and Prejudice 241, 258; Rauchenberger, 226, 245–46) wie auch die sehr unterschiedlichen Übersetzungen (wie eine Wilde (Pride and Prejudice 81; Rauchenberger, 45), ungezwungen (Pride and Prejudice 88; Rauchenberger, 54), nicht gut entwickelt (Pride and Prejudice 268; Rauchenberger, 258)) verschleiern die Stringenz der stilistisch-leitmotivischen Gestaltung durch Jane Austen wie auch die Erkenntnis, dass wild/wildness mögliche Folge einer nicht durch Rationalität kontrollierten liveliness sein kann. Die lexikalisch klar ausdifferenzierten Varianten der Beschreibung von Zuneigung sind in der zielsprachigen Fassung Rauchenbergers nicht mit gleicher Konsequenz und Stringenz beachtet wie im Ausgangstext. So werden sowohl affection als auch attachment und regard unterschiedslos mit Zuneigung übersetzt, affection auch wie love mit Liebe (Pride and Prejudice 68, 69, 163, 221, 262, 385; Rauchenberger, 28, 29, 138, 204, 389),60 wobei die Übersetzung von affection mit Liebe in der auktorialen historischen Wertung der ersten Phase der Ehe von Mrs. und Mr. Bennet eine geradezu groteske Abweichung konstituiert (Pride and Prejudice 262; vgl. Rauchenberger, 250): „Her father captivated by youth and 60 Vgl. insgesamt auch weitere Passagen im Kontext (Appendix 3.2., 4.3. und 7.3.).

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beauty, and that appearance of good humour, which youth and beauty generally give, had married a woman whose weak understanding and illiberal mind, had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her“. Insgesamt bleibt festzuhalten, dass die Exklusivität von love als charakterisierendes Merkmal der Beziehung zwischen Elizabeth und Darcy in der Übersetzung nicht beachtet wird. Lexikalische Ungenauigkeiten (z. B. Vorgesetzter für master (Pride and Prejudice 270; Rauchenberger, 260)) und Streichungen verhindern in der Übersetzung von Kapitel 43 weitgehend die Wahrnehmung der so bedeutungsträchtigen Korrespondenzen zwischen Besitzer und Besitz genauso wie der starke Eindruck, den Pemberley House und Pemberley Park auf Elizabeth machen, marginalisiert wird. Passivische oder neutrale syntaktische Konstruktionen des Ausgangstexts, die Elizabeth vom handelnden, aktiven Subjekt zum Objekt machen,61 werden in der Zielsprache nicht nachgebildet: So wird catch the eye mit Blick freigeben und it arrested her mit sie hielt inne übersetzt (Pride and Prejudice 267, 271; Rauchenberger, 256, 261); Lexeme, die Überraschung oder plötzliche Erkenntnis signalisieren, wie at the moment, instantly oder striking werden ausgelassen oder, im letzten Fall (striking), deutlich abgeschwächt mit wohlgelungen übersetzt (Pride and Prejudice 267, 271; Rauchenberger, 256, 257, 261).

(4).

Ilse Krämer (1948)

Die Übersetzung von Ilse Krämer ist vollständig, die Einteilung in Kapitel und Abschnitte entspricht dem Ausgangstext. Die Syntax des Ausgangstextes wird in der Übersetzung weitgehend bewahrt, „die Perioden in ihrer Länge respektiert“.62 Die Längsachsen und Leitmotive hingegen werden insgesamt nicht einheitlich und konsequent übersetzt. Durchgängig mit Lebhaftigkeit/lebhaft wird die Längsachse liveliness/lively 61 In Einzelfällen ist es umgekehrt, wenn etwa Elizabeths Antizipation (Pride and Prejudice 267: „[…] than she had any notion of finding her“) in der Übersetzung zu einer unspezifischen, kollektive Erwartung explizierenden allgemeinen Formel wird (Rauchenberger 257: „[…] als man erwartet hatte“); vgl. zum Kontext Appendix 5.3. 62 Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. 76. Diese enge Orientierung am Ausgangstext führt auf lexikalischer Ebene zu einer Reihe unschöner Anglizismen: u. a. Sorte von Glück für sort of happiness (Pride and Prejudice 262; Krämer 346), Pemberley-Haus für Pemberley House (Pride and Prejudice 267; Krämer 355), Unzartheit für indelicacy (Pride and Prejudice 189; Krämer 230) oder armselige Meinung für poor opinion (Pride and Prejudice 188; Krämer 230). Vgl. weitere Beispiele für lexikalische Abweichungen und missverständliche Übersetzungen bei Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. bes. 81–82.

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übertragen, an einer für die Konzeption der Längsachse jedoch entscheidenden Stelle ausgelassen. Elizabeth beschreibt im Dialog mit Jane den Charakter ihrer Schwester Lydia, die als wild und imprudent geschildert wird, als „naturally lively enough“ (Pride and Prejudice 300) und verweist damit auf die Gefahr der möglichen Entartung von Vitalität zu Haltlosigkeit, wenn liveliness nicht der rationalen Kontrolle unterliegt, ein Gedanke, der von Mr. Bennet später ebenfalls betont wird (Pride and Prejudice 385).63 Das Lexem wild wird von Krämer im Rahmen seines Wortfelds kontextgemäß, nicht jedoch einheitlich übersetzt: als abenteuerlich (Pride and Prejudice 81, 241; Krämer, 52, 313), ungestüm (Pride and Prejudice 88; Krämer, 63), ausschweifend (Pride and Prejudice 268; Krämer, 357) und wild (Pride and Prejudice 258; Krämer, 338), wobei mit der Übertragung abenteuerlich die ausgangssprachlich intendierte moralische Kategorisierung verloren geht. Noch bemerkenswerter ist der Variationsreichtum und damit zugleich die Abweichung von der Stringenz der ausgangssprachlichen Längsachse, mit der Jane Austen die unterschiedlichen Grade von Zuneigung lexikalisch differenziert. So wird affection mit Neigung (Pride and Prejudice 68; Krämer, 31), Gemütsbewegung (Pride and Prejudice 68; Krämer, 32), Zuneigung (Pride and Prejudice 181; Krämer, 217) oder Liebe (Pride and Prejudice 221; Krämer, 279) übersetzt; attachment ebenfalls uneinheitlich mit Zuneigung und Liebe (Pride and Prejudice 68, 225; Krämer, 32, 286); das Lexem regard wird ähnlich willkürlich als eigenes Gefühl, Neigung oder Achtung übertragen (Pride and Prejudice 69, 296, 174; Krämer, 33, 404, 203). Die Singularität der wahren Liebe, die ausgangssprachlich durch den überaus sparsamen Gebrauch des Lexems love (durchgängig mit Liebe übersetzt) betont wird, kommt damit in Ilse Krämers Übersetzung nicht zum Ausdruck.64 Die Korrespondenzrelation zwischen Besitztum und Besitzer wird in Kapitel 43 nicht immer deutlich: Der Verweis auf die Vielfalt (variety) entfällt ganz, natural importance ist mit ansehnlich nur unzureichend wiedergegeben (Pride and Prejudice 267; Krämer, 354); die ausgangssprachliche Anspielung auf Darcys Adel ist in der Übersetzung von nobler fall of ground und finer reach of 63 Vgl. für den Kontext Appendix 7.0. Es überrascht in Krämers Übersetzung nicht, dass auch die repetitio in der expliziten Charakterisierung von Lydia und Kitty (ignorant, idle and vain) zielsprachig nicht wahrnehmbar ist (Pride and Prejudice 241, 258; Krämer 314, 339). 64 In diesen Kontext gehört zweifellos auch die missverständliche Übertragung einer Passage des inneren Monologs, in dem Elizabeth sich ihre gewandelte Einstellung gegenüber Darcy eingesteht (Pride and Prejudice 325: „What a triumph for him, as she often thought, could he know that the proposals which she had proudly spurnt only four months ago, would now have been gladly and gratefully received!“): „Was für ein Triumph für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte, daß sie den Antrag, der/erst vor vier Monaten so stolz verschmäht worden war, nun froh und dankbarst entgegengenommen hätte [Hervorhebung U.B.]“ (Krämer 451–52).

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woods mit immer prächtigeres Gelände und immer waldigerem Bereich nicht erkennbar (Pride and Prejudice 273, 274; Krämer, 366). Diese zielsprachige ,Verlustbilanz‘ wird durch einige gute lexikalische Übersetzungslösungen geschönt: So eröffnet die Übersetzung von handsome mit stattlich den Blick auf die konzeptuelle Parallelität von Person und Sache (Pride and Prejudice 268, 269; Krämer, 356, 358), und auch die Übertragung jäh für abrupt ermöglicht es, eine Verbindung zum persönlichen Verhalten Darcys zu konstruieren, zumal abrupt danach mit steil und plötzlich wiedergeben wird (Pride and Prejudice 267, 268, 272; Krämer, 355, 356; 363). Eine Reihe irritierender und/oder missverständlicher Abweichungen (z. B. stahl sich ihr scheuer Blick in sein Gesicht für stole a sly look at him (Pride and Prejudice 275; Krämer, 369), Forsthaus für lodge und Beunruhigung für perturbation (Pride and Prejudice 267; Krämer, 354), langsam ansteigen für contain great variety of ground (Pride and Prejudice 267; Krämer, 354), Landwirt für landlord (Pride and Prejudice 270; Krämer, 361)), akzentuiert nochmals den eher zwiespältigen Eindruck, den Ilse Krämers zielsprachige Fassung von Kapitel 43 hinterlässt, zumal der Charakter Darcys (nur) in der Übertragung widersprüchlich erscheint (vgl. Pride and Prejudice 270, 273; Krämer, 360, 366) und auch die eindrückliche Wirkung Pemberleys als Spiegelbild Darcys auf Elizabeth stilistisch marginalisiert wird (vgl. Pride and Prejudice 267, 271; Krämer, 354–355, 362).

(5).

Helmut Holscher (1951)

Helmut Holschers Übersetzung des Romans erweist sich schon auf makrostruktureller Ebene als Bearbeitung; die 61 Kapitel des Ausgangstexts werden zu 60 zusammengezogen, die Einteilung des Texts in Abschnitte wird ebenfalls immer wieder verändert. Insgesamt ist der zielsprachige Text stark gekürzt,65 wobei diese Kürzungen primär Dialoge, innere Monologe Elizabeths und Kommentare der Erzählinstanz betreffen, in denen Wertvorstellungen erörtert und reflektiert werden, wie z. B. in den Gesprächen zwischen Elizabeth und Charlotte (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 6), Elizabeth und Jane (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 24), Elizabeth und Darcy (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 32 und 60); die witzigironischen Dialoge etwa zwischen Elizabeth und Lady Catherine (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 29 und 56), Elizabeth und Darcy, oder Darcy und Miss Bingley (Pride and Prejudice, Kap. 8, 10 und 18) werden hingegen vollständig übertragen. Die Übersetzung präsentiert so nachdrücklich die schlagfertig witzige Seite der Protagonistin, während ihre reflektierte, (selbst-)kritische Nachdenklichkeit 65 Vgl. etwa exemplarisch Appendix 2.5., 4.5. und 6.5. Vgl. insgesamt auch Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. bes. 85–87.

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in den Hintergrund tritt,66 was als Korollar ebenso die Parallelitäten in den kritischen Einsichten von Elizabeth und der Erzählinstanz marginalisiert.67 Wie angesichts der vielen Kürzungen nicht anders zu erwarten, erscheint der präzise und zugleich so komplexe Zusammenklang von Längsachsen und Leitmotiven (key-words) im zielsprachigen Text empfindlich gestört. Die Längsachse liveliness/lively wird nicht angemessen wiedergegeben; die erste Erwähnung (Pride and Prejudice 59) wird nicht beachtet (Holscher, 14)68, einmal wird es mit schnelle Art übersetzt (Pride and Prejudice 130; Holscher, 70), ein anderes Mal wird das Motiv durch die Übersetzung von ease mit Leichtfertigkeit (Pride and Prejudice 357; Holscher 209) so verzerrt, dass der positive Charakterzug lively von seiner Entartung (wild) nicht mehr klar zu trennen ist.69 Wie gering die zielsprachige Aufmerksamkeit gegenüber dieser Längsachse insgesamt ist, dokumentieren – neben einigen durchaus akzeptablen lexikalischen Lösungen, etwa lebhafte Gaben für lively talents (Pride and Prejudice 385; Holscher 261) – wiederum entscheidende Kürzungen: Der Hinweis auf Lydias liveliness wie auch auf ihren Mangel an Tugend (Pride and Prejudice 300; Holscher, 192) entfällt genauso wie Darcys explizites Bekenntnis zu Elizabeths liveliness of mind (Pride and Prejudice 388; Holscher, 265). Das gleiche gilt für die ausgangstextlich präzisen Differenzierungen innerhalb der zweiten zu untersuchenden Längsachse: Zwar wird in der Übertragung zwischen affection/Zuneigung und inclination/Neigung punktuell unterschieden (Pride and Prejudice 221; Holscher 140), die Übersetzungen von regard mit Liebe oder auch verbalisiert als schätzen (Pride and Prejudice 222, 68; Holscher, 141, 20) und love70 mit lieben und gernhaben (Pride and Prejudice 221, 385;

66 So fällt z. B. – neben vielen umfangreicheren Passagen (vgl. nochmals Appendix 4.5.) – ein, speziell auch im Kontext der allgemeinen Konzentration auf die heiteren Aspekte des Romans und die Liebesgeschichte zwischen Elizabeth und Darcy, entscheidender Satz eines inneren Monologs Elizabeths weg, der erste Ansätze einer gewandelten Einschätzung gegenüber Darcy zu erkennen gibt (Pride and Prejudice 241): „His attachment exited gratitude, his general character respect; but she could not approve him; nor could she for a moment repent her refusal, or feel the slightest inclination ever to see him again“. 67 Vgl. etwa die signifikanten Auslassungen (Pride and Prejudice 262, 296; Holscher 164, 190), oder die Streichung eines direkten Kommentars der Erzählinstanz zu Elizabeths widersprüchlicher Reaktion (Pride and Prejudice 186): „[…] Elizabeth, less clear-sighted perhaps in his case than in Charlotte’s […]“. 68 Hierzu passt, dass die direkte Charakterisierung Elizabeths durch die Erzählinstanz als „easy and unaffected“, die in den weiteren Kontext der Längsachse von liveliness/lively gehört (und zugleich zum Leitmotiv der Differenzierung von natürlich und künstlich), entfällt (Pride and Prejudice 71; Holscher 22). 69 Das Lexem wild wird durchgängig als wild übersetzt; lediglich Wickham wird einmal als nicht zu seinem Vorteil entwickelt für has turned out very wild beschrieben (Pride and Prejudice 268; Holscher 169). 70 Die interpretatorisch so bedeutende definitorische Klassifikation von love als „that pure and

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Holscher, 141, 260) zeigen, dass weder die stringenten Nuancierungen noch die klaren Differenzierungen innerhalb der Längsachse berücksichtigt werden. Einen vergleichbar zwiespältigen Eindruck vermittelt die Übersetzung von Kap. 43, was schon auf der lexikalischen Ebene beginnt: So sind Schloß für house, Beschließerin71 für housekeeper, oder auch Pförtnerhäuschen für lodge genauso unangemessen wie Spinett für instrument (Pride and Prejudice 267–69; Holscher, 167–70). Die Korrespondenzrelation zwischen Besitz und Besitzer ist kaum erkennbar, was einerseits wiederum in Kürzungen,72 und andererseits in bewussten und im Kontext unangemessenen Differenzierungen73 und in der Abschwächung der stilistisch-syntaktisch vermittelten ,Vereinnahmung‘ Elizabeths durch Pemberley gründet (vgl. bes. Pride and Prejudice 267, 271; Holscher, 167; 172).

(6).

Werner Beyer (1965)

Werner Beyers Übersetzung des Romans zeichnet sich durch Vollständigkeit aus, die Einteilung in Kapitel und Absätze entspricht dem Ausgangstext. Ungeachtet des Bemühens, die ausgangssprachlichen Satzperioden und rhetorischen Akzentuierungen weitgehend zu bewahren, entfernt sich Beyers Übertragung mit einer Tendenz zur erläuternden Verdeutlichung von der nüchternen, klaren Syntax und dem stringenten, präzisen Stil Jane Austens. So übersetzt Beyer z. B. to leave any to itself mit eine solche zarte Verbindung dem Selbstlauf überlassen, gratitude mit Dankbarkeit für ein Entgegenkommen (Pride and Prejudice 68; Beyer, 26), easy and unaffected als ungekünstelt, ganz und gar natürlich (Pride and Prejudice 71; Beyer, 30), stare als entgeistert anstarren (Pride and Prejudice 270; Beyer, 279) und it was a spot less adorned than any they had yet visited mit es war eine Stelle, an der die natürliche Landschaft weniger elevating passion“ (Pride and Prejudice 186; Holscher 112) wird zielsprachig ausgelassen; vgl. insgesamt zum Kontext Appendix 3.5. 71 Eine Beschließerin gibt es in der Übertragung Holschers (201) auch im Haushalt der Bennets, obwohl sich deren Haushaltung beträchtlich von Darcys Anwesen Pemberley unterscheidet. 72 Die Anspielung auf Darcys Charakter (Pride and Prejudice 268: „Every disposition of the ground was good“; Holscher 168) entfällt genauso wie die – zugleich auf den Besitzer verweisenden – Adjektive noble und fine bei der Beschreibung des Parks. Dass mit nachgiebig für sweetest-tempered eine klar unangemessene Übersetzung in Mrs. Reynolds direkter Charakterisierung Darcys vorliegt, expliziert der Kontext (Pride and Prejudice 270; Holscher 171) und fügt sich insgesamt in die Reihe der lexikalischen Schwächen der zielsprachigen Textfassung ein (vgl. eine Fülle weiterer Beispiele bei Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. 86–90; vgl. ebenfalls noch Appendix 7.5.). 73 So wird etwa handsome von Holscher unterschiedlich (und damit die Intentionen des Ausgangstext unterlaufend) mit hübsch für Haus und Räume, und als gutaussehend und schön für Personen übertragen (Pride and Prejudice 267, 269; Holscher 167, 267).

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kultiviert und gepflegt erschien als auf dem schon zurückgelegten Wege (Pride and Prejudice 274; Beyer, 284).74 Die über die zu untersuchenden Längsachsen vermittelten klaren, präzisen Differenzierungen und Charakterisierungen des Ausgangstexts sind zielsprachig nicht in einer dem Ausgangstext angemessenen Konsequenz erkennbar, da der Übersetzer sich häufig für Bedeutungsvarianten entscheidet. Die Längsachse liveliness/lively wird neben lebhaft sehr unterschiedlich als Voreiligkeit (Pride and Prejudice 130; Beyer, 101), mildernder und belebender Einfluß für ease and liveliness (Pride and Prejudice 325; Beyer, 350), oder auch mit temperamentvoll (Pride and Prejudice 395; Beyer, 437) übersetzt. Die Übertragung von Mr. Bennets Warnung vor den Gefahren, die für Elizabeth in ihren lively talents liegen, als heller Verstand, deine Begabung (Pride and Prejudice 385; Beyer, 424), schränkt die argumentative Reichweite dieser Warnung ein, da damit die potentielle Entartung von lively zu wild völlig aus dem Blick gerät. Die ausgangssprachlich klar vermittelte Beziehung zwischen lively und wild ist auch in den Bedeutungsvarianten Wilde (Pride and Prejudice 81; Beyer, 41), ungezügelt (Pride and Prejudice 241; Beyer, 243) und zügellos (Pride and Prejudice 268; Beyer, 277) noch erkennbar, mit unüberlegt (Pride and Prejudice 88; Beyer, 49) oder liederlich (Pride and Prejudice 275; Beyer, 279) als Übersetzung für wild ist dies allerdings nicht mehr gewährleistet. Die ausgangssprachliche Längsachse der präzisen Differenzierung unterschiedlicher Grade von Zuneigung und die sehr zurückhaltende Verwendung des Lexems love75 werden in der Übersetzung nicht hinreichend berücksichtigt. Im Gespräch zwischen Elizabeth und Charlotte zu Beginn von Kapitel 6 werden affection, regard, attachment und preference unterschiedslos als Zuneigung übersetzt; inclination wird intensiviert zu Liebe (Pride and Prejudice 221; Beyer, 216) und Liebesleidenschaft (Pride and Prejudice 224; Beyer, 220), oder, ebenfalls unangemessen intensiviert, wird good opinion oder interest mit Zuneigung wiedergegeben (Pride and Prejudice 221, 345; Beyer, 217, 375). Insgesamt bietet die zielsprachige Textfassung Beyers viele überzeugende 74 Zugleich evoziert die Übertragung Beyers durch konsequente Eindeutschung von Titeln, Anreden, Bezeichnung von Spielen usw. immer wieder signifikant andere soziokulturelle Kontexte. 75 Dies mag exemplarisch eine Passage aus einem Dialog Elizabeths mit ihrem Vater belegen (vgl. den Kontext in Appendix 7.0. und 7.6.): „ , […] but this would be nothing if you really liked him‘. ,I do, I do like him‘, she replied, with tears in her eyes, I love him.‘ “ (Pride and Prejudice 384–85) wird übersetzt als „ , […] doch das wäre kein Hinderungsgrund, wenn du ihn wirklich liebtest.‘ ,Aber ich liebe ihn doch‘, erwiderte sie, und in ihren Augen standen Tränen. ,Ich liebe ihn‘ “ (Beyer 424). Hierzu passt auch und akzentuiert die zielsprachige Ignoranz gegenüber der zu untersuchenden Längsachse, dass nur wenige Zeilen zuvor of her attachment to Mr Darcy mit daß sie Herrn Darcy wirklich liebe (Pride and Prejudice 384; Beyer 423) wiedergegeben wird.

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lexikalische Lösungen, die freilich immer wieder von nicht notwendigen lexikalischen Dopplungen76 und Intensivierungen77 beeinträchtigt werden. Die Übersetzung von Kap. 43 präsentiert durchaus angemessene Lösungen, etwa Alles fügte sich wundervoll zusammen für Every disposition of the ground was good (Pride and Prejudice 268; Beyer, 276), womit harmonische Gegebenheit und Gestaltung in der Wahrnehmung Elizabeths gleichermaßen gemeint sind, oder die Übertragung des Attributs handsome als stattlich, womit die Korrespondenzrelation von Besitz und Besitzer punktuell mit erfasst wird, um gleich im Anschluss daran durch die Differenzierung von hübsch für die Person Darcys und ansehnlich für die Räume wieder aufgegeben zu werden (Pride and Prejudice 267, 269; Beyer, 275–77). Die Orientierung an der Syntax des Ausgangstexts zeitigt gute Übersetzungslösungen für die stilistisch-syntaktische Akzentuierung der Wirkung von Pemberley auf Elizabeth, wie die Übertragung von catch the eye mit fesseln und arrest mit festhalten exemplarisch bezeugen können (Pride and Prejudice 271; Beyer, 280).

(7).

Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977)

Ursula und Christian Grawe legen eine vollständige Übersetzung des Romans vor; die Kapiteleinteilung entspricht dem Ausgangstext, während die Unterteilung in Absätze gelegentlich geändert wurde (z. B. in Kap. 34, Pride and Prejudice 221; Grawe & Grawe, 206–07). Wiewohl der Roman vollständig übertragen wurde, fallen durch Straffung des zielsprachigen Textes immer wieder einzelne lexikalische Einheiten weg, was in Einzelfällen zu durchaus akzeptablen Übersetzungslösungen führt, zugleich jedoch den Verzicht auf eine mögliche zielsprachige Nachbildung der klar ausdifferenzierten sprachlich-stilistischen Gestaltung Jane Austens zeitigt, wie z. B. die Übersetzung Aber ich gönne nicht nur ihm alles Gute sondern auch Miss King für But my feelings are not only cordial towards him; they are even impartial towards Miss King (Pride and Prejudice 186; Grawe & Grawe, 165) zeigt. Ungeachtet einer Tendenz zu phrasenhaften und/oder saloppisierenden Formulierungen sind auch einige inhaltliche Ab76 Vgl. z. B. die Übersetzung von highly expedient als höchst zweckdienlich und angebracht oder von prevention from want als Schutz vor Mangel und Not (Pride and Prejudice 163; Beyer 143), oder present circumstances als gegenwärtige Berufs- und Vermögensverhältnisse (Pride and Prejudice 163; Beyer 142), oder amiable als gutmütig und freundlich (Pride and Prejudice 388; Beyer 428) und discretion als Wahrnehmung berechtigter Interessen (Pride and Prejudice 188; Beyer 177). 77 Exemplarisch seien genannt: Die erläuternde, intensivierende Übersetzung Mannstollheit für rage of admiration (Pride and Prejudice 258; Beyer 263) und Busenfreund für intimate friend (Pride and Prejudice 189; Beyer 178). Vgl. eine Reihe weiterer Beispiele bei Hentschel. Die Ansichten Elizabeth Bennets zu Liebe und Ehe. 93–100.

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weichungen bemerkenswert: Elizabeths I should be very sorry to be the means of making any of you unhappy wird in der Übersetzung zu habe ich nur die Wahl, einen von euch unglücklich zu machen (Pride and Prejudice 181; Grawe & Grawe, 159), oder They were all of them warm in their admiration wird zu Sie bewunderte alles aus vollem Herzen (Pride and Prejudice 267; Grawe & Grawe, 265). Die Übersetzung der Leitmotive und key words lässt die Präzision und konsequente Stringenz des Ausgangstexts vermissen, wie die untersuchten Längsachsen dokumentieren: Die Lexeme des Wortfelds Liebe werden nahezu beliebig benutzt. Regard, affection, attachment, tenderness, feelings of the heart (Pride and Prejudice 272, 221, 163, 221; Grawe & Grawe, 271, 206, 136, 206) werden unterschiedslos mit Liebe wiedergegeben, regard und affection (Pride and Prejudice 68–69) jedoch auch mit Zuneigung übersetzt (Grawe & Grawe, 23); als Übersetzung für attachment findet sich ebenfalls Beziehung (Pride and Prejudice 68; Grawe & Grawe, 23) und Zuneigung (Pride and Prejudice 225; Grawe & Grawe, 212). Mit der interpretierenden Übersetzung von in spite of his being a lover (Pride and Prejudice 357) als obwohl man ihm bei seiner Verliebtheit eine gewisse Überschwänglichkeit zugute halten musste (Grawe & Grawe, 379) wird das kluge, rationale Abwägen der prinzipiellen Unvernunft eines bloßen Verliebtseins im inneren Monolog Elizabeths den Leser/innen der Übertragung weitgehend vorenthalten. Das Leitmotiv lively/liveliness wird zumeist mit lebhaft bzw. Lebhaftigkeit wiedergegeben. Mit den Lexemen Witz und Esprit (Pride and Prejudice 388; Grawe & Grawe, 416) oder temperamentvoll (Pride and Prejudice 395; Grawe & Grawe, 424) bleiben die Übersetzer cum grano salis im Wortfeld, wohingegen die Übersetzung ausgeprägter Sinn für komische Situationen für lively, playful disposition (Pride and Prejudice 59; Grawe & Grawe, 12) das Leitmotiv kaum noch erkennen lässt. Die Übersetzung lebhafte Intelligenz für lively talents ist im Kontext der ,Warnung‘ von Mr. Bennet nicht angemessen, da lebhafte Intelligenz allein nicht zu den fatalen Konsequenzen führte, die Mr. Bennet antizipiert (Pride and Prejudice 385; Grawe & Grawe, 428): „Your lively talents would place you in the greatest danger in an unequal marriage. You could scarcely escape discredit and misery“. Das mit lively kontrastiv korrespondierende Motiv wild ist sehr unterschiedlich übersetzt, erscheint mal als vorlaut (Pride and Prejudice 88; Grawe & Grawe, 46), mal als auf die schiefe Bahn geraten (Pride and Prejudice 268; Grawe & Grawe, 267), oder auch als zügellos (Pride and Prejudice 270; Grawe & Grawe, 270); es ist damit weder als Leitmotiv noch als mögliche Entartung von lively/liveliness erkennbar. In der Übersetzung von Kapitel 43 wird die Korrespondenzbeziehung zwischen Pemberley und seinem Besitzer lexikalisch nicht so verdeutlicht wie im Ausgangstext; die Vereinnahmung Elizabeths durch Pemberley House und Pemberley Park kommt durch die Übersetzungen von catch the eye durch Blick

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freigeben und arrest durch finden nicht zum Ausdruck. Ungeachtet problematischer Straffungen, etwa durch Auflösung längerer Satzperioden, und auch ungeachtet lexikalisch unglücklicher Abweichungen, so verweist etwa die Übertragung von landlord und master als in Dorf und Haus der beste junge Herr (Pride and Prejudice 270; Grawe & Grawe, 270) auf dezidiert andere soziokulturelle Kontexte als der Ausgangstext, darf man festhalten, dass die inneren Monologe Elizabeths, wie auch der emotionale Dialog zwischen Elizabeth und Darcy in Kapitel 34 und die spätere kritische Bilanzierung des Zusammentreffens mit Darcy (in Kapitel 50) zielsprachig recht gut wiedergegeben sind, was u. a. in der weitgehenden Berücksichtigung und zielsprachigen Nachbildung der rhetorisch-stilistischen Textsignale gründet.

(8).

Helga Schulz (1997)

Die Übersetzung von Helga Schulz ist vollständig; sie bewahrt die Einteilung Jane Austens in Kapitel und Abschnitte und bemüht sich auch um eine Orientierung an den Satzperioden des Ausgangstexts. Beide zu untersuchenden Längsachsen (liveliness/lively und love) werden nicht hinreichend berücksichtigt. Lively wird durchgängig als lebhaft, lebendig übertragen, wie gleich eingangs die Übersetzung der direkten Charakterisierung Elizabeths durch die Erzählinstanz zeigt: Pride and Prejudice 59: […] she had a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in any thing ridiculous): […] sie hatte ein lebhaftes, spielerisches Naturell, das sie an allem Absurden Vergnügen finden ließ (Schulz, 15). Die Übersetzungen lebhafter Geist für lively talents (Pride and Prejudice 385; Schulz, 438) und nochmals lebhafter Geist für the liveliness of your mind (Pride and Prejudice 388; Schulz, 442) sind problematisch, werden damit doch begriffliche Differenzierungen des Ausgangstexts ignoriert; die einmalige Übertragung Munterkeit für liveliness (Pride and Prejudice 130; Schulz, 107) erscheint im Kontext nicht angemessen, zumal damit die Stringenz der Längsachse marginalisiert wird. Der Verweis auf Lydias liveliness (Pride and Prejudice 300; Schulz, 330) ermöglicht in Verbindung mit der kritisch-verständnisvollen Charakterisierung (vgl. Pride and Prejudice 241: self-willed and careless; Pride and Prejudice 258: [v]ain, ignorant, idle, and absolutely uncontrolled; Pride and Prejudice 300: […] she is very young; she has never been taught to think on serious subjects; and for the last half year, nay, for a twelvemonth, she has been given up to nothing but amusement and vanity) durch Elizabeth auch in der Übertragung die Erkenntnis, dass unkontrollierte liveliness entarten kann. Signifikant irritierender ist jedoch, dass die Übersetzung die präzise und klare Differenzierung innerhalb der Längsachse love weitgehend ignoriert. Das ausgangssprachlich bewusst sehr selten benutzte Lexem love wird durchgängig

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mit Liebe übersetzt; bedauerlicherweise werden jedoch auch affection und attachment immer wieder als Liebe übertragen (u. a. Pride and Prejudice 163, 169, 172–73, 174, 178, 218, 241, 247, 254, 345, 370, 375, 379; Schulz, 149, 156, 160, 164, 169, 220, 252, 260, 268, 388, 419, 425, 431), was die kluge konzeptuelle Stringenz der ausgangssprachlichen Längsachse zielsprachig zerstört und zugleich mehrfach geradezu grotesk unpassend erscheint, wie im Kontext der Verbindung Lydia – Wickham (Pride and Prejudice 330, 395; Schulz, 369, 450) oder als Bezeichnung für die anfänglichen Gefühle zwischen Mr. und Mrs. Bennet (Pride and Prejudice 262; Schulz, 278). Dass auch regard vereinzelt zu Liebe wird (Pride and Prejudice 272; Schulz, 291), oder das Lexem Liebe in semantischen Kontexten erscheint, wo der nüchtern-präzise Ausgangstext dieses nicht nahelegt,78 verdeutlicht die zielsprachig weitgehende lexikalische Beliebigkeit innerhalb der ausgangssprachlich klug und konsequent funktionalisierten Längsachse. Ähnlich zwiespältig ist der Eindruck, den die Übersetzung von Kap. 43 vermittelt; die Korrespondenzrelation zwischen Mr. Darcy und Pemberley ist kaum erkennbar, andererseits vermitteln Passivkonstruktionen und überzeugende lexikalische Lösungen einen guten Eindruck von der Wirkung Pemberleys auf Elizabeth, wie „wo […] Pemberley House […] sofort den Blick gefangennahm“ (Schulz, 285) als Übersetzung für „the eye was instantly caught by Pemberley House“ (Pride and Prejudice 267) exemplarisch bestätigen mag.

(9).

Andrea Ott (2003)

Andrea Otts Übersetzung ist – wie mittlerweile zu erwarten – vollständig; die Einteilung in Kapitel ist gewahrt, die Einteilung in Abschnitte nicht immer. Beide untersuchten Längsachsen sind bestenfalls in Umrissen erkennbar. Das im Ausgangstext sehr bewusst sparsam eingesetzte Lexem love (als Verb oder Substantiv) wird durchgängig mit Liebe/lieben wiedergegeben; die gesamte, klar ausdifferenzierte Längsachse von Neigung, Zuneigung und Liebe des Ausgangstexts ist zielsprachig nicht mehr erkennbar, weil affection (Pride and Prejudice 140, 159, 160, 175, 218, 225, 296, 370, 375, 382, 385, 393, 395; Ott, 158, 191, 194, 218, 293, 305, 431, 561, 569, 570, 581, 587, 599, 603)79 und attachment 78 Vgl. exemplarisch Pride and Prejudice 182; Schulz 172–73 (Charlotte): „I will not be in a hurry to believe myself his first object“ ./„Ich werde nicht leichtfertig glauben, daß ich seine erste Liebe bin“. Vgl. ebenso Pride and Prejudice 175; Schulz 163 (Jane): „[…] and if he is attached to me, no other woman can secure it“ ./„[…] und wenn er mich liebt, kann doch keine andere Frau seine Liebe erlangen“. 79 [A] marriage of true affection (Pride and Prejudice 140) wird als eine echte Liebesheirat (Ott 158) übertragen, so strong an affection wird zur Zuneigung, wohingegen nur wenige Zeilen später attachment als Liebe erscheint (Pride and Prejudice 225; Ott 305).

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(Pride and Prejudice 173, 175, 225, 241, 254, 382, 384; Ott, 213, 218, 305, 334, 335, 356, 582, 585)80 häufig unterschiedslos ebenfalls mit Liebe/lieben übertragen werden, in Einzelfällen auch like (Pride and Prejudice 222; Ott, 300) oder regard (Pride and Prejudice 272; Ott, 387). Signifikant noch fragmentarischer ist die Längsachse liveliness/lively zielsprachig bewahrt, obwohl liveliness und lively nahezu durchgängig als Lebhaftigkeit, lebhaft übersetzt werden: Dies gründet einerseits in der Entscheidung, lively talents (Pride and Prejudice 385; Ott, 586) und liveliness of [..] mind (Pride and Prejudice 388; Ott, 591) jeweils undifferenziert als Lebhaftigkeit zu übertragen, andererseits in der Tatsache, dass die ausgangssprachlich nahezu exklusiv für Elizabeth reservierte Lebhaftigkeit zielsprachig auch den Schwestern Bingley für ausgangssprachlich activity attestiert wird (Pride and Prejudice 128; Ott, 138). Die interpretatorisch wichtige Passage, in der Lydia von Elizabeth als naturally lively enough charakterisiert wird (Pride and Prejudice 300) und die damit auf die prinzipiellen Gefahren einer nicht rational kontrollierten liveliness verweist, verliert in der zielsprachigen Fassung so leicht erregbar (Ott, 438) diese Funktion. Dass dafür an anderer Stelle, kontextuell unangemessen und abgeschwächt, Lydia in direkter Charakterisierung der Erzählinstanz als lebhaft bezeichnet wird, verdeutlicht nochmals die bestenfalls fragmentarische zielsprachige Berücksichtigung der untersuchten Längsachse.81 Ungeachtet kleinerer lexikalischer Schwächen (z. B. Pride and Prejudice 270; Ott, 384: gutmütig für good-tempered, oder Pride and Prejudice 269; Ott, 383: neues Klavier für instrument) und ungeachtet der Tatsache, dass die Korrespondenzrelation zwischen Besitz und Besitzer nur ansatzweise erkennbar ist, vermag die Übersetzung von Kap. 43 insgesamt mehr zu überzeugen, was insbesondere in der lexikalisch-syntaktisch weitgehend angemessenen zielsprachigen Präsentation des überwältigenden Eindrucks gründet, den Pemberley auf Elizabeth macht.82 80 Erstaunlicherweise vermeidet die zielsprachige Fassung an einer Stelle das Lexem Liebe, obwohl der Ausgangstext es nahelegt, und überträgt violently caring als leidenschaftlich lieben (Pride and Prejudice 330; Ott 492): „She had scarcely needed her present observation to be satisfied, from the reason of things, that their elopement had been brought on by the strength of her love, rather than by his; and she would have wondered why, without violently caring for her, he chose to elope with her at all, […]“ . /„Es hatte kaum der eigenen Anschauung bedurft, um zur Gewißheit zu machen, daß der Fluchtplan mehr von ihr als von ihm ausgegangen war, und Elizabeth fragte sich schon, warum er überhaupt mit ihr durchgebrannt war, wenn er sie nicht leidenschaftlich liebte“ . 81 Vgl. im Kontext Pride and Prejudice 91; Ott 72: „Sie war sehr lebhaft, hielt schon von Natur aus viel von sich […]“/„She had high animal spirits, and a sort of natural self-consequence, […]“. 82 Vgl. exemplarisch Pride and Prejudice 267; Ott 378–79: „[…] the eye was instantly caught by Pemberley House, […] Elizabeth was delighted. She had never seen a place for which nature had done more, or where natural beauty had been so little counteracted by an awkward taste. They were all of them warm in their admiration; and at that moment she felt, that to be

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V. Ich komme zum Schluss und fasse natürlich nichts mehr zusammen: Gemessen am Ausgangstext, der zumindest in den zeitlich neueren Übersetzungen weitgehend vollständig übersetzt wird, kann bei keiner zielsprachigen Fassung in den untersuchten Längsachsen die gleiche Konsequenz und Stringenz bei der Verwendung von Leitmotiven und Schlüsselbegriffen konstatiert werden. Die Übersetzungen von Marezoll, von Schab und Holscher akzentuieren mit ihren Kürzungen primär die Liebesgeschichte von Elizabeth und Darcy, Holscher und Marezoll betonen darüber hinaus die unterhaltsamen, heiteren Seiten des Romans, indem sie Reflexionen und innere Monologe der Protagonistin zugunsten einer primär die Handlung fokussierenden zielsprachigen Vermittlung kürzen oder ganz streichen, mit gravierenden Konsequenzen für die Charakterzeichnung Elizabeths. Obwohl die deutsche Lexik alle Möglichkeiten geboten hätte, die leitmotivischen Längsachsen zielsprachig nachzubilden, wird darauf in allen Übersetzungen weitgehend verzichtet,83 genauso wie der kluge, sehr ökonomisch knappe Stil Jane Austens und ihre kompositorischen Textsignale insgesamt zu wenig Beachtung finden. Nach der historisch-deskriptiven Analyse der neun Übersetzungen, die sich über die bisher skizzierten Abweichungen hinaus alle durch weitere, teils gravierende, lexikalische, syntaktische und inhaltliche Abweichungen ,auszeichnen‘, kann ich eine gewisse Melancholie, die bisweilen an Depression grenzt, kaum verhehlen. Hoffnung und Trost spenden jedoch zwei Aspekte: Zum einen führt die historisch-deskriptive Analyse der Übersetzungen immer wieder zum Ausgangstext zurück und zeitigt in so manchem Detail ein vertieftes Verständnis der stilistisch-künstlerischen, ästhetischen Gestaltung Jane Austens, zum anderen ist das angestrebte Ziel einer Wirkungsäquivalenz von Ausgangstext und Übersetzung prinzipiell nicht erreichbar, wie es in unnachahmlicher Knappheit und Prägnanz Jos¦ Ortega y Gasset schon vor mehr als einem halben Jahrhundert formulierte: mistress of Pemberley might be something!“/„[…] wo […] sofort Pemberley House den Blick auf sich zog. […] Elizabeth war entzückt. Sie hatte noch nie einen Ort gesehen, für den die Natur so viel getan hatte oder wo natürliche Schönheit so wenig von schlechtem Geschmack beeinträchtigt worden war. Alle drei fanden es hinreißend schön, und in diesem Augenblick spürte sie, daß es doch etwas für sich haben mochte, Herrin auf Pemberley zu sein“. 83 Dies könnte – neben den üblichen Rahmenbedingungen, unter denen Übersetzungen in der Regel entstehen (Zeitmangel!) – in einer allzu engen und die Vorgaben des Ausgangstexts weitgehend marginalisierenden Orientierung am Stilideal der varietas delectat (vgl. dazu Sanders, Willy. Gutes Deutsch – besseres Deutsch. Praktische Stillehre der deutschen Gegenwartssprache. 3. Aufl. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1996. bes. 150–55) gründen.

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Das Schicksal, das Privileg und die Ehre des Menschen ist es, niemals zu erreichen, was er sich vornimmt und bloßer Anspruch, lebendige Utopie zu sein. Immer schreitet er der Niederlage entgegen und schon ehe er in den Kampf eintritt, trägt er die Wunde an der Schläfe.84

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Sanders, Willy. Gutes Deutsch – besseres Deutsch. Praktische Stillehre der deutschen Gegenwartssprache. 3. Aufl. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1996. Savory, Theodore. The Art of Translation. 2. Aufl. Boston: Jonathan Cape, 1968. Schneider, Matthew. „Card-Playing and the Marriage Gamble in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Dalhousie Review 73,1 (1993): 5–17. Schrick, Annegret. Jane Austen und die weibliche Modellbiographie des 18. Jahrhunderts: Eine strukturelle und ideologiekritische Untersuchung zur Zentralfigur bei Jane Austen. Trier : WVT, 1986. Schröder, Priska. Landschaftsbild – Wirklichkeitsbild: Zur Funktion von Natur und Landschaft im Roman von Charlotte Smith, Ann Radcliffe, Jane Austen und Charlotte und Emily BrontÚ. Marburg: Diss., 1987. Schulte, Rainer. „Translation Methodologies: Re-creative Dynamics in Literature and the Humanities.“ In: Herwig Friedl, Albert-Reiner Glaap und Klaus P. Müller (Hgg.). Literaturübersetzen: Englisch. Entwürfe, Erkenntnisse, Erfahrungen. Tübingen: Narr, 1992. 103–14. Schultze, Brigitte. „Kontexte in der literarischen Übersetzung.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 860–69. – „Kulturelle Schlüsselbegriffe und Kulturwörter in Übersetzungen fiktionaler und weiterer Textsorten.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 926–36. – „Spielarten von Intertextualität in literarischen Übersetzungen.“ In: Harald Kittel, Armin P. Frank, Norbert Greiner et al. (Hgg.). Übersetzung – Translation – Traduction: Ein Internationales Handbuch zur Übersetzungsforschung. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2004. 948–61. Searle, Alison. „The Moral Imagination: Biblical Imperatives, Narrative and Hermeneutics in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Renascence: Essays on Values in Literature 59 (2006): 17–32. Seeber, Barbara K. „A Bennet Utopia: Adapting the Father in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Persuasions On-Line 27,2 (2007): keine Seitenzählung. Snell-Hornby, Mary. Translation Studies: An Integral Approach. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 1988. Shaffer, Julie. „Familial Love, Incest, and Female Desire in Late Eighteenth- and EarlyNineteenth-Century British Women’s Novels.“ In: Criticism: A Quarterly for Literature and the Arts 41,1 (1999): 67–99. Stasio, Michael J. und Kathryn Duncan. „An Evolutionary Approach to Jane Austen: Prehistoric Preferences in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Studies in the Novel 39 (2007): 133–46. Sternberg, Claudia. „Domestic Fiction(s). Ehe und Partnerschaft bei Jane Austen, den BrontÚs und George Eliot.“ In: Hiltrud Gnüg und Renate Möhrmann (Hgg.). Frauen Literatur Geschichte: Schreibende Frauen vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart. 2. Aufl. Stuttgart/Weimar : Metzler, 1999. 92–103. Stokes, Myra. The Language of Jane Austen. Basingstoke/London: Macmillan, 1991. Stolze, Radegundis. Grundlagen der Textübersetzung. Heidelberg: Groos, 1982.

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– Übersetzungstheorien: Eine Einführung. Tübingen: Narr, 1994. Störig, Hans J. (Hg.). Das Problem des Übersetzens. Darmstadt: Groverts, 1963. Toury, Gideon. „The Nature and Role of Norms in Literary Translation.“ In: James S. Holmes, Jose Lambert und Raymond van den Broeck (Hgg.). Literature and Translation. New Perspectives in Literary Studies. Leuven: Acco, 1978. 83–100. – In Search of a Theory of Translation. Tel Aviv : Porter Institute for Poetics and Semiotics, Tel Aviv University, 1980. – „Translation, Literary Translation and Pseudotranslation.“ In: Comparative Criticism 6 (1984): 73–85. Weinsheimer, Joel. „Chance and the Hierarchy of Marriages in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: English Literary History 39,3 (1972): 404–19. White, Laura M. „Jane Austen and the Marriage Plot: Questions of Persistence.“ In: Devoney Looser (Hg.). Jane Austen and Discourses of Feminism. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1995. 71–86. Wilss, Wolfram. Übersetzungswissenschaft: Probleme und Methoden. Stuttgart: Klett, 1977. – (Hg.). Übersetzungswissenschaft. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1981. Wolpers, Theodor. „Dickens’ poetischer Realismus im Stilwandel deutscher Übersetzungen. Zu Variationen eines Großstadtbildes.“ In: Brigitte Schultze (Hg.). Die literarische Übersetzung. Fallstudien zu ihrer Kulturgeschichte. Berlin: Erich Schmidt Verlag, 1987. 178–97. Wootton, Sarah. „The Byronic in Jane Austen’s Persuasion and Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Modern Language Review 102 (2007): 26–39. Zhao, Hong. „A Relevance-Theoretic Approach to Verbal Irony : A Case Study of Ironic Utterances in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: Journal of Pragmatics: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Language Studies 43 (2011): 175–82. Zimmerman, Everett. „Pride and Prejudice in Pride and Prejudice.“ In: NineteenthCentury Fiction 23 (1968): 64–73.

Appendix: Exemplarische Textbeispiele im Kontext85 (1.0). Pride and Prejudice, 51 It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

85 Für die Übersetzung von Werner Beyer wurde durchgängig Beyer (1986) zitiert; die Ausgabe Beyer (1965) wurde verglichen und erwies sich in der Übersetzung durchgängig als mit Beyer (1986) identisch. Der unterschiedliche Satzspiegel zeitigt in Beyer (1965) andere Seitenzahlen: App. 1: 5; App. 2: 31–32; App. 3: 197; App. 4: 305–06; App. 5: 313; App. 6: 397–98 und App. 7: 480–83.

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(1.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), I, 3 Nichts ist leichter vorauszusetzen, als daß ein junger, reicher, unverheiratheter Mann vor allen andern Dingen eine Frau bedarf.

(1.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 5 Es ist eine Wahrheit, über die sich alle Welt einig ist, daß ein unbeweibter Mann von einigem Vermögen unbedingt auf der Suche nach einer Lebensgefährtin sein muß.

(1.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 9 Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Wahrheit, daß ein Junggeselle, der ein beachtliches Vermögen besitzt, zu seinem Glück nur noch einer Frau bedarf.

(1.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 5 Es ist eine weltweit anerkannte Wahrheit, daß ein alleinstehender Mann, der im Besitze eines ordentlichen Vermögens ist, nach nichts so sehr Verlangen haben muß wie nach einem Weibe.

(1.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 5 Es ist eine Binsenweisheit: ein Junggeselle, der ein gutes Vermögen besitzt, muß notwendig auch auf der Suche nach einer Frau sein.

(1.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 5 In der ganzen Welt gilt es als ausgemachte Wahrheit, daß ein begüterter Junggeselle unbedingt nach einer Frau Ausschau halten muß.

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(1.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 5 Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Tatsache, dass ein alleinstehender Mann im Besitz eines hübschen Vermögens nichts dringender braucht als eine Frau.

(1.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 5 Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Wahrheit, daß ein alleinstehender Mann, der ein beträchtliches Vermögen besitzt, einer Frau bedarf.

(1.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 5 Es ist eine allgemein anerkannte Wahrheit, daß ein Junggeselle im Besitz eines schönen Vermögens nichts dringender braucht als eine Frau.

(2.0). Pride and Prejudice, 70 Mr. Darcy had at first scarcely allowed her to be pretty ; he had looked at her without admiration at the ball; and when they next met, he looked at her only to criticise. But no sooner had he made it clear to himself and his friends that she had hardly a good feature in her face, than he began to find it was rendered uncommonly intelligent by the beautiful expression of her dark eyes. To this discovery succeeded some others equally mortifying. Though he had detected with a critical eye more than one failure of perfect symmetry in her form, he was forced to acknowledge her figure to be light and pleasing; and in spite of his asserting that her manners were not those of the fashionable world, he was caught by their easy playfulness. Of this she was perfectly unaware; – to her he was only the man who made himself agreeable no where, and who had not thought her handsome enough to dance with.

(2.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), I, 33 Darcy hatte anfänglich kaum zugeben wollen, daß sie hübsch sei, und sich auf dem Ball geweigert, ihr auch nur die geringste Höflichkeit zu erzeigen. Beim nächsten Zusammentreffen beobachtete er sie bloß in der Absicht, etwas zu tadeln an ihr zu finden; aber kaum hatte er sich selbst und seine Freundinnen davon überzeugt, daß auch nicht ein hübscher Zug in ihrem Gesicht zu entde-

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cken sei, als er die Bemerkung machte, daß es dennoch durch den schönen Ausdruck der dunklen Augen einen eigenen Reiz erhalte. Dieser Entdeckung folgten noch mehrere Andre. Obgleich sein streng richtendes Auge ihre Gestalt den Regeln der vollkommnen Symmetrie nicht ganz entsprechend gefunden, mußte er sich doch selbst gestehen, daß sie leicht und gefällig sei und ihr Benehmen, wenn auch seinem eignen Geständnis zu Folge, durchaus nicht fashionable, zog ihn doch durch eine gewisse liebenswürdige Unbefangenheit an. Von dieser Veränderung hatte sie indessen keine Ahnung; sie sah in ihm nur den Mann, der sich nirgends beliebt zu machen wußte, und dem sie nicht hübsch genug erschienen war, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 28 Anfangs wollte Darcy sie nicht einmal als hübsch gelten lassen; auf dem Ball hatte er sie voller Gleichgültigkeit angeschaut; und als sie sich danach wieder trafen, hatten seine Augen sie höchstens kritisch gestreift. Aber kaum war er sich darüber im Klaren – und hatte er es seinen Freunden klargemacht –, daß sie ein fast völlig uninteressantes Gesicht besaß, als er entdeckte, daß dieses Gesicht ungewöhnlich intelligente Züge trug, die von dem wunderbaren Ausdruck der dunklen Augen noch unterstrichen wurden. Dieser Entdeckung folgten andere, ähnlich verdrießlich. Obgleich sein kritisches Auge mehr als ein Merkmal vermißt zu haben glaubte, das für eine vollkommene Körperharmonie unerläßlich war, mußte er sich jetzt eingestehen, daß ihre Figur schlank und ansprechend war ; und wo er früher ihr ungewandtes Auftreten betont hatte, wurde er jetzt durch die natürliche Heiterkeit ihres Wesens angezogen. Aber hiervon wußte sie nichts; für sie war er ein Mann, der sich überall unbeliebt machte und der sie nicht für hübsch genug erachtet hatte, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 30–31 Mr. Darcy hatte ihr im Anfang nicht einmal ein gewisses Maß von Schönheit zugestanden, sie auf dem Ball ohne jede Bewunderung betrachtet und bei einer späteren Begegnung nur kritisch gemustert. Aber sobald er sich und seinen Freunden erklärt hatte, ihr Gesicht weise kaum einen gefälligen Zug auf, kam ihm zum Bewußtsein, daß es durch den schönen Ausdruck ihrer dunklen Augen unge/wöhnlich gescheit wirke. Auf diese Entdeckung folgten verschiedene andere, die ihn ebenso beschämten. Obgleich sein kritisches Auge mehr als eine Unregelmäßigkeit ihrer Gestalt entdeckt hatte, mußte er bekennen, daß sie leicht und beschwingt war ; und obgleich er sich immer wieder vor Augen führte, daß

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ihre Lebensart nicht in die große Welt paßte, nahm ihn ihre spielerische Leichtigkeit gefangen. Von all dem hatte sie nicht die geringste Ahnung; für sie war er nur der Mann, der sich nirgendwo beliebt machte und sie nicht schön gefunden hatte, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 34–35 Mr. Darcy hatte ihr erst kaum eine gewisse Hübschheit zugestanden und sie an jenem Ballabend ohne die geringste Bewunderung gesehen. Als er sie/wieder traf, blickte er nur mit kritischem Auge auf sie. Aber kaum hatte er es sich und seinen Freunden klargemacht, daß ihr Gesicht fast keinen guten Zug aufweise, als er doch herausfand, der schöne Ausdruck ihrer dunklen Augen lasse es ungewöhnlich intelligent erscheinen. Dieser Entdeckung schlossen noch einige weitere, ebenso verletzende an. Obwohl er mit kritischem Blick mehr als einen Fehler in der vollkommenen Symmetrie ihrer Gestalt entdeckte, mußte er doch anerkennen, daß ihre Erscheinung licht und gefällig war. Und trotz seiner Behauptung, ihr Gebaren sei nicht das der großen Welt, machte doch ihr natürlicher Mutwille Eindruck auf ihn. Von alledem hatte sie nicht die geringste Ahnung: für sie war er nur der Mensch, den keiner mochte und der sie nicht schön genug fand, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 21 Auslassung/Streichung/Kürzung Darcy war für sie nur der Mann, der sich nirgends freundlich zeigte, und der sie nicht hübsch genug gefunden hatte, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 28 Herr Darcy hatte sie zuerst kaum hübsch finden wollen; er hatte sie auf dem Ball ohne jedes Gefühl der Bewunderung betrachtet; und als sie sich das nächste Mal begegneten, blickte er sie nur an, um Fehler an ihr zu finden. Doch kaum hatte er sich selbst und seinen Freunden beredt auseinandergesetzt, daß sie fast keinen ansprechenden Zug in ihrem Gesicht habe, als er zu merken begann, wie ihre schönen dunklen Augen ihr Gesicht ungewöhnlich intelligent erscheinen ließen. Dieser Entdeckung folgten weitere, die für ihn nicht weniger blamabel waren. Obgleich sein kritisches Auge an ihrer Gestalt mehr als einen Verstoß gegen die vollkommene Symmetrie festgestellt hatte, mußte er nun doch anerkennen, daß

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ihre Figur zierlich und angenehm war. Und wenn er noch so sehr betonte, daß ihre Umgangsformen nicht die der eleganten Welt waren, so wurde er doch durch ihre natürliche Ungezwungenheit beeindruckt. Von alldem hatte sie nicht die geringste Ahnung; für sie war er nur der Mann, der sich nirgends beliebt machte und der sie nicht für hübsch genug gehalten hatte, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(2.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 27–28 Mr. Darcy hatte zu Anfang nur mühsam zugeben wollen, dass sie hübsch sei; auf dem Ball hatte sie keinen/großen Eindruck auf ihn gemacht, und als sie sich das nächste Mal trafen, war er nur auf Kritik an ihr aus. Aber kaum hatte er sich selbst und seine Freunde davon überzeugt, wie wenig bemerkenswert ihr Gesicht war, da begann er zu entdecken, dass es durch den strahlenden Ausdruck ihrer dunklen Augen ungewöhnlich intelligent erschien. Dieser Entdeckung folgten einige andere, ähnlich demütigende. Obgleich er nämlich mit kritischem Auge mehr als eine Unregelmäßigkeit in dem Ebenmaß ihrer Züge festgestellt hatte, musste er zugeben, dass ihre Figur schlank und graziös war ; und trotz seiner Behauptung, ihr Benehmen sei nicht das der großen Welt, zog ihn ihre liebenswürdige Ungezwungenheit an. Von all dem merkte sie gar nichts; für sie war er nur der Mann, der überall Anstoß erregte und sie zum Tanzen nicht hübsch genug fand.

(2.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 29 Mr. Darcy hatte ihr anfangs kaum zugestanden, hübsch zu sein; er hatte sie bei dem Ball ohne jede Bewunderung angesehen, und als sie das nächste Mal zusammentrafen, betrachtete er sie nur, um sie zu kritisieren. Aber gerade hatte er sich und seinen Freunden klargemacht, daß beinahe kein erfreulicher Zug in ihrem Gesicht zu finden sei, da stellte er auch schon fest, daß der schöne Ausdruck ihrer dunklen Augen ihr Antlitz ungewöhnlich intelligent erscheinen ließ. Dieser Entdeckung folgten einige andere, die gleichermaßen ärgerlich waren. Obgleich er mit kritischem Auge mehr als einen Defekt in der Symmetrie ihrer Figur sah, mußte er anerkennen, daß ihre Gestalt leicht und gefällig war ; und wenn er auch behauptete, daß ihre Umgangsformen nicht die der vornehmen Welt waren, so wurde er doch gefangengenommen von ihrem spielerischen Mutwillen. Dessen war sie sich jedoch keineswegs bewußt; für sie war er nur der Mann, der sich nirgends beliebt machte und der sie nicht für schön genug befunden hatte, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

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(2.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 37 Mr. Darcy hatte anfangs kaum zugeben wollen, daß sie hübsch sei; auf dem Ball hatte er sie ohne jedes Wohlwollen betrachtet; und als sie das nächste Mal aufeinandertrafen, sah er sie nur an, um sie zu kritisieren. Doch kaum hatte er sich und seinen Freunden klargemacht, daß ihr Gesicht alles andere als ebenmäßig sei, fand er schon, daß es durch den schönen Ausdruck ihrer dunklen Augen ungewöhnlich klug wirkte. Auf diese Entdeckung folgten mehrere ähnlich demütigende. Obwohl er mit kritischem Blick festgestellt hatte, daß ihrer Gestalt zur vollkommenen Harmonie einiges fehlte, mußte er notgedrungen anerkennen, daß ihre Figur zart und gefällig war ; und trotz seiner Behauptung, ihre Manieren entsprächen nicht denen der vornehmen Welt, war er von ihrer Unbefangenheit und Munterkeit angetan. Von alledem hatte sie keine Ahnung – für sie war er nur der Mann, der sich nirgendwo beliebt machte und der sie nicht hübsch genug fand, um mit ihr zu tanzen.

(3.0). Pride and Prejudice, 186 ,I am now convinced, my dear aunt, that I have never been much in love; for had I really experienced that pure and elevating passion, I should at present detest his very name, and wish him all manner of evil. But my feelings are not only cordial towards him; they are even impartial towards Miss King. I cannot find out that I hate her at all, or that I am in the least unwilling to think her a very good sort of girl. There can be no love in all this‘.

(3.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), II, 27–28 „Ich bin fest überzeugt, ihn nicht wahrhaft geliebt zu haben: denn wäre dies der Fall gewesen, würde ich jetzt seinen Namen nicht mit Ruhe aussprechen hören; und/ihm nicht alles Gute wünschen können. Aber mein Gefühl für ihn ist nicht allein herzlich geblieben, auch Miß King wird mit unpartheiischen Blicken von mir beurtheilt, und für ein harmloses, gutmüthiges Geschöpf erklärt, gegen welches ich keinen Groll hege“.

(3.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 161–62 Ich weiß jetzt genau, meine liebste Tante, daß ich nicht sehr verliebt gewesen sein kann. Denn hätte wirklich jenes erhebende und reine Gefühl von mir Besitz

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genommen, dann würde ich heute seinen Namen verabscheuen und ihm alles erdenkliche Schlechte wünschen. Aber so wie es ist, fühle ich mich immer noch gut Freund/mit ihm und habe sogar nichts gegen Miß King. Ich könnte sie nicht hassen, selbst wenn ich es versuchte; ich bin im Gegenteil überzeugt, daß sie ein sehr nettes junges Mädchen ist. Liebe kann es also bei mir nicht gewesen sein.

(3.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 164 Ich bin überzeugt, meine liebe Tante, daß ich nicht sehr verliebt gewesen bin; denn hätte ich wirklich dieses reine und erhebende Gefühl empfunden, so würde ich jetzt sogar seinen Namen verabscheuen und ihm sicherlich nur Böses wünschen. Aber meine Gefühle sind ihm gegenüber nicht nur herzlich, sondern sogar Miß King gegenüber gleichgültig. Ich hasse sie nicht im geringsten und halte sie bereitwilligst für ein sehr anständiges Mädchen. Demnach scheint es doch wohl keine Liebe gewesen zu sein.

(3.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 225 Ich bin nun überzeugt, meine liebe Tante, daß ich niemals ernsthaft verliebt war ; denn hätte ich diese reine und erhebende Leidenschaft erfahren, so müßte ich jetzt seinen Namen hassen und ihm alles mögliche Übel wünschen. Doch meine Empfindungen sind nicht nur ihm gegenüber die herzlichsten, sondern ich sehe auch Miss King völlig unparteiisch. Ich kann durchaus keine Gefühle des Hasses gegen sie in mir entdecken, noch wehre ich mich, sie für ein recht nettes Mädchen zu halten. Also kann es sich nicht um Liebe gehandelt haben.

(3.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 112 Ich bin nun überzeugt, liebe Tante, […] daß ich niemals sehr verliebt war, denn dann würde ich im Augenblick sogar seinen Namen verabscheuen und ihm alles Übel der Welt wünschen. Aber meine Gefühle sind nicht nur herzlich ihm gegenüber, sondern auch Miss King grolle ich nicht. Ich kann mich nicht dabei ertappen, daß ich sie hasse oder daß ich nicht gut von ihr denke. Es kann sich also gar nicht um Liebe gehandelt haben.

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(3.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 173 Ich bin jetzt davon überzeugt, liebe Tante, daß ich nie sehr verliebt in ihn war ; denn hätte ich wirklich jene reine und erhebende Leidenschaft empfunden, dann würde ich jetzt schon seinen Namen verabscheuen und ihm alles Böse wünschen. Aber meine Gefühle sind nicht nur ihm gegenüber durchaus wohlwollend, sie sind sogar Fräulein King gegenüber völlig unbefangen. Ich kann nicht finden, daß ich auch nur die geringste Abneigung gegen sie empfände oder Hemmungen hätte, sie als ein sehr anständiges Mädchen anzuerkennen. Es kann demnach meinerseits keinerlei Liebe im Spiel sein.

(3.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 172 Ich bin jetzt überzeugt, liebe Tante, dass ich ihn nie richtig geliebt habe, denn wenn es eine echte Leidenschaft gewesen wäre, würde ich jetzt schon seinen bloßen Namen verabscheuen und ihm alles Schlechte wünschen. Aber ich gönne nicht nur ihm alles Gute, sondern auch Miss King. Es gelingt mir weder, sie zu hassen, noch abzustreiten, dass sie ein sehr nettes Mädchen ist. Also kann man von wahrer Liebe in meinem Fall wohl nicht sprechen.

(3.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 179 Ich bin nun überzeugt, meine liebe Tante, daß ich niemals sehr verliebt gewesen bin, denn hätte ich wirklich diese reine und erhebende Leidenschaft erlebt, würde ich im Augenblick selbst seinen Namen verabscheuen und ihm jegliche Art von Übel wünschen. Aber meine Gefühle sind nicht nur freundlich ihm gegenüber, sie sind auch gegenüber Miss King völlig unvoreingenommen. Ich kann keineswegs feststellen, daß ich sie hasse oder daß ich mindesten abgeneigt bin, sie für ein sehr gutes Mädchen zu halten. In all dem kann keine Liebe sein.

(3.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 239 Ich bin jetzt überzeugt, liebe Tante, daß ich nie sehr verliebt war ; denn hätte ich dieses reine, erhebende, leidenschaftliche Gefühl wirklich empfunden, wäre mir jetzt schon sein Name zuwider und ich würde ihm alles Übel an den Hals wünschen. Aber meine Gefühle sind nicht nur herzlich ihm gegenüber, sondern auch unbefangen gegenüber Miss King. Ich finde in mir keinerlei Haß auf sie und

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weigere mich keineswegs, sie für ein nettes Mädchen zu halten. Da kann keine Liebe im Spiel sein.

(4.0). Pride and Prejudice, 262 Had Elizabeth’s opinion been all drawn from her own family, she could not have formed a very pleasing picture of conjugal felicity or domestic comfort. Her father captivated by youth and beauty, and that appearance of good humour, which youth and beauty generally give, had married a woman whose weak understanding and illiberal mind, had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her. Respect, esteem, and confidence, had vanished for ever; and all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown. […] Elizabeth, however, had never been blind to the impropriety of her father’s behavior as a husband. She had always seen it with pain; but respecting his abilities, and grateful for his affectionate treatment of herself, she endeavoured to forget what she could not overlook, and to banish from her thoughts that continual breach of conjugal obligation and decorum which, in exposing his wife to the contempt of her own children, was so highly reprehensible. But she had never felt so strongly as now, the disadvantages which must attend the children of so unsuitable a marriage, nor ever been so fully aware of the evils arising from so ill-judged a direction of talents; talents which rightly used, might at least have preserved the respectability of his daughters, even if incapable of enlarging the mind of his wife.

(4.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), II, 170–72 Hätte Elisabeth sich nach dem, was sie in der eignen Familie sah, ein Bild ähnlicher Glückseligkeit und häuslichen Lebensgenusses machen wollen, würde sie ein sehr trauriges erhalten haben. Ihr Vater hatte, durch Jugend und Schönheit und die damit so häufig verbundene heitere Gemüthsstimmung gefesselt, ein Mädchen geheirathet, dessen schwacher Verstand und leichtfertiger Sinn sehr bald jede Spur von Liebe in ihm erlöschen mußten. Achtung, Vertrauen und Neigung waren für immer verschwunden, so wie alle Aussicht auf häusliche Glückseligkeit. […]/Elisabeth war nie blind für die Fehler ihrer Eltern gewesen, und hatte es schmerzlich gefühlt, wie unrecht ihr Vater als Ehemann gehandelt, wie Vieles er schlimmer gemacht, wie Manches er hätte ändern können. Doch aus Achtung für seine mannigfachen vortrefflichen Eigenschaften, und aus Dankbarkeit für die ihr von frühester Jugend an bezeigte Liebe suchte sie zu vergessen, was sie nicht zu übersehen vermochte, und so wenig wie

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möglich an das zu denken, was zu ändern nicht in ihrer Macht stand. Doch noch nie waren ihr die Nachtheile, die den Kindern aus einer so unpassenden Ehe nothwendig entspringen müssen, so deutlich erschienen als gerade jetzt, wo Uebereinstimmung der Gesinnungen mehr als je erfordert wurden, um ihre Erziehung zu vollenden. Sie sah dieses wichtige Werk den Händen einer Mutter überlassen, die weder hinsichtlich des Verstandes noch des Gefühls einem solchen Geschäfft gewachsen war ;/während der Vater, mit allen Hülfsmitteln und Talenten dazu ausgestattet, sich demselben aus Egoismus und Bequemlichkeit entzog, […].

(4.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 249–50 Hätte Elisabeth nur ihre eigene Familie als Vorbild gehabt, ihre Vorstellungen von ehelichem und häuslichem Glück wären nicht gerade ermunternd gewesen. Ihr Vater hatte sich durch Jugend und Schönheit und den Anschein eines frohen Gemüts, den Jugend und Schönheit meistens verleihen, gefangennehmen lassen und hatte eine Frau geheiratet, deren beschränkter und kleinlicher Verstand sehr bald schon jeder wirklichen Liebe ein Ende bereitete. Achtung, Hochschätzung, Vertrauen waren bald auf immer denselben Weg gegangen; und alle seine Aussichten auf eine einigermaßen glückliche Ehe wurden so über den Haufen geworfen. […]/[…] Elisabeth war sich jedoch schon immer klar darüber gewesen, wie wenig auch ihr Vater dem Ideal eines Ehemannes entsprach. Diese Erkenntnis betrübte sie tief; aber sie achtete seine vielen anderen guten Eigenschaften und war ihm dankbar für die Liebe, die er besonders ihr zugewandt hatte. Sie versuchte, darüber alles das zu vergessen, was sie nicht übersehen konnte –, nicht zum wenigsten die Angewohnheit, seine Frau vor seinen Kindern bloßzustellen und sie ihrem Spott auszusetzen. Indessen hatte sie sich nie zuvor so sehr Gedanken darüber gemacht, welch einen Nachteil eine so schlechte Ehe für die Kinder mit sich bringen mußte, und nie war es ihr je so deutlich zu Bewußtsein gekommen, daß ihr Vater mit all seinen Fähigkeiten wenigstens seine Töchter richtig für das Leben hätte vorbereiten können, wenn es ihm auch nicht gelungen war, einen guten Einfluß auf seine Frau auszuüben.

(4.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 250–51 Wären Elisabeths Anschauungen dem Vorbild ihrer eigenen Familie entsprungen, so hätte sie kein verlockendes Bild von ehelichem Glück und häuslicher Zufriedenheit gewinnen können. Bezaubert von Jugend, Schönheit, Heiterkeit hatte ihr Vater eine Frau geheiratet, deren Engstirnigkeit und geringe Her-

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zensbildung schon bald nach der Hochzeit alle wirkliche Liebe ersterben ließ. Achtung, Verehrung, Vertrauen und jeder Traum von häuslichem Glück waren schnell dahin. […]/[…] Elisabeth war nie blind gewesen für das unschöne Verhalten ihres Vaters als Ehemann. Aber da sie für seine Fähigkeiten große Achtung empfand und ihm für seine Liebe dankbar war, versuchte sie zu vergessen, was nicht zu übersehen war, und den Gedanken an den tadelnswerten fortgesetzten Bruch ehelicher Pflichten und Anstandsformen zu verscheuchen, der seine Frau der Verachtung ihrer eigenen Kinder preisgab. Sie hatte zuvor weder stark die Nachteile empfunden, die den Kindern aus einer so unpassenden Heirat erwachsen, noch die Folgen erkannt, die aus einer so schlechten Anwendung von Geistesgaben entstehen. Mit seinen Talenten hätte er bei einiger Mühe seiner Frau die Ehrfurcht ihrer Töchter erhalten können, wenn es ihm auch nicht gelungen wäre, den Horizont seiner Frau zu erweitern.

(4.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 345–47 Wäre Elizabeth imstande gewesen, ihre Meinung über die eigene Familie aufzuzeichnen, so hätte sie kein sehr erfreuliches Bild ehelichen Glückes und häuslicher Behaglichkeit erstellen können. Ihr Vater hatte, gefesselt/von Jugend und Schönheit und dem Anschein von Gutartigkeit, den Jugend und Schönheit gewöhnlich verleihen, eine Frau geheiratet, deren schwacher Verstand und karger Geist sehr bald im Laufe der Ehe aller wirklichen Neigung zu ihr ein Ende setzten. Achtung, Ehrerbietung und Vertrauen waren dahin für immer und alle seine Hoffnungen auf häusliches Glück vernichtet. […] Elizabeth war jedoch der Tatsache nie blind gegenübergestanden, daß ihr Vater sich als Gatte völlig unrichtig benahm. Sie hatte es immer mit Kummer gesehen; doch voller Respekt vor seinen geistigen Fähigkeiten und dankbar für sein liebevolles Verhalten zu ihr war sie bestrebt gewesen, zu vergessen, was nicht übersehen werden konnte, und aus ihren/Gedanken den dauernden Bruch der ehelichen Verpflichtung und Schicklichkeit zu verbannen, der, da hierdurch die Gattin der Verachtung der eigenen Kinder ausgesetzt wurde, über die Maßen tadelnswert war. Doch nie zuvor hatte sie so deutlich die Nachteile erkannt, die den Kindern aus einer so haltlosen Ehe erwachsen mußten, noch jemals so klar das Übel gesehen, das falsch geleitete Talente hervorbringen, Talente, die, richtig genützt, wenigstens seinen Töchtern allgemeine Achtung erworben hätten, wenn sie schon den Geist seiner Frau nicht hätten erhellen können.

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(4.5). Helmut Holscher (1951) Auslassung/Streichung

(4.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 268–69 Wären Elisabeths Ansichten nur von den in der eigenen Familie gemachten Erfahrungen abhängig gewesen, dann hätte sie sich kein sehr erfreuliches Bild von ehelichem Glück oder häuslichem Frieden machen können. Ihr Vater hatte sich von Jugend, Schönheit und dem Anschein einer ausgeglichenen Gemütsverfassung bestricken lassen, den Jugend und Schönheit im allgemeinen vortäuschen, und hatte eine Frau geheiratet, deren schwacher Verstand und beschränkter Gesichtskreis schon in den ersten Ehejahren alle wirkliche Zuneigung zu ihr zum Erlöschen gebracht hatte. Ehrerbietung, Achtung und Vertrauen waren für immer dahin, und alle seine Ideale von häuslichem Glück hatten Schiffbruch erlitten. […]/[…] Gegenüber diesem ungehörigen Verhalten ihres Vaters in seiner Eigenschaft als Ehemann war Elisabeth nie blind gewesen. Es hatte sie immer peinlich berührt; doch da sie seine geistigen Anlagen achtete und für die Liebe, die er ihr entgegenbrachte, dankbar war, hatte sie sich bemüht, das zu vergessen, was sie nicht übersehen konnte, und aus ihren Gedankengängen sein höchst verwerfliches Verhalten zu verbannen, dessen er sich schuldig machte, wenn er unter Nichtachtung ehelicher Verpflichtung und ehelichen Anstands seine Frau dauernd der Verachtung ihrer Kinder preisgab. Doch nie zuvor hatte sie die Nachteile so stark gefühlt, die Kindern aus einer so unangemessenen Ehe erwachsen mußten; noch nie war sie sich der üblen Folgen so bewußt gewesen, die eine so schlechte Anwendung guter Anlagen nach sich zog – Anlagen, die, wenn sie in der rechten Weise gebraucht worden wären, wenigstens das Ansehen der Töchter gesichert hätten, wenn sie schon an der Beschränktheit der Frau nichts ändern konnten.

(4.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 269–70 Hätte Elizabeth ihre Meinungen nur im Schoß ihrer eigenen Familie gebildet, dann hätten sie kein sehr überzeugendes Bild von ehelichem Glück und häuslicher Behaglichkeit ergeben. Umgarnt von Jugend und Schönheit und dem Anschein von Heiterkeit, den Jugend und Schönheit meist ausstrahlen, hatte ihr Vater eine Frau geheiratet, deren geringe Intelligenz und Engstirnigkeit schon bald in der Ehe jedem tieferen Gefühl für sie ein Ende bereitet hatte. Achtung, Wertschätzung und Vertrauen waren ein für alle Mal dahin, und alle seine

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Vorstellungen von häuslichem Glück waren über den Haufen geworfen. […] Elizabeth war allerdings nie blind gegenüber dem ungehörigen Verhalten ihres Vaters als Ehemann gewesen. Es hatte ihr immer wehgetan, aber weil sie seine Intelligenz schätzte und dankbar für sein herzliches Verhältnis zu ihr war, versuchte sie zu vergessen, was sie nicht übersehen konnte, und aus ihren Gedanken den ständigen Bruch ehelicher Schuldigkeit und ehelichen Anstandes zu verbannen, dessen er sich dadurch schuldig machte, dass er seine Frau/der Verachtung ihrer eigenen Kinder aussetzte. Aber noch nie hatte sie die Nachteile so stark empfunden, die den Kindern aus einer so ungleichen Ehe erwuchsen, und noch nie waren ihr die Übel so bewusst, die daraus entstanden, dass ihr Vater seine Talente verschleuderte, Talente, die richtig angewandt wenigstens den guten Ruf seiner Töchter hätten erhalten können, wenn sie schon nicht die Einsicht seiner Frau förderten.

(4.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 278–79 Hätte Elizabeth ihre Ansichten allein von ihrer eigenen Familie hergeleitet, so hätte sie kein sehr erfreuliches Bild von ehelichem Glück und häuslicher Behaglichkeit entwerfen können. Ihr Vater hatte, gefangengenommen von Jugend und Schönheit und diesem Anschein guter Stimmung, den Jugend und Schönheit gewöhnlich vermitteln, eine Frau geheiratet, deren schwacher Verstand und engstirniges Denken und Fühlen in ihrer Ehe schon sehr zeitig aller wirklichen Liebe zu ihr ein Ende gesetzt hatten. Respekt, Wertschätzung und Vertrauen waren für immer dahin gewesen und alle seine Vorstellungen von häuslichem Glück vernichtet. […] Elizabeth war jedoch niemals blind gewesen gegenüber der Ungehörigkeit des Verhaltens ihres Vaters als Gatte. Sie hatte es stets voll Kummer bemerkt; doch in Anbetracht seiner Fähigkeiten und dankbar dafür, wie liebevoll er sie selbst behandelte, bemühte sie sich zu vergessen, worüber sie nicht hinwegsehen konnte, und aus ihren Gedanken diesen ständigen Bruch von Pflicht und Anstand in der Ehe ihrer Eltern zu verbannen – der, da er die Gattin der Verachtung ihrer eigenen Kinder aussetzte,/so sehr verwerflich war. Doch hatte sie nie die Nachteile, die die Kinder einer so unharmonischen Ehe unvermeidlich zu fühlen bekommen, so stark empfunden wie jetzt; auch war sie sich niemals zuvor so vollkommen der Übel bewußt gewesen, die aus einer so unbedachten Lenkung der Fähigkeiten entstanden – Fähigkeiten, die, richtig genutzt, zumindest das Ansehen seiner Töchter gewahrt haben mochten, auch wenn sie den Gesichtskreis seiner Gattin nicht erweitern konnten.

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(4.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 369–70 Hätte sich Elizabeth ihre Meinung nur anhand der eigenen Familie gebildet, wäre ihre Vorstellung von ehelichem Glück und häuslichem Behagen wenig erfreulich ausgefallen. Der Vater hatte, verführt von Jugend, Schönheit und einem scheinbar heiteren Gemüt, wie es Jugend und Schönheit meist mit sich bringen, eine Frau geheiratet, deren mäßiger Verstand und kleinliches Denken aller echten Zuneigung sehr bald ein Ende bereitet hatten. Ehrerbietung, Achtung und Vertrauen waren für immer dahin und alle Aussichten auf häusliches Glück zerstört. […] Doch Elizabeth war nie blind dafür gewesen,/wie unzulänglich sich ihr Vater als Ehemann benahm. Dies hatte sie immer geschmerzt, aber da sie seine Geistesgaben schätzte und dankbar war für seine Liebe zu ihr, versuchte sie zu vergessen, was sie nicht übersehen konnte, und aus ihren Gedanken zu verbannen, daß er ständig den ehelichen Anstand verletzte und seine Frau vor den Kindern lächerlich machte. Doch noch nie hatte sie die Nachteile, die den Kindern aus einer so unausgewogenen Ehe erwachsen mußten, so deutlich empfunden wie jetzt, noch nie war sie sich der üblen Folgen so bewußt gewesen, die aus derart irregeleiteten Fähigkeiten erwachsen mußten, Fähigkeiten, die, richtig eingesetzt, zumindest das Ansehen seiner Töchter hätten retten können, wenn auch nicht den Verstand seiner Frau schärfen.

(5.0). Pride and Prejudice, 267 The housekeeper came; a respectable-looking, elderly woman, much less fine, and more civil, than she had any notion of finding her.

(5.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), III, 5 Die Haushälterin, eine ältliche, Achtung einflößende Frau, erschien, und führte die Fremden mit vieler Höflichkeit umher.

(5.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 255 Dann kam die Haushälterin, eine würdig aussehende ältere Frau, die viel weniger vornehm tat und viel freundlicher war, als Elisabeth es sich vorgestellt hatte.

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(5.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 257 Die Haushälterin war eine ältere, würdige Frau, von weniger großartigem und viel höflicherem Auftreten, als man erwartet hatte.

(5.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 355 Die Haushälterin kam – eine ehrbar aussehende, ältere Frau, weit weniger elegant und viel höflicher, als sie sich vorgestellt hatte.

(5.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 168 Die Beschließerin kam, eine achtbar aussehende, ältliche Frau, sehr viel weniger vornehm und viel höflicher, als sie erwartet hatten.

(5.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 275–76 Die Haushälterin erschien, eine ehrbar aussehende ältere Frau, doch viel weniger hochnäsig und viel umgäng/licher, als Elisabeth erwartet hätte.

(5.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 276 Die Haushälterin kam, eine respekterheischende ältere Dame, viel weniger vornehm, aber viel höflicher, als Elizabeth sie sich vorgestellt hatte.

(5.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 286 Die Haushälterin kam, eine respektabel aussehende ältere Frau, viel weniger elegant und höflicher, als sie sich hier hatte vorstellen können.

(5.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 379 Die Haushälterin erschien, eine ehrbar aussehende ältere Frau, weniger elegant und viel höflicher, als Elizabeth vermutet hätte.

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(6.0). Pride and Prejudice, 325 What a triumph for him, as she often thought, could he know that the proposals which she had proudly spurned only four months ago, would now have been gladly and gratefully received! He was as generous, she doubted not, as the most generous of his sex. But while he was mortal, there must be a triumph. She began now to comprehend that he was exactly the man, who, in disposition and talents, would most suit her. His understanding and temper, though unlike her own, would have answered all her wishes. It was an union that must have been to the advantage of both; by her ease and liveliness, his mind might have been softened, his manners improved, and from his judgment, information, and knowledge of the world, she must have received benefit of greater importance. But no such happy marriage could now teach the admiring multitude what connubial felicity really was. An union of a different tendency, and precluding the possibility of the other, was soon to be formed in their family. How Wickham and Lydia were to be supported in tolerable independence, she could not imagine. But how little of permanent happiness could belong to a couple who were only brought together because their passions were stronger than their virtue, she could easily conjecture.

(6.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), III, 105–06 Welch ein Triumph für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte wie meine Gesinnungen und Gefühle sich seit den letzten 4 Monaten verändert haben! Sie hielt ihn für edel, ja für den Edelsten seines Geschlechtes; doch als Sterblichen eines solchen Triumphs fähig. Je mehr und je länger sie über ihn und seinen Charakter nachdachte, desto gewisser erschien es ihr, daß er unter allen Männern auf dem ganzen Erdenrund derjenige war, der ihr am Meisten zusagte. Die Vereinigung ihrer beiden verschiedenartigen Charaktere und Temperamente würde eine vortreffliche Mischung hervorbringen, ihre Lebhaftigkeit/und Leichtigkeit sein ernstes Wesen mildern; und seine Menschen- und Weltkenntnis, so wie seine höhere Bildung und ruhige Besonnenheit ihr zum größten Nutzen gereichen. Doch der staunenden Menge sollte durch diese Verbindung kein Beispiel ehelicher Glückseligkeit aufgestellt werden, und nur ein sehr verschiedenes, dem vernünftigen Theil der Familie keineswegs Heil verkündendes Bündniß ward in derselben erwartet. Wie Wickham und Lydia im Stande sein würden, eine beschränkte Lage zu ertragen, konnte sie sich nicht vorstellen; wohl aber von welcher kurzer Dauer

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eine Neigung sein würde, die sich nur auf flüchtiges Wohlgefallen, nicht auf wahre Achtung gründete.

(6.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 323–24 Wie würde er triumphieren, dachte sie bisweilen, wenn er wüßte, daß der Antrag, den sie vor kaum vier Monaten so verächtlich abgewiesen hatte, jetzt mit aller Dankbarkeit und Liebe erhört werden würde! Sie fing jetzt an zu verstehen, daß er gerade der Mann war, der nach Charakter und Veranlagung am besten zu/ihr gepaßt hätte. So sehr sie sich auch beide in ihrem Temperament und ihrer ganzen Wesensart voneinander unterschieden, so sehr hätten sie sich auch ergänzt. Es wäre eine Verbindung geworden, die beiden Gewinn gebracht hätte: ihre leichte und natürliche Art hätte seine Strenge gemildert, seine Ecken und Kanten abgeschliffen, und sie hätte von seiner Bildung, Einsicht und Lebenserfahrenheit den größten Gewinn ziehen können. Aber so, wie die Dinge jetzt lagen, würden sie niemals den Leuten zeigen dürfen, wie eine wirklich glückliche Ehe aussieht. Eine andere Ehe, auf einer ganz anderen Grundlage aufgebaut, würde nun bald in ihrer Familie geschlossen werden und jede Hoffnung für sie zunichte machen. Wie Wickham und Lydia jemals einigermaßen ohne Geldsorgen würden leben können, wußte sie nicht. Aber sie konnte sich leicht vorstellen, wie wenig Glück für ein Paar zu erwarten war, das nur zueinander gefunden hatte, weil triebhafte Leidenschaft über die Tugend den Sieg davontrug. –

(6.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 318 Welch ein Triumph mußte ihm die Gewißheit bedeuten, so dachte sie oft, daß der Antrag, den sie noch vor vier Monaten so stolz zurückgewiesen hatte, jetzt nur zu gern und dankbar angenommen worden wäre! Er war zweifellos so großzügig wie der großzügigste seines Geschlechtes; aber da er auch sterblich war, mußte er Triumph empfinden. Jetzt endlich erkannte sie, daß gerade er der Mann gewesen wäre, der nach Veranlagung und Gaben am besten zu ihr gepaßt hätte. Sein Verständnis und sein Wissen hatte ihren Wünschen entsprochen, wie sehr es sich auch von ihrem unterscheiden mochte. Diese Verbindung wäre für beide Teile gut gewesen. Durch ihre Beschwingtheit und Lebhaftigkeit hätte sein Sinn gemildert werden können; und aus seinen Kenntnissen, seinem Urteilsvermögen und seiner Weltgewandtheit hätte sie noch mehr Nutzen gezogen. Doch keine solche glückliche Heirat sollte nun die bewundernde Menge über

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wirkliches Eheglück belehren. Eine Verbindung anderer Art, die von vorneherein die Möglichkeit wahren Glückes ausschloß, würde bald in der Familie geschlossen werden. Sie konnte sich nicht vorstellen, wie Wickham und Lydia in erträglicher Unabhängigkeit gehalten werden sollten; aber sie konnte sich leicht vorstellen, wie wenig dauerhaft das Glück eines Paares sein mußte, deren Ehe sich nur dadurch ergeben hatte, daß ihre Leidenschaft größer als ihre Tugend war.

(6.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 451–52 Was für ein Triumph für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte, daß sie den Antrag, der/erst vor vier Monaten so stolz verschmäht worden war, nun froh und dankbarst entgegengenommen hätte. Sie zweifelte nicht daran, daß er der Großmütigste seines Geschlechtes sei. Doch da er auch nur ein sterbliches Wesen war, hätte er bestimmt triumphiert. Sie begann nun zu begreifen, daß er genau der Mann war, der seinen Neigungen und Fähigkeiten nach am besten zu ihr paßte. Sein Verstand und sein Temperament, obgleich in beidem ihr unähnlich, hätten ganz ihren Wünschen entsprochen. Es wäre eine Verbindung gewesen, die ihm und ihr zum Vorteil hätte gereichen müssen; durch ihr ungezwungenes, lebhaftes Wesen wäre das seine milder, sein Verhalten freundlicher geworden, und aus seinen Ansichten, seiner Bildung und Weltkenntnis hätte sie Vorteil von viel größerer Bedeutung gezogen. Aber keine so ideale Heirat konnte jetzt der staunenden Menge davon erzählen, was eheliches Glück wirklich ist. Eine Verbindung ganz anderer Art sollte nun bald in ihrer Familie zustande kommen. Wie Wickham und Lydia in wenigstens erträglicher Unabhängigkeit leben würden, war ihr ein Rätsel. Doch wie wenig dauerhaftes Glück einem Paar beschieden ist, das nur deshalb zusammenkam, weil seine Leidenschaften stärker waren als seine Tugenden, konnte sie sich leicht vorstellen.

(6.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 209 Sie zweifelte nicht, daß er großzügig war, großzügiger als die meisten Männer. Aber er war eben auch nur ein Mensch. Sie begann jetzt zu begreifen, daß er ein Mann war, der wirklich gut zu ihr gepaßt hätte. Durch ihre Leichtfertigkeit und Lebhaftigkeit wäre seine Schroffheit gemildert, seine Manieren gefälliger geworden. Und durch sein klares Urteil,

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sein Wissen und seine Erfahrung hätte sie den Vorteil größerer Weltweite empfangen.

(6.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 349–50 Was für einen Triumph müßte es für ihn bedeuten, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte, daß sie seinen Antrag, den sie erst vor vier Monaten stolz zurückgewiesen hatte, jetzt nur zu gern und freudig angenommen hätte! Natürlich war er so edelmütig, wie nur jemand sein konnte, daran zweifelte sie nicht im geringsten; aber schließlich war er auch nur ein Mensch, und da mußte er einfach triumphieren. Jetzt begann sie zu begreifen, daß er der Mann war, der seiner Veranlagung und Begabung nach am besten zu ihr/paßte. Sein Geist und Temperament hätte bei aller Verschiedenheit zu ihrer eigenen Persönlichkeit genau dem entsprochen, was sie für wünschenswert hielt. Ihre Vereinigung hätte beiden Vorteile bringen müssen: Durch ihren mildernden und belebenden Einfluß wäre sein ungestümer Charakter vielleicht beschwichtigt, wären seine Umgangsformen geglättet worden; und sie hätte von seinem Verstand, seinen Kenntnissen und seiner Weltklugheit noch größere Vorteile empfangen müssen. Doch nun konnte keine derartige Heirat mehr der staunenden Menge zeigen, was wirkliches Eheglück war. Es sollte ja in ihrer Familie bald ein Ehebund geschlossen werden, der gerade die gegenteilige Tendenz hatte und jene andere Verbindung unmöglich machte. Wie Wickham und Lydia unterstützt werden sollten, so daß sie einigermaßen finanziell unabhängig waren, konnte sie sich nicht vorstellen. Doch leicht konnte sie sich ausrechnen, wie wenig an dauerndem Glück einem Paar beschieden sein mußte, das nur deshalb zusammengekommen war, weil sich ihre Leidenschaften als stärker erwiesen hatten als ihre Tugend.

(6.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 351–52 Welch ein Triumph für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüsste, dass sie seinen Antrag, den sie vor vier Monaten voller Stolz zurückgewiesen hatte, jetzt dankbar und mit Freuden angenommen hätte! Er war der edelmütigste Mann der Welt, daran zweifelte sie nicht, aber da er sterblich war, musste er einfach triumphieren. Sie begann nun einzusehen, dass er nach Charakter und Anlagen der für sie geeignetste Mann war. Sein Verstand und Temperament, obwohl von ihren so verschieden, hätte genau ihren Wünschen entsprochen. Ihre Vereinigung wäre zu ihrer beider Vorteil gewesen: Er wäre durch ihre Zwanglosigkeit und Leb-

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haftigkeit weniger herrisch und reserviert geworden, und ihr wären sein Urteil, seine/Weltkenntnis und seine Erfahrung noch mehr zugutegekommen. Aber nun konnte diese glückliche Ehe der bewundernden Menge nicht vor Augen führen, was eheliche Harmonie wirklich bedeutet. Eine Verbindung ganz anderer Art, die ihre eigene verhinderte, würde bald in ihrer Familie stattfinden. Wie Wickham und Lydia sich auch nur einigermaßen über Wasser halten wollten, war ihr nicht klar. Aber wie wenig dauerhaftes Glück einem Paar bevorstand, das sich nur gefunden hatte, weil seine Leidenschaft größer als seine Tugend war, konnte sie sich leicht vorstellen.

(6.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 362–63 Was für ein Triumph wäre es für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte, daß sie den Antrag, den sie erst vor vier Monaten stolz zurückgewiesen hätte, nun freudig und dankbar angenommen hätte! Sie zweifelte nicht, daß er einer der großmütigsten Menschen seines Geschlechts war. Doch da er ein Mensch war, mußte er triumphieren. Sie begann nun zu begreifen, daß er genau der Mann war, der aufgrund seiner Neigungen und Anlagen am besten zu ihr passen würde. Sein Verstand und seine Gemütsart hätten, obgleich so anders als ihre eigenen, all ihren Wünschen entsprochen. Es wäre eine Vereinigung, die beiden zum Vorteil gereicht hätte; ihre Natürlichkeit und Lebhaftigkeit hätten sein Gemüt sanfter und seine Umgangsformen gefälliger machen können; und sein Urteilsvermögen, sein Wissen und seine Kenntnis der Welt hätten ihr gewiß noch größeren Gewinn gebracht. Doch keine so verheißungsvolle Ehe konnte nun die bewundernde Menge lehren, was eheliches Glück wirklich war. Eine Vereinigung ganz anderer Art, die die erstere ausschloß, sollte bald in ihrer Familie vollzogen werden./ Wie Wickham und Lydia in leidlicher Unabhängigkeit existieren sollten, konnte sie sich nicht vorstellen. Doch wie wenig dauerhaftes Glück einem Paar beschieden sein mußte, das nur zusammengetan worden war, weil die Leidenschaft stärker war als die Tugend, konnte sie leicht vermuten.

(6.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 482–83 Welch ein Triumph wäre es für ihn, dachte sie oft, wenn er wüßte, daß sie den Antrag, den sie erst vor vier Monaten so hochmütig und geringschätzig zurückgewiesen hatte, nun gern und dankbar annehmen würde! Er zählte gewiß zu den Großherzigsten seines Geschlechts, aber auch er war nur ein Mensch, er mußte dies als Sieg über sie empfinden.

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Immer mehr wurde ihr bewußt, daß er genau der Mann war, der nach Veranlagung und Begabung am besten zu ihr paßte. Sein Verstand und sein Naturell, obwohl so ganz anders als das ihre, wären gerade das gewesen, was sie sich wünschte. Die Verbindung hätte ihnen beiden zum Vor/teil gereicht; seine zurückhaltende Wesensart wäre durch ihre Natürlichkeit und Lebhaftigkeit aufgelockert, sein Benehmen geschmeidiger geworden, und sie hätte von seinem Urteilsvermögen, seinem Wissen und seiner Weltkenntnis noch viel entscheidender profitiert. Aber leider konnte die staunende Menschheit nicht an ihnen lernen, was wahres eheliches Glück war. Vielmehr wurde in ihrer Familie bald eine ganz andersgeartete Verbindung geknüpft, und zwar eine, welche die erstere verhinderte. Wovon Wickham und Lydia einigermaßen auskömmlich leben sollten, konnte Elizabeth sich nicht vorstellen. Aber welch wenig dauerhaftes Glück einem Paar beschieden sein würde, das nur zusammen war, weil die Leidenschaft über die Tugend gesiegt hatte, das war leicht zu erahnen.

(7.0). Pride and Prejudice, 384–85 Her father was walking about the room, looking grave and anxious. ,Lizzy,‘ said he, ,what are you doing? Are you out of your senses, to be accepting this man? Have not you always hated him?‘ How earnestly did she then wish that her former opinions had been more reasonable, her expressions more moderate! It would have spared her from explanations and professions which it was exceedingly awkward to give; but they were now necessary, and she assured him with some confusion, of her attachment to Mr. Darcy. ,Or in other words, you are determined to have him. He is rich, to be sure, and you may have more fine clothes and fine carriages than Jane. But will they make you happy?‘ ,Have you any other objections,‘ said Elizabeth, ,than your belief of my indifference?‘ ,None at all. We all know him to be a proud, unpleasant sort of man; but this would be nothing if you really liked him.‘/ ,I do, I do like him,‘ she replied, with tears in her eyes, ,I love him. Indeed he has no improper pride. He is perfectly amiable. You do not know what he really is; then pray do not pain me by speaking of him in such terms.‘ ,Lizzy,‘ said her father, ,I have given him my consent. He is the kind of man, indeed, to whom I should never dare refuse any thing, which he condescended to ask. I now give it to you, if you are resolved on having him. But let me advise you

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to think better of it. I know your disposition, Lizzy. I know that you could be neither happy nor respectable, unless you truly esteemed your husband; unless you looked up to him as a superior. Your lively talents would place you in the greatest danger in an unequal marriage. You could scarcely escape discredit and misery. My child, let me not have the grief of you seeing you unable to respect your partner in life. You know not what you are about.‘ Elizabeth, still more affected, was earnest and solemn in her reply ; and at length, by repeated assurances that Mr. Darcy was really the object of her choice, by explaining the gradual change which her estimation of him had undergone, relating her absolute certainty that his affection was not the work of a day, but had stood the test of many months suspense, and enumerating with energy all his good qualities, she did conquer her father’s incredulity, and reconcile him to the match. ,Well, my dear,‘ said he, when she ceased speaking, ,I have no more to say. If this be the case, he deserves you. I could not have parted with you, my Lizzy, to any one less worthy.‘ To complete the favourable impression, she then told him what Mr. Darcy had voluntarily done for Lydia. He heard her with astonishment. ,This is an evening of wonders, indeed! And so, Darcy did every thing; made up the match, gave the money, paid the fellow’s debts, and got him his commission! So much the better. It will save me a world of trouble and economy. Had it been your uncle’s doing, I must and would have paid him; but these violent young lovers carry every thing their own way. I shall offer to pay him to-morrow; he will rant and storm about his love for you, and there will be an end of the matter.‘

(7.1). Louise Marezoll (1830), III, 206–09 Ihr Vater maaß das Zimmer mit großen Schritten; seine Mienen waren ernst und sorgenvoll. „Lizzy,“ sagte er, „was hast Du gethan? Bist Du von Sinnen, die Anträge dieses Mannes anzunehmen? Hast Du ihn nicht immer gehaßt?“ Wie bereute sie es jetzt, ihre Meinung so unüberlegt ausgesprochen, ihre Ausdrücke so wenig gemäßigt zu haben! Eine größere Vorsicht hätte ihr nun Erklärungen und Geständnisse erspart, die ihr schwer wurden; sie waren jedoch nothwendig, und so versicherte sie ihrem Vater mit einiger Verwirrung, daß sie Herrn Darcy liebe. „Oder, mit anderen Worten, daß Du ent/schlossen bist, ihn zu heirathen. Er ist reich; Du wirst in Zukunft schönere Kleider und glänzendere Equipagen haben wie Johanne. Aber ist das hinreichend zum Glück?“

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„Haben Sie, außer dem Glauben an meine Gleichgültigkeit, noch irgend etwas Andres gegen diese Verbindung einzuwenden?“ fragte Elisabeth. „Ganz und gar nichts. Wir kennen ihn Alle als einen stolzen, unangenehmen Mann; aber dieß würde nichts zu bedeuten haben, wenn Du ihn wirklich liebtest.“ „Ich liebe ihn, ich liebe ihn von ganzem Herzen,“ erwiederte Elisabeth mit Thränen. „Ich liebe ihn unbeschreiblich. Er ist es werth, geliebt zu sein. Sein Stolz ist edler Art. Sie kennen ihn nicht, wie ich ihn kenne; darum bitte ich Sie, mich nicht durch solche Aeußerungen über ihn zu kränken.“ „Lizzy,“ sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Er ist nicht der Mann, dem ich etwas abzuschlagen wage, was er von mir zu bitten sich herabläßt. Ich überlasse Dir die Entscheidung, rathe Dir aber, alles wohl zu überlegen. Ich kenne Dich, Lizzy ; ich weiß, daß Du nicht wahrhaft glücklich wer/ den kannst, wenn Du Deinen Mann nicht achtest, an ihn nicht heraufblickst, wie an einem höheren Wesen. Deine Lebhaftigkeit wird Dich in die größten Gefahren bringen; Du wirst, Du mußt unglücklich werden. Erspare mir den Gram, Dich einen Lebensgefährten wählen zu sehen, den Du nicht achten kannst. Du weißt nicht, was Du thust.“ Elisabeth war erschüttert. Die Liebe ihres Vaters, seine Sorge für ihr zukünftiges Glück rührten sie. Mit dem Ernst der Wahrheit wiederholte sie die Versicherung ihrer Liebe, und erzählte ihm, daß dieses Gefühl von seiner Seite nicht das Werk eines Tages, sondern mehrerer Monate sei, und daß ihre Gesinnungen sich gradweis geändert, bis sie endlich jetzt zur innigen Neigung geworden. Sie zählte alle seine guten Eigenschaften auf, rühmte seinen Edelmuth, pries seine geistigen Vorzüge und wußte des Vaters Ungläubigkeit zuletzt in so weit zu besiegen, daß er sich mit dem Gedanken dieser Verbindung aussöhnte. „Gut, liebes Kind,“ erwiederte er, nachdem sie geendet, „ich habe nichts mehr zu sagen. Wenn er wirklich so ist, wie Du ihn schilderst, ist er Deiner werth. Ich hätte mich/nicht von Dir trennen können, wenn von mir verlangt worden wäre, Dich unwürdigen Händen zu übergeben.“ Um den günstigen Eindruck, den ihre Schilderung seiner Vorzüge auf ihn hervorgebracht, bleibend zu machen, erzählte Elisabeth jetzt, was Darcy aus freiem Antrieb für Lydien gethan. Bennet vernahm es mit Erstaunen. „Das ist ein Tag der Wunder,“ sagte er. „Also Darcy that dieß alles; er nöthigte Wickham, sie zu heirathen, gab ihm Geld, bezahlte seine Schulden und verschaffte ihm die Officierstelle! Nun, desto besser. Diese Nachricht erspart mir viel Sorge und Einschränkung. Hätte Dein Onkel alles gethan, würde ich ihn, und wenn es mir auch noch so schwer geworden, bezahlt haben; aber solche leidenschaftliche junge Liebhaber gehen immer ihren eignen Weg. Ich werde ihm morgen anbieten, seine Auslagen zu erstatten; er wird dagegen eifern, auch wohl

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etwas stürmen und versichern, aus Liebe für Dich noch weit mehr thun zu wollen, und damit ist die Sache abgemacht.“

(7.2). Karin von Schab (1939), 396–98 Ihr Vater schritt mit einem nachdenklich ernsten Gesicht in seinem Zimmer auf und ab. „Was machst du bloß, Lizzy?“ sagte er, als sie eintrat, „bist du denn von allen guten Geistern verlassen, diesem Mann dein Jawort zu geben? Bist du es nicht gewesen, die ihn immer am meisten verabscheut hat?“ Was hätte sie jetzt nicht nur darum gegeben, ihre Meinung früher weniger voreilig, weniger laut geäußert zu haben! Es würde ihr die peinlichen Erklärungen und Geständnisse erspart haben, zu denen sie jetzt gezwungen war. Aber das Vergangene ließ sich nicht mehr ungeschehen machen, und so bat sie denn ihren Vater in einiger Verlegenheit, ihrer Liebe zu Darcy versichert zu sein. „Oder anders ausgedrückt, du hast dir überlegt, daß es gut und vernünftig ist, ihn zu nehmen. Er ist reich, und du wirst noch schönere Kleider und noch vornehmere Wagen haben können als sogar Jane. Aber wird das genügen, um dich glücklich zu machen?“ „Ist das dein einziger Einwand,“ sagte Elisabeth, „daß du glaubst, er sei mir – von seinem Reichtum abgesehen – gleichgültig?“ „Der einzige. Wir kennen ihn ja alle gut als den hochmütigen, unfreundlichen Kerl, der er ist. Aber das wäre alles nicht so schlimm, wenn du ihn wirklich liebst.“/ „Aber ich liebe ihn doch! Wirklich!“ rief Elisabeth mit Tränen in den Augen aus. „Er ist durchaus nicht hochmütig! Er ist der liebenswerteste Mensch, den es gibt! Du kennst ihn ja gar nicht richtig; tu mir bitte den Gefallen und sprich nicht so von ihm! Du tust mir weh damit!“ „Hör zu, Lizzy,“ sagte ihr Vater. „Ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Er gehört zu den Menschen, denen ich nie etwas verweigern könnte, wenn sie sich dazu herablassen, mich darum zu bitten. Ich gebe dir sie natürlich auch, wenn du dich nun einmal darauf versteift hast, ihn zu bekommen. Aber laß dir den guten Rat geben und überlege es dir noch einmal und besser. Ich kenne dich doch, Lizzy. Ich weiß, daß du niemals richtig glücklich sein würdest, wenn du nicht mit wirklicher Achtung zu deinem Mann aufsehen, wenn du ihn nicht in jeder Hinsicht als dir überlegen oder jedenfalls ebenbürtig betrachten kannst. Mein liebes Kind, tu du mir nicht auch den Schmerz an, einen Lebensgefährten zu wählen, der deiner Liebe und Achtung nicht wert ist. Du weißt nicht, was du damit anrichten würdest!“ Elisabeth war tief bewegt über die aufrichtige Sorge, die aus ihres Vaters

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Worten sprach; sie wiederholte ihre Versicherung, daß Darcy wirklich die Wahl ihrer Liebe sei; sie versuchte, den allmählichen Wechsel ihrer Gefühle für ihn zu erklären, sie beteuerte, daß auch seine Liebe zu ihr schon viele Hindernisse und eine langwierige Ungewißheit siegreich überwunden habe, und zählte zuletzt mit einem solchen Eifer alle seine guten Eigenschaften auf, daß sie schließlich die Zweifel ihres Vaters zerstörte und ihn mit dem Gedanken an diese Ehe versöhnte. „Nun, mein Kind,“ sagte er, als sie aufgehört hatte zu sprechen, „nach all dem kann ich natürlich nichts mehr einwenden. Wenn alles, was du erzählt hast, wahr ist, dann verdient er dich wirklich. Ich hätte dich sehr ungern einem weniger guten Mann gegeben, Lizzy.“/ Um den günstigen Eindruck zu vervollständigen, verriet Elisabeth ihm dann noch, was Darcy alles aus freien Stücken für Lydia getan hatte. Er hörte es mit wachsendem Erstaunen. „Heute abend geschehen wahrhaftig Wunder! Also Darcy hat das alles erledigt: die Heirat durchgesetzt, das Geld gegeben, die Schulden des Burschen bezahlt und ihm außerdem noch ein Offizierspatent verschafft! Nun, umso besser! Es wird mir eine ganze Menge ersparen – nicht nur Mühe! Wenn dein Onkel dahintergesteckt hätte, dann müßte und würde ich ihm diese Auslagen zurückerstatten; aber mit so einem stürmischen jungen Liebhaber kann man ja Gottseidank nicht reden. Ich werde ihm morgen das Anerbieten machen, ihm alles zurückzugeben; du wirst sehen, er wird mir empört etwas von seiner Liebe und Ehre erzählen, und damit wird die Angelegenheit endgültig erledigt sein.“

(7.3). Margarete Rauchenberger (1948), 389-90 Mr. Bennet ging im Zimmer auf und ab, ernst und beunruhigt. „Lizzy“, sagte er, „was hast du getan? Bist du denn nicht gescheit, daß du diesen Mann erhörst? Hast du ihn nicht von je gehaßt?“ Wie aufrichtig wünschte sie in diesem Augenblick, ihre früheren Gefühle wären vernünftiger gewesen, ihre Ausdrücke gemäßigter! Diese Erklärungen und Beteuerungen wären ihr nun erspart geblieben, die sie jetzt sehr verlegen vorbrachte. „Mit anderen Worten also, du bist entschlossen, ihn zu heiraten. Er ist reich, das steht fest, und du wirst schönere Kleider und mehr Wagen haben als Jane. Aber werden sie dich glücklich machen?“ „Hast du noch andere Einwände als meine vermeintliche Gleichgültigkeit?“ fragte Elisabeth. „Gar keine. Wir kennen ihn alle als einen stolzen, unfreundlichen Mann. Aber das würde nicht zählen, wenn du ihn wirklich gern hast.“

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„Das habe ich, ich habe ihn aufrichtig lieb“, erwiderte sie mit Tränen in den Augen. „Ich liebe ihn. Er hat wirklich keinen falschen Stolz. Er ist durch und durch liebenswert. Du weißt nicht, wie er wirklich ist; darum tu mir bitte nicht weh mit solchen Ausdrücken.“ „Lizzy, ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Er ist gerade der Mann, dem ich nichts zu verweigern wage, um das er mich zu bitten geruht. Ich überlasse es jetzt dir, ob du ihn wirklich haben willst. Aber laß dir raten, es reiflich zu überlegen. Ich kenne dich, Lizzy. Ich weiß, du könntest nicht glücklich sein und keine Achtung vor dir selbst haben, wenn du deinen Mann nicht aufrichtig verehrtest – wenn du nicht zu ihm aufsehen könntest. In einer ungleichen Ehe würden deine Gaben dich in die größte seelische Gefahr bringen. Mein liebes Kind, laß mich nicht den Kummer erleben, daß du deinen Lebenspartner nicht achten könntest. Du weißt, was dir bevorsteht.“ Diese Worte beeindruckten Elisabeth, und sie antwortete ernst und feierlich. Und schließlich besiegte sie die Ungläubigkeit des Vaters und versöhnte ihn mit dieser Heirat, indem sie ihm immer wieder versicherte, Darcy sei wirklich der für sie bestimmte Gefährte. Sie erklärte ihm den allmählichen Wechsel ihrer Achtung, daß auch seine Liebe nicht das Werk eines Tages sei, sondern die Probe vieler Monate bestanden habe, und zählte ihm zuletzt und mit Nachdruck all seine guten Eigenschaften auf. „Gut, mein liebes Kind. Ich habe nichts hinzuzufügen. Wenn die Dinge so liegen, hat er dich verdient. Ich hätte dich keinem Unwürdigen geben können, meine Lizzy!“ Und um den guten Eindruck zu vertiefen, erzählte sie ihm, was Darcy freiwillig für Lydia getan hatte. Er lauschte mit Erstaunen. „Dies ist wirklich ein Abend der Wunder! Darcy also brachte die Heirat zustande, gab das Geld, bezahlte die Schulden des Burschen und erwarb ihm sein Patent? Um so besser! Es erspart mir eine Menge Mühen und Sparsamkeit. Wäre es deines Onkels Werk gewesen, müßte und hätte ich ihn bezahlt. Aber diese heftigen jungen Liebhaber machen alles nach ihrem eigenen Willen. Ich werde ihm morgen eine Rückzahlung anbieten: er wird sich ereifern über seine Liebe zu dir, und damit wird die ganze Angelegenheit erledigt sein.“

(7.4). Ilse Krämer (1948), 547–50 Ihr Vater wanderte im Zimmer hin und her und sah ernst und besorgt aus. „Lizzy“, sagte/er, „was tust du? Bist du von Sinnen, diesen Mann zu erhören? Hast nicht gerade du ihn immer gehaßt?“ Wie dringend wünschte sie nun, ihre frühere Meinung wäre einsichtiger, ihre Äußerungen maßvoller gewesen! Es hätte ihr Bekenntnisse erspart, die so außerordentlich peinlich zu machen waren. Doch nun erwiesen sie sich als not-

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wendig, und sie versicherte ihm, nicht ohne Verwirrung, ihre Zuneigung zu Mr. Darcy. „Oder mit anderen Worten, du bist entschlossen, ihn zu heiraten. Er ist reich, natürlich, und du wirst elegantere Kleider und schönere Wagen haben als Jane. Aber wird dich das glücklich machen?“ „Haben Sie irgendeinen anderen Einwand“, fragte Elizabeth, „als Ihren Glauben an meine Gleichgültigkeit?“ „Nein, keinen. Wir alle kennen ihn als einen stolzen, wenig angenehmen Menschen; aber das würde nicht zählen, wenn du ihn liebtest.“ „Ich liebe, ich liebe ihn“, rief sie mit Tränen in den Augen, „ja, ich liebe ihn. Er hat wirklich keinen unrechten Stolz. Er ist ein liebenswerter Mensch. Sie kennen ihn ja nicht in Wirklichkeit. Oh, bitte, quälen Sie mich nicht damit, von ihm in solchen Worten zu sprechen!“ „Lizzy“, sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Er gehört tatsächlich zu der Sorte Menschen, denen ich nichts von dem verweigern kann, was sie zu erbitten geruhen; ich überlasse dir die Entscheidung. Doch ersuche ich dich, meinen Rat anzuhören./Ich kenne deine Veranlagung, Lizzy, ich weiß, du wärest weder glücklich noch anständig, wenn du deinen Gatten nicht ehrlich lieben, nicht zu ihm aufschauen könntest wie zu etwas Höherem. Dein lebhaftes Temperament brächte dich bei einer unglücklichen Ehe in die größte Gefahr. Schwerlich würdest du der schlechten Nachrede und der Trübsal entgehen. Mein Kind, erspare mir den Kummer, zu sehen, daß du deinem Lebensgefährten nicht zugetan bist. Du weißt nicht, was du tust.“ Tief ergriffen antwortete Elizabeth voller Ernst und Feierlichkeit. Und schließlich, durch die wiederholte Versicherung, Mr. Darcy sei wirklich der Gegenstand ihrer Wahl, durch Berichte über die allmähliche Wandlung, die ihre Gefühle für ihn durchgemacht hatten, durch die Beteuerung ihrer völligen Gewißheit, daß seine Liebe zu ihr nicht nur ein Strohfeuer sei, sondern der Prüfung monatelanger Ungewißheit standgehalten habe, besiegte sie ihres Vaters Ungläubigkeit und versöhnte ihn mit dem Ereignis. „Nun, meine Liebe“, sagte er, als sie zu reden aufhörte, „ich habe nichts mehr dagegen zu sagen. Wenn dies der Fall ist, verdient er dich. Ich hätte dich, meine Lizzy, auch für keinen weniger Würdigen aufgeben können.“ Um den günstigen Eindruck noch zu vervollständigen, erzählte sie ihm, was Mr. Darcy ganz von sich aus für Lydia getan hatte. Mit größtem Staunen hörte er dies./ „Das ist wahrlich ein Abend der Wunder! Also Darcy hat dies alles getan – die Partie zustande gebracht, das Geld gegeben, die Schulden des Burschen bezahlt und ihm einen neuen Wirkungskreis besorgt! Nun, um so besser. Das erspart mir eine Welt an Mühe und Kopfzerbrechen. Wäre dies das Werk deines Onkels gewesen, hätte ich ihm unbedingt alles zurückzahlen müssen und es auch selbst

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gewollt. Aber diese ungestümen jungen Liebhaber machen alles nach ihrem eigenen Kopf. Morgen werde ich ihm die Rückzahlung anbieten. Er wird brüllen und stürmen und sich auf seine Liebe zu dir berufen, und die Sache ist aus der Welt geschafft.“

(7.5). Helmut Holscher (1951), 260–61 Ihr Vater ging im Zimmer auf und ab und schaute ernst und besorgt aus. „Lissy,“ sagte er, „was stellst du bloß an? Hast du den Verstand verloren, daß du den Antrag dieses Mannes annimmst? Hast du ihn nicht immer gehaßt?“ Wie sehr wünschte sie da, daß ihre früheren Meinungen vernünftiger gewesen wären und daß sie sich etwas gemäßigter ausgedrückt hätte. Das hätte ihr nun Erklärungen und Bekenntnisse erspart, die ihr schrecklich unangenehm waren. Aber sie waren nun notwendig, und sie versicherte ihm etwas verwirrt, daß sie Darcy liebe. „Das heißt mit anderen Worten, du hast dich entschlossen, ihn zu heiraten. Natürlich, er ist reich, und du wirst sehr schöne Kleider und sehr schöne Wagen haben. Aber wird dich das glücklich machen?“ „Haben Sie andere Einwände,“ sagte Elisabeth, „als daß Sie glauben, er sei mir gleichgültig?“ „Keinen einzigen. Wir alle wissen, daß er sehr stolz und ungefällig ist. Aber das würde nichts bedeuten, wenn du ihn wirklich gern hättest.“ „Ich habe ihn gern, wirklich, ich habe ihn gern,“ erwiderte sie mit Tränen in den Augen. „Er hat wirklich keinen unangebrachten Stolz. Er ist furchtbar nett! Sie kennen ihn gar nicht richtig, und tun Sie mir doch nicht weh, indem Sie in solchen Ausdrücken von ihm sprechen.“ „Lissy,“ sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Zustimmung gegeben. Er ist ein Mann, – wirklich, man hätte gar nicht den Mut, ihm etwas abzuschlagen, wenn er sich herabläßt, um etwas zu bitten. Nun überlasse ich es dir, ob du entschlossen bist, ihn zu nehmen oder nicht. Aber laß’ dir einen Rat geben: ich kenne deine Anlagen, Lissy. Ich weiß, du kannst weder glücklich noch zufrieden werden, wenn du dei/nen Mann nicht wirklich schätzest, wenn du nicht zu ihm aufblicken kannst. Deine lebhaften Gaben bringen dich sehr in Gefahr, daß deine Ehe unglücklich wird. Du würdest kaum dem schlechten Ruf und dem Elend entgehen, mein Kind, mache mir nicht den Kummer, daß ich dich unfähig sehen muß, deinen Lebensgefährten zu achten. Du weißt nicht, was du tust.“ Elisabeth war noch mehr ergriffen. Sie antwortete ihm ernst und fast feierlich; und schließlich gelang es ihr, ihres Vaters Ungläubigkeit zu überwinden und ihn mit ihrer Wahl zu versöhnen. Sie mußte ihm aber immer wieder versichern, daß sie Darcy wirklich liebe, ihm erklären, wie sie Schritt für Schritt ihre Meinung

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über ihn gewandelt hatte, daß sie sicher sei, ihre Zuneigung sei nicht das Werk eines Tages, sondern habe die Probe vieler Monate überstanden. Mit Nachdruck zählte sie alle seine guten Eigenschaften auf. „Schön, mein Liebes,“ sagte er, als sie fertig war, „ich habe nichts mehr zu sagen. Wenn das der Fall ist, verdient er dich. Aber ich könnte mich nicht von dir trennen, meine Lissy, um eines Mannes willen, der weniger wert ist.“ Um den guten Eindruck zu verstärken, erzählte sie ihm dann, was Darcy freiwillig für Lydia getan habe. Er hörte ihr staunend zu. „Das ist wirklich ein Abend voller Wunder,“ sagte er. „Und das hat Darcy alles getan! Die Hochzeit in Ordnung gebracht, dem Kerl die Schulden bezahlt und ihm sein Offizierspatent besorgt. Umso besser! Das spart mir einen großen Haufen Mühe und Sparsamkeit. Wenn dein Onkel es getan hätte, müßte und würde ich es ihm zurückgezahlt haben. Aber diese stürmischen Liebhaber bringen alles auf ihre Weise in Ordnung. Morgen werde ich ihm anbieten, es ihm zurückzuzahlen. Er wird herumschreien und toben wegen seiner Liebe zu dir, und damit ist die Sache dann erledigt.“

(7.6). Werner Beyer (1965), 423–25 Ihr Vater schritt im Zimmer auf und ab und sah ernst und besorgt aus. „Lissy“, sagte er, „was machst du nur? Bist du nicht ganz bei Sinnen, daß du diesem Manne dein Jawort gibst? Hast du ihn nicht immer verabscheut?“ Wie wünschte sie sich da, daß sie früher vernünftiger über ihn gedacht und sich maßvoller ausgedrückt hätte! Das würde ihr jetzt Erklärungen und Beteuerungen erspart haben, die ihr äußerst peinlich waren; doch nun ließ es sich nicht mehr umgehen, und sie versicherte einigermaßen verlegen dem Vater, daß sie Herrn Darcy wirklich liebe. „Oder, in anderen Worten, daß du entschlossen bist, ihn zu/nehmen. Er ist sehr reich, gewiß, und du magst wohl mehr schöne Kleider und schöne Wagen zur Verfügung haben als Jane. Aber wird dich das glücklich machen?“ „Haben Sie außer der Annahme, daß er mir im Grunde gleichgültig ist, noch andere Gründe gegen die Heirat?“ fragte Elisabeth. „Nein, nicht im geringsten. Wir alle kennen ihn als stolzen, wenig liebenswürdigen Menschen; doch das wäre kein Hinderungsgrund, wenn du ihn wirklich liebtest.“ „Aber ich liebe ihn doch“, erwiderte sie, und in ihren Augen standen Tränen. „Ich liebe ihn. Er hat wirklich keinen unangebrachten Stolz, und er ist durch und durch liebenswert. Sie wissen ja nicht, wie er wirklich ist; bitte sprechen Sie nicht so von ihm, es tut mir weh.“

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„Lissy“, sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Zustimmung gegeben. Er gehört zu den Leuten, denen ich nie etwas abzuschlagen wagen würde, was sie mich zu bitten geruhen. Ich gebe sie jetzt auch dir, wenn du entschlossen bist, ihn zu nehmen. Aber ich möchte dir raten, dir die Sache noch einmal recht genau zu überlegen. Ich kenne deine Veranlagung, Lissy. Ich weiß, daß du weder glücklich sein noch Achtung vor dir selber haben würdest, wenn du deinen Gatten nicht wirklich achten, wenn du nicht zu ihm aufschauen könntest. Dein heller Verstand, deine Begabung würden dich in einer ungleichen Ehe in die größte Gefahr bringen. Schande und Elend wären dann unausbleiblich. Mein Kind, bereite mir nicht den Kummer, daß ausgerechnet du deinen Lebensgefährten nicht achten kannst. Du weißt nicht, was du auf dich nimmst.“ Elisabeth, noch stärker berührt, erwiderte mit großem Ernst und einer gewissen Feierlichkeit. Sie versicherte immer wieder, daß Herr Darcy wirklich der Mann ihrer Wahl sei, erklärte, wie sie allmählich dazu gekommen war, ihn anders einzuschätzen, beteuerte, wie unerschütterlich ihre Gewißheit sei, daß seine Liebe keine vorübergehende Leidenschaft sei, sondern sich in der/Feuerprobe vieler Monate bewährt habe, und führte überzeugend alle seine positiven Eigenschaften an, so daß es ihr schließlich gelang, den Unglauben und die Zweifel ihres Vaters zu überwinden und ihn mit dem Gedanken an eine solche Ehe zu versöhnen. „Nun gut, meine Liebe“, sagte er, als sie mit ihren Worten zu Ende war, „ich habe nichts weiter dazu zu bemerken. Wenn das, was du sagst, wirklich der Fall ist, dann verdient er dich. Jemandem, der deiner weniger würdig wäre, hätte ich dich nicht gegeben; dann hätte ich mich nicht von dir trennen können, meine liebe Lissy.“ Um seinen günstigen Eindruck von Darcy noch zu verstärken, berichtete sie ihm, was er aus freiem Willen für Lydia getan hatte. Er hörte es mit Erstaunen. „Das ist wirklich die Nacht der großen Wunder! – So hat also Darcy alles vollbracht, die Heirat erzwungen, das Geld hergegeben, die Schulden bezahlt und ihm das Offizierspatent verschafft! Um so besser für mich. Das wird mir eine Menge Ärger und Ausgaben ersparen. Wenn dein Onkel das alles in die Wege geleitet hätte, wäre mir nichts übriggeblieben, als ihm seine Auslagen zu erstatten, und das hätte ich auf jeden Fall getan; aber bei diesen verliebten jungen Männern muß ja alles nach ihrem eigenen Kopf gehen. Ich werde ihm morgen anbieten, das Geld zurückzuzahlen; er wird große Worte machen und stürmisch beteuern, wie sehr er dich liebt, und damit wird die Sache erledigt sein.“

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(7.7). Ursula und Christian Grawe (1977), 427–29 Ihr Vater ging im Zimmer auf und ab und sah ernst und besorgt aus. „Lizzy“, sagte er, „was machst du für Sachen? Bist du nicht ganz bei Trost, diesen Mann zu heiraten? Hast du ihn nicht immer unausstehlich gefunden?“ Wie bedauerte sie jetzt, dass sie früher nicht einsichtiger von ihm gesprochen und sich zurückhaltender ausgedrückt hatte. Dann hätte sie sich nun die Erklärungen und Bekenntnisse ersparen können, die sie so mühselig und peinlich fand, aber sie waren jetzt unumgänglich, und sie versicherte ihrem Vater einigermaßen verwirrt, dass sie Mr. Darcy liebe. „Mit anderen Worten, du bist entschlossen, ihn zu heiraten. Er ist zwar reich, und du kannst dann mehr schöne Kleider und schöne Kutschen haben als Jane, aber macht dich das glücklich?“ „Hast du noch andere Einwände“, sagte Elizabeth, „außer dass du glaubst, er ist mir gleichgültig?“ „Keineswegs. Wir alle wissen, er ist stolz und wenig liebenswürdig, aber das fiele nicht ins Gewicht, wenn du ihn wirklich magst.“ „Ich mag ihn, ich mag ihn sehr“, erwiderte Elizabeth mit Tränen in den Augen, „ich liebe ihn. Er hat auch gar keinen falschen Stolz. Er ist durch und durch liebenswürdig. Du weißt nicht, wie er wirklich ist, quäl mich deshalb bitte nicht damit, so von ihm zu sprechen.“ „Lizzy“, sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Zustimmung gegeben. Er ist nämlich genau der Mann, dem ich nichts abzuschlagen wagte, worum er zu bitten geruht. Ich/überlasse es jetzt dir, ob du ihn nehmen willst. Aber ich gebe dir den Rat, noch etwas darüber nachzudenken. Ich kenne dich, Lizzy, du könntest nicht glücklich und mit dir einverstanden sein, wenn du deinen Mann nicht auch schätzt, wenn du nicht zu ihm als dem Überlegenen aufblicken kannst. Deine lebhafte Intelligenz wird dich in einer unausgewogenen Ehe in die größte Gefahr bringen. Du würdest dich beinahe unvermeidlich selbst verachten und unglücklich sein. Mein Kind, mach mir nicht den Kummer, mit ansehen zu müssen, wie du deinen Lebensgefährten nicht achten kannst. Du ahnst ja nicht, worauf du dich einlässt.“ Diese Antwort ging Elizabeth noch mehr zu Herzen, und sie wählte ihre Worte mit Bedacht. Sie versicherte ihm wiederholt, dass sie Mr. Darcy wirklich heiraten wolle, erklärte ihm, wie sich ihr Bild von ihm allmählich gewandelt hatte, berichtete ihm von ihrer Überzeugung, dass seine Zuneigung nicht die Marotte eines Tages sei, sondern den Prüfungen vieler Monate standgehalten hatte, und zählte ihm nachdrücklich all seine guten Eigenschaften auf. So besiegte sie die Ungläubigkeit ihres Vaters und versöhnte ihn mit ihrer Wahl. „Na schön, mein Kind“, sagte er, als sie fertig war, „ich habe nichts mehr hinzuzufügen. Wenn das so ist, verdient er dich. Ich hätte es nicht übers Herz

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gebracht, dich an jemanden wegzugeben, meine Lizzy, der dich nicht in diesem Maße verdiente.“ Um den günstigen Eindruck abzurunden, erzählte sie ihm dann, was Mr. Darcy freiwillig für Lydia getan hatte. Er hörte es mit Staunen. „Dies ist tatsächlich ein Abend voller Wunder! Darcy hat es also alles zuwege gebracht – hat sie verheiratet, das Geld gegeben, die Schulden dieses Burschen bezahlt und ihm das Leutnantspatent gekauft! Umso besser. Es/erspart mir einen Haufen Ärger und Einschränkungen. Deinem Onkel hätte ich die Ausgaben erstatten müssen – und auch erstattet; aber diese leidenschaftlichen jungen Liebhaber haben da ihre eigenen Vorstellungen. Ich werde ihm morgen die Rückzahlung anbieten, aber er wird sich aus Liebe zu dir mit Händen und Füßen sträuben, und dann ist die Geschichte ausgestanden.“

(7.8). Helga Schulz (1997), 437–39 Ihr Vater wanderte im Zimmer auf und ab, sein Blick war ernst und besorgt. „Lizzy“, sagte er, „was tust du nur? Bist du von Sinnen, diesen Mann heiraten zu wollen? Hast du ihn nicht immer verabscheut?“ Wie aufrichtig wünschte sie nun, ihre frühere Meinung von ihm wäre vernünftiger und ihre Äußerungen zurückhaltender gewesen! Es hätte ihr Erklärungen und Geständnisse erspart, die ihr nun höchst peinlich waren; aber sie waren notwendig, und sie versicherte ihm mit einiger Verlegenheit, daß sie Mr. Darcy liebe. „Mit anderen Worten, du bist entschlossen, ihn zu heiraten. Gewiß, er ist reich, und du magst mehr schöne Kleider und schöne Kutschen haben als Jane. Aber wird dich das glücklich machen?“ „Hast du noch andere Einwände“, sagte Elizabeth, „außer daß du glaubst, ich sei gleichgültig ihm gegenüber?“ „Überhaupt keine. Wir alle kennen ihn als einen stolzen, unfreundlichen Menschen; aber das hat nichts zu sagen, wenn du ihn wirklich gern hast.“ „Das tue ich. Ich habe ihn sehr gern“, erwiderte sie mit Tränen in den Augen. „Ich liebe ihn. Er hat wirklich keinen unangemessenen Stolz. Er ist unendlich liebenswert./Du weißt nicht, wie er wirklich ist; darum quäle mich bitte nicht damit, daß du mit solchen Worten von ihm sprichst.“ „Lizzy“, sagte ihr Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Er ist in der Tat einer jener Menschen, denen ich niemals etwas verweigern könnte, worum sie auch bitten mögen. Ich gebe sie nun auch dir, falls du entschlossen bist, ihn zu heiraten. Aber ich möchte dir raten, es dir anders zu überlegen. Ich kenne deine Gesinnung, Lizzy. Ich weiß, daß du weder glücklich wärst noch Respekt vor dir selbst hättest, wenn du deinen Gatten nicht wirklich achten und zu ihm aufblicken könntest. Dein lebhafter Geist würde dich in einer ungleichen

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Ehe in größte Gefahr bringen. Du könntest dich kaum vor Mißkredit und Leiden bewahren. Mein Kind, mach mir nicht den Kummer, erleben zu müssen, daß du deinen Gatten nicht respektieren kannst. Du weißt nicht, worauf du dich einläßt.“ Elizabeth, noch heftiger berührt, antwortete ihm ernst und eindringlich; und durch ihre wiederholte Versicherung, daß Mr. Darcy wirklich der Mann ihrer Wahl sei, und indem sie ihm erklärte, wie sich ihre Meinung von ihm allmählich gewandelt hatte, ihm von ihrer absoluten Gewißheit berichtete, daß seine Liebe nicht eine Sache des Augenblicks sei, sondern sich in vielen Monaten der Ungewißheit bewährt habe, und ihm schließlich nachdrücklich alle seine guten Eigenschaften aufzählte – bezwang sie schließlich seine Ungläubigkeit und versöhnte ihn mit der Heirat. „Nun, mein Kind“, sagte er, als sie zu Ende war, „dann habe ich nichts mehr zu sagen. Wenn das so ist, dann verdient er dich. Ich hätte mich nicht für jemand von dir trennen wollen, meine Lizzy, der deiner weniger würdig wäre.“ Um den günstigen Eindruck zu vollenden, erzählte sie ihm dann, was Mr. Darcy aus freien Stücken für Lydia getan hatte. Er hörte es mit Staunen. „Das ist in der Tat ein Abend voller Wunder! Also Darcy hat das alles getan, hat die Heirat zustande gebracht, das Geld gegeben, die Schulden dieses Burschen bezahlt und ihm seine Offiziersstelle gekauft! Um so besser. Das wird mich vor einer Unmenge Sorgen und Sparmaßnahmen bewahren. Wenn dein Onkel das alles getan hätte, dann müßte und würde ich ihm das Geld zurückzahlen; aber diese ungestümen jungen Liebhaber machen alles auf ihre Weise. Ich werde ihm morgen die Rückzahlung anbieten, dann wird er stürmen und von seiner Liebe zu dir schwärmen, und damit wird die Sache ein Ende haben.“

(7.9). Andrea Ott (2003), 585–88 Der Vater schritt im Zimmer auf und ab und sah ernst und besorgt aus. „Lizzy“, sagte er, „was machst du für Sachen? Bist du von Sinnen, daß du diesen Mann erhörst? Hast du ihn nicht immer gräßlich gefunden?“ Wie sehnlich wünschte sie sich nun, sie hätte früher vernünftiger gedacht und sich zurückhaltender geäußert! Das hätte ihr die überaus peinlichen Erklärungen und Geständnisse erspart, die nun nötig wurden, und sie versicherte ihm ein wenig verlegen, daß sie Mr. Darcy liebe. „Mit anderen Worten, du willst ihn unbedingt haben. Natürlich, er ist reich, und du hast dann vielleicht schönere Kleider und Kutschen als Jane. Aber macht dich das glücklich?“/ „Haben Sie noch andere Einwände als die Vermutung, er sei mir gleichgültig?“ fragte Elizabeth.

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„Nein, keine. Wir alle haben ihn als stolzen, wenig umgänglichen Menschen kennengelernt, aber das hat nichts zu sagen, wenn du ihn wirklich gern hast.“ „Ja, ich habe ihn gern“, erwiderte sie mit Tränen in den Augen, „ich liebe ihn. Und sein Stolz ist ja nicht unberechtigt. Mr. Darcy ist äußerst liebenswürdig. Sie wissen nicht, wie er wirklich ist, tun Sie mir also bitte nicht weh, indem Sie so über ihn sprechen.“ „Lizzy“, antwortete der Vater, „ich habe ihm meine Einwilligung gegeben. Ohnehin würde ich nicht wagen, ihm zu verweigern, worum er mich zu bitten geruht. Nun gebe ich sie dir auch, wenn du entschlossen bist, ihn zum Mann zu nehmen. Aber ich rate dir, überleg es dir noch einmal. Ich kenne dich, Lizzy. Ich weiß, daß du weder glücklich wärst noch dir anständig vorkämst, wenn du deinen Mann nicht wirklich achten, nicht zu ihm als dem Überlegenen aufsehen könntest. Deine Lebhaftigkeit brächte dich in einer ungleichen Ehe in größte Gefahr. Du könntest der Peinlichkeit und dem Unglück kaum entkommen. Mach mir keinen Kummer, mein Kind. Ich will nicht mit ansehen müssen, daß auch du deinen Lebens/gefährten nicht achten kannst. Du weißt nicht, worauf du dich einläßt.“ Elizabeth war tief bewegt und antwortete ihm ernst und feierlich. Nachdem sie mehrmals beteuert hatte, Mr. Darcy sei tatsächlich der Mann ihrer Wahl, nachdem sie geschildert hatte, wie sich ihre Meinung über ihn allmählich gewandelt habe, nachdem sie ihre Überzeugung dargelegt hatte, daß seine Liebe keine Eintagsfliege, sondern durch viele Monate der Ungewißheit erprobt sei, und nachdem sie schließlich hingebungsvoll seine guten Eigenschaften aufgezählt hatte, bezwang sie am Ende ihres Vaters Zweifel und versöhnte ihn mit dieser Ehe. „Na gut, mein Liebes“, versetzte er, als sie geendet hatte, „ich habe nichts mehr zu sagen. Wenn dies alles zutrifft, dann verdient er dich. Für einen Unwürdigeren hätte ich mich nicht von dir getrennt, Lizzy.“ Um den günstigen Eindruck noch zu vervollständigen, erzählte sie ihm nun, was Mr. Darcy aus freien Stücken für Lydia getan hatte. Er vernahm es erstaunt. „Das ist tatsächlich ein Abend voller Wunder! Also hat Mr. Darcy alles bewerkstelligt – die Hochzeit zustande gebracht, das Geld gegeben, dem Kerl die Schulden bezahlt und ihm sein Offizierspatent verschafft. Um so besser. Das erspart/mir eine Menge Sorgen und Knauserei. Wenn es dein Onkel gewesen wäre, hätte ich es zurückzahlen müssen und wollen. Aber diese leidenschaftlichen jungen Liebhaber handeln immer nach ihrem eigenen Kopf. Ich werde ihm morgen anbieten, alles zurückzuzahlen, dann wird er protestieren und mir großartige Reden über seine Liebe halten, und die Sache hat sich.“

Elena Baeva

‘My name is Lizzie Bennet, and this is my [vlog]’ – Adaptation and Metareference in The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

As many of the other articles in this publication demonstrate, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice1 has been the object of many adaptations and re-imaginings over the last two centuries. In April 2012, a further work joined their ranks in the form of a webseries called The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.2 Created by Hank Green and Bernie Su, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries are at their core a fictional youtube vlog (or video blog), in which a modern-day American Elizabeth, or Lizzie as she would rather be called, shares her life with the world as part of a university project required for her advanced degree in mass communication. Over the course of exactly one hundred episodes, each on average between three and five minutes long, the story of Pride and Prejudice is thus told through narration and re-enactments by Lizzie, as well as through guest appearances by other characters. Lizzie’s video diaries cover the entire novel and as such would by themselves have constituted a full adaptation of the original text. However, the creators chose to expand the scope of their project so that it is not just a webseries adaptation of the novel but really a web-adaptation in the widest sense: First of all, Lizzie’s vlogs are accompanied by vlog-miniseries of minor characters such as Lydia3 or Charlotte’s sister Maria,4 which provide viewers with additional perspectives on events. Furthermore, when the series was launched, all the characters came with their own twitter pages: Their tweets, their direct messages and the timing of characters following and unfollowing each other, while not necessary to understand the story unfolding in the vlogs, definitely contributed 1 For this paper, I have used the Penguin Classics edition of the novel: Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London et al.: Penguin, 2003 [1813]. 2 The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/ LizzieBennet (accessed 10 May, 2014). 3 Lydia Bennet’s Channel. Pemberley Digital 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/The LydiaBennet (accessed 10 May, 2014). 4 Maria Lu’s Channel. Pemberley Digital 2012. http://www.youtube.com/user/MariaOfTheLu (accessed 10 May, 2014).

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to the characterisation of the characters and their relationships with each other, as well as to the central message the creators of this adaptation were trying to convey about the role of social media in today’s society. Already the very first episode of the webseries5 is a perfect example of the creators’ approach to the adaptation: on the one hand, it contains several iconic elements that have been kept down to their actual wording, such as Mr Bennet’s monosyllabic responses of “How so?”6 or even the famous descriptive opening sentence. On the other hand, the episode showcases a variety of changes, such as the inclusion of the present-day white-picket-fence ideal7 or Lizzie’s educational and professional aspirations,8 made in order to modernise the plot and characters. Moreover, the episode draws attention to the transformations made necessary by the different medium, such as the shortening and accordingly adapted pacing required by the three-to-five minute length of a webisode or the reworking of the entire narrative structure demanded by the inherently firstperson and monologue-like nature of a vlog. For even if Austen’s famously dramatic dialogue makes her novels particularly well-suited for the screen9 and even if her frequent use of character focalisation makes her narrative voice, as Jocelyn Harris has pointed out, often “so coloured by a character’s thoughts that it might just as well be called an unspoken soliloquy”,10 there still remains the question of the equally famous ironic commentary provided by the narrative voice11 and how it could possibly be incorporated into the new medium. It would, therefore, certainly be worthwhile to take a closer look at all these medium-based changes and to examine how exactly the adaptation from one medium into another is achieved, plus what that tells us about each respective medium (‘novel’ on the one hand, ‘webseries’ on the other) as an art form. For 5 “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 9 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KisuGP2lcPs (accessed 10 May, 2014). 6 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 6 vs. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep. 1”. 2:01. 7 Cf. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 0:39. 8 Cf. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 0:16–0:20. 9 Cf. e. g. Stafford, Fiona. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Fiona Stafford. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 2008 [1813]. vii–xxxii, xxvii; Harris, Jocelyn. “Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 39–54, 43; Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49, 145; Carroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73, 164. 10 Harris. “Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park.” 40. Cf. also e. g. Stafford. “Introduction.” xxviii. 11 Cf. e. g. Keymer, Thomas. “Narrative.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 1–14, 11, 14.

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the purposes of this paper, however, I believe that there are more productive paths of analysis to pursue. In fact, I would argue that even though the choice of a new medium automatically raises questions about the place of said medium in the context of artistic tradition, the real interest of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries’ creators lies in the position of their medium within society. To prove this claim, one only needs to look at the webseries’ metareferential statements in correlation to its depiction of present-day society – a depiction which is created by the adaptation of the central issues of Pride and Prejudice to issues of our time, and which is accompanied by the suggestion that new media play a central part in several of these modernised concerns. In accordance with many recent adaptation studies theories,12 the focus of the creators of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries seems to have been put not just on the transposition of early nineteenth-century plot elements into an early twentyfirst-century setting, but on finding the modern-day equivalents of the original issues depicted in the plot: They have tried to preserve the emotional impact as well as the social and cultural relevance of the different problems rather than their factual representation in the story. I would like to start at the beginning, with the topics that give Jane Austen’s work its title, namely with the concepts of ‘pride’ and ‘prejudice’ and their depiction in the original text versus in the adaptation. It is a truth universally acknowledged that the novel is filled to the brim with instances in which characters are misled by one or both of these traits, and that, in many of these instances, the reader is enticed to fall into the same pitfalls as the protagonists – for example by being introduced to characters and situations through the limited perspective of another character rather than through an objective description given by the omniscient narrator.13 The Lizzie Bennet Diaries adopt a very similar approach to conveying these ideas: More often than not, viewers get acquainted with Lizzie’s costume-theatre-parody versions of characters and situations long before they get to see actual footage of

12 Theories of adaptation as ‘translation’ or ‘appropriation’ provide a good starting point; for introductory terminological discussions cf. e. g. Emig, Rainer. “Adaptation in Theory.” In: Pascal Nicklas and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin/ Boston, MA: Walter de Gruyter, 2012. 14–24; Leitch, Thomas. “Adaptation and Intertextuality, or, What isn’t an Adaptation, and What Does it Matter?” In: Deborah Cartmell (ed.). Literature, Film, and Adaptation. Oxford et al.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. 87–104; Nicklas, Pascal and Oliver Lindner. “Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation.” In: Pascal Nicklas and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin/Boston, MA: Walter de Gruyter, 2012. 1–13. 13 A perfect example being the scene in chapter III of the novel, in which Mr Darcy is introduced by descriptions of how he is perceived by the Longbourn society : first “pronounced […] to be a fine figure of a man”, but soon “discovered to be proud”. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 12.

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the people in question and thus get to form an opinion for themselves14 – if they ever get to see any footage at all that is (the parent generation, for example, never appears on camera). While Pride and Prejudice presents the prejudiced behaviour at times displayed by Elizabeth Bennet as a personal flaw, possibly encouraged by the communal context,15 The Lizzie Bennet Diaries suggest that nowadays it might be a flaw at least partially indulged by the medium under discussion. At one point in episode twelve Lizzie exclaims: “Of course I’m biased, it’s my video blog!”,16 and this statement exposes exactly the heart of the matter : vlogs, like any type of opinion piece, are highly subjective – and while this subjectivity can provide some insight and a lot more entertainment, the episode explicitly reminds viewers to not forget that they are not getting the full picture. In the novel, many sources of proud or prejudiced behaviour can be traced back to two things: rigid, divisive, deprecating, class-based social norms on the one hand, and a lack of communication or even opportunities for communication on the other.17 It would be easy to assume that in today’s supposedly casteless Western society with so many new means of communication at our disposal, those issues might have become outdated. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, however, argue that this is not the case at all. Starting off with modern-day communication, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries are full of examples of people using new media and technology to communicate – however, if one takes a closer look at what kind of communication those new devices are used for, it turns out to be predominantly for gossip: While Austen’s 14 Mr Darcy’s, or just Darcy’s as he is called in this adaptation, first full on-screen appearance (he appears partially out of frame at the end of the previous episode) is in episode sixty “Are You Kidding Me – Ep: 60.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 1 November, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZqL4ux1Yq0 (accessed 10 May, 2014) while his first detailed on-screen mentioning by Lizzie (again, there is a partial hint already in the previous episode) occurs as early as episode six “Snobby Mr. Douchey – Ep: 6.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 26 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Lmo22 HWhbM (accessed 10 May, 2014). 15 Cf. Deresiewicz, William. “Community and Cognition in Pride and Prejudice.” In: ELH: English Literary History 64,2 (1997): 503–35, 504–05. 16 “Jane Chimes In – Ep: 12.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 17 May, 2012. http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWlao8AurF0 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:45. 17 As is argued in Russell, Gillian. “Sociability.” (In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 176–91), ideas of the advantages of cross-gender and cross-class interaction were still comparatively new at the time Austen was writing her novel. Only slowly, as a result of the industrial, commercial and cultural growth of the eighteenth century (cf. e. g. 183), had people started to believe that “social interaction between men and women and to a certain degree between the classes, specifically the elite and the upper-middling orders, was morally and socially beneficial, ameliorating the effects of division and conflict and advancing the ideals of progress” (177).

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neighbourhood women still needed to meet up on the street to exchange the latest news, the ‘2.5WPF-club’ mentioned in the first episode18 is said to use Facebook to share information.19 The young generation is even more versatile, with Lydia explaining her method of learning more about Bing Lee (as Mr Bingley is called in this adaptation) as “I talked to Marie, who texted Ben, who called his–”20 – at which point Lizzie cuts her off. Even worse than this (ab)use for mere gossip, new media and technology are shown to be used frequently to talk at each other without actually having to talk to each other : For example, in this adaptation, just like in the novel, Bing Lee does not inform Jane of his departure from Netherfield – he does, however, tweet how much he is looking forward to spending time in Los Angeles.21 Similarly, Lizzie and Lydia, instead of just sitting down and talking with each other, spend large portions of their respective vlogs either talking about each other, or talking passive-aggressively at the camera for the sole purpose of having their respective sister hear what they have to say when they watch the video.22 As for class-based snobbism as depicted in the novel versus the adaptation, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries suggest that while the criteria for a feeling of entitlement and superiority might have partially changed over the last two centuries (after all, nobility as a social class does not really exist in present-day America), the concept in itself certainly has not. First of all, the vlog makes a point of exposing the obviously still existing financial divide and the effect it can have on how people are perceived by society : Mrs Bennet, for example, is shown to make use of food coupons – however, she then feels the need to go shopping at 4am so that the neighbours do not see her doing it.23 Similarly, while his 18 Cf. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1”. 0:34–0:40. 19 Cf. “Bing Lee and His 500 Teenage Prostitutes – Ep: 4.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 19 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KjOskZJEAc (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:32–0:35. 20 Cf. “Bing Lee and His 500 Teenage Prostitutes – Ep: 4.” 1:53. 21 Cf. Lee, Bing (bingliest). “Small towns are great, but back to the big city. Hello Los Angeles…”. 16 September, 2012, 4:45 pm. Tweet. https://twitter.com/bingliest/status/ 247481241073491968 (accessed 10 May, 2014) as well as on-screen mention in “It’s About Communicating – Ep: 47.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 17 September, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf8vHNTEMLU (accessed 10 May, 2014). 3:33–3:43. 22 Cf. e. g. “How to Hold a Grudge – Ep: 74.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 20 December, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esUyfCYDJwM (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:07–2:40; “Dear Lizzie.” The Lydia Bennet. Pemberley Digital. 19 December, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryXOrkSkaeQ (accessed 10 May, 2014); “Wishing Something Universal – Ep: 76.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 27 December, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69 g6ANxq0eg (accessed 10 May, 2014). 3:05–3:20; “Strangers – Ep: 24.” The Lydia Bennet. Pemberley Digital. 11 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DVIdyFiXSc (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:29–3:22. 23 Cf. “The Green Bean Gelatin Plan – Ep: 19.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 11 June, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce_URjhJ3Xs (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:29.

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daughters are drowning in student loans24 and the family might not be able to keep up with the mortgage payments on the family home25 (the modern day version of having one’s property entailed), it is suggested that Mr Bennet still keeps renewing his local club membership.26 And on a less discriminatory level, Lizzie, Bing Lee and Georgiana Darcy during a conversation get to experience the awkwardness and at least temporary distance created by the latter two’s everyday hobbies and activities being entirely alien to Lizzie because they are simply unaffordable for her or any member of her family.27 Yet, even while acknowledging this still-existing importance of money for a person’s social standing, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries suggest that financial status is not everything anymore. Already in the first episode it is established that Bing Lee, in this adaptation, does not only come from a rich family, but that he is also Harvard-educated and training to be a doctor.28 This mask is applied across all characters to replace pure birth- and property-ownership-based elitism with one additionally built upon educational as well as professional success – a change which, in fact, is not really as big as it might sound if one considers that in Austen’s works owning and managing an estate says at least as much about a character’s moral values and attitude towards responsibility as it does about his or her financial status.29 Either way, according to the webseries, the consequences of the economic divide have remained the same: in the present day, people who cannot afford an ivy–league education are shown to be looked down upon, and doctors and CEOs of media companies (Bing Lee and Darcy, respectively) are often perceived as a very different, and even as a ‘better’ class of people than, say, a ‘mere’ aspiring fashion designer or a web-content creator (Jane and Lizzie, respectively). As Darcy points out during his first, unfortunately phrased declaration of his love for Lizzie: “You can’t deny it. Social classes are a real thing. People who think otherwise live in a phantasy.”30 The social and familiar pressures behind choosing a well-paid and well24 Cf. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 0:17; “Bing Lee and His 500 Teenage Prostitutes – Ep: 4.” 0:07. 25 Cf. “The Green Bean Gelatin Plan – Ep: 19.” 3:45–4:15. 26 Cf. “My Parents: Opposingly Supportive – Ep: 3.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 16 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e926p_3UXes (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:23. 27 Cf. “Awkward – Ep: 81.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 21 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SByg6RiLCZ4 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:12–3:11. 28 Cf. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 1:53. 29 Cf. Markley, Robert. “The Economic Context.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 79–96, 79, 88; Selwyn, David. “Making a Living.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 144–58, 144–45. 30 “Are You Kidding Me – Ep: 60.” 2:13–2:16.

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respected job are shown to be so strong that Bing Lee throughout this adaptation does not only need to learn to stand up for his love for Jane, but he also needs to find the strength to tell his parents that while he does want to help people, he does not really want to become a doctor.31 Which brings us to another central theme of Pride and Prejudice, namely that of social norms and expectations. In the novel, a lot of these are directed at the female protagonists, by which I mean Lizzie, but also her sisters and even Charlotte. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries pick up the motif and once again translate it into modern times to show that, while the exact ruleset for women might have changed, its rigidity has not changed enough. This idea is probably seen most clearly in the adaptation of Lydia. The webseries takes the character much more seriously and adds quite a lot of depth to the youngest Bennet sister by giving her her own vlog and thus a voice, a chance to explain her motivations, and to move past being merely the “humps the neighbour’s leg, never know where she sleeps puppy”,32 the “stupid whorey slut”33 or the “boycrazy, completely irresponsible substance-abuser”34 which her sister initially makes her out to be. Lydia’s plotline is arguably the most changed one in this adaptation – and necessarily so, seeing how just having her elope and/or have pre-marital sex with Wickham would not, generally speaking, carry quite the same social stigma today as it would have when the novel was written. Leading up to the release of the relevant episodes, the youtube comments section of the previous videos was full of speculation as to what the appropriate modern-day equivalent to the Lydia story should be, the two most common assumptions being that she would either get pregnant, or that she would get raped (or both). Instead, the creators once again opted for a solution which helped tie in the overall theme of ‘the effect of new media on our society’: namely, Wickham talks her into making a supposedly private sex-tape which he then threatens to post on the internet in exchange for subscription fees. This plot change – while still remaining close to the novel’s idea of Lydia never stopping her socially frowned-upon behaviour “till she has exposed herself”35 (as her father famously calls it) – is once again also a very pointed commentary on modern-day society : on the one hand, it shows that we are still far away from finding every type of female overt sexuality socially 31 Cf. “Goodbye Jane – Ep: 92.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 28 February, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTD2Fz-p048 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:11–2:40. 32 “My Sisters: Problematic to Practically Perfect – Ep: 2.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 12 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Yq7aJ2uVBg (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:11. 33 “My Sisters: Problematic to Practically Perfect – Ep: 2”. 0:11. 34 “One Sister Behind – Ep: 23.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 25 June, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ox8Lug9Qm8 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 3:23. 35 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 222, my emphasis.

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acceptable, and on the other, it once more demonstrates one of the darker sides of social media. Finally, the one aspect of society’s expectations towards women needs to be mentioned which, at least according to The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, has changed quite substantially over the last two centuries: society’s approach towards marriage. Already the very first episode of the webseries argues that, with the exception of backward, conservative, southern belle mothers, most members of modern society do not see marriage as the one and only life goal for women anymore – a state mainly due to the fact that financial stability and existential security (which is what marriage stands for in Austen’s novel and what makes Mrs Bennet’s obsession with marrying off her daughters in fact a serious ‘business’ in an almost literal sense36) can nowadays also be achieved by women through having a successful career. Furthermore, there is not a single wedding in the webseries finale but instead the happy end contains ‘only’ two couples in love, more or less settled in fulfilling, well-paid jobs.37 In addition to withholding the final weddings and replacing them with comparative job-security, the webseries further draws a parallel between the two situations by translating questions raised in relation to marriage throughout the novel – such as whether love and romance should be what matters most, or whether practical motivations should be rated higher – into questions about how to choose one’s career. For example, in this adaptation, Mr Collins does not present Lizzie and Charlotte with a marriage- but with a business-proposal. Just like in the novel, the first of the two young women declines for idealistic reasons while the second one, adopting a much more realist approach to the world, accepts, leading to a confrontation between the two friends. The The Lizzie Bennet Diaries scene38 builds upon several previous on-screen conversations in which Charlotte argues the unpredictable nature of success39 while Lizzie prefers to daydream about Charlotte’s future fame40 and how she herself will “save the

36 Cf. Tandon, Bharat. “The Historical Background.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 67–78, 75. 37 Interestingly enough, a lot of viewers complained about this in the youtube comment section – a reaction which would suggest that our society’s attitude towards marriage or at least towards marriage as a narrative signifier of a happy ending has not really changed quite as much as the creators of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries would have us believe. A detailed analysis of these viewer responses would certainly provide material for further study. 38 “Friends Forever – Ep: 42.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 30 August, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XyCZwD0KP4 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 39 “Happiness in the Pursuit of Life – Ep: 16.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 31 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpCzkeDY4jc (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:52–3:18. 40 “Happiness in the Pursuit of Life – Ep: 16.” 1:21–1:31, 2:34.

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world [and] change the culture”.41 Eventually, Lizzie’s total lack of understanding for what she calls Charlotte’s “robotic”, “cynical” and “clinical”42 approach to professional success (Charlotte herself sees it as being “practical” and “sensible”43) culminates in a highly emotional outburst depicted in the fortysecond episode. The episode constitutes a particularly striking example of the webseries’ approach to adaptation. Firstly, if one looks at the issues raised in the equivalent scene in the novel,44 one can see how they have all been transported into the adaptation, even if the word ‘marriage’ is replaced with what the creators consider to be a more modern equivalent: In both versions, Charlotte is depicted as being in a more difficult position than her friend (where in the novel she was older, unattractive and of lesser fortune45 she is now just shown to be in even more debilitating debt with even more pressing familial responsibilities46) and thus unable to afford a romantic outlook, as a result of which she chooses a future which, whilst lacking romance, will provide her and her family with financial stability and comfort47 – a decision which dismays Lizzie, who, in both versions, feels her friend is degrading herself and fears for her happiness.48 Moreover, the episode shows that even when discussing a universal issue of our time, such as professional fulfilment, the creators always aim to infuse the conversation with metareferential commentary : In this case, they argue the difference between good and bad web-content and juxtapose creative expression and integrity with that most common of insults directed against youtube content-creators nowadays, namely that of being a ‘sell-out’ – in the end, this episode is as much about webvideo as it is about social restrictions and professional choices. Which is why I would now like to move on to the final part of this paper and take a closer look at the types of meta-commentary used in The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, as well as at their possible function. From its very first episode, the webseries is full of a wide variety of both implicit and explicit metareferences.49 41 “Special Delivery – Ep 97.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 18 March, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_VggVYMg9Y (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:56; cf. “The Semester is Over – Ep: 21.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 18 June, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgK-KQJ1XQQ (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:27–3:17. 42 “Happiness in the Pursuit of Life – Ep: 16.” 3:22, 3:27, 3:29. 43 “Happiness in the Pursuit of Life – Ep: 16.” 3:26, 3:28. 44 Cf. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 120–23. 45 Cf. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 120. 46 Cf. “Friends Forever – Ep: 42.” 1:23–1:36. 47 Cf. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 120, 123 vs. “Friends Forever – Ep: 42.” 1:54, 3:00–3:12. 48 Cf. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 123 vs. “Friends Forever – Ep: 42.” 2:54, 3:20–3:28. 49 For a concise theoretical introduction to the terminology, cf. Wolf, Werner. “Metareference across Media. The Concept, its Transmedial Potentials and Problems, Main Forms and

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On the highly implicit side of the spectrum, there is the mere fact that the work is presented as a fictional vlog. For it to be recognised as such, the creators employ a wide variety of vlog-tropes and features such as medium close-up framing, a quite high number of jump-cuts, floating text, etc. and in the process draw attention to the existence of these features. Then there is Charlotte’s repeated movement from behind the camera into frame and back,50 reminding viewers of the presence of the camera in the first place, just like there are the always visible script pages for the costume theatre51 – all features drawing further attention to the mediated nature of what the audience is seeing. Still, to understand the creators’ views on the potential as well as the potential problems of new media, one would not even have to look for these implicit signs of self-awareness or to analyse what they are trying to convey through them. As the previously discussed choices when it comes to the depiction of social issues of our times show, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries are often very explicit about what they are, and publicly discuss the features of their chosen medium: There are plenty of instances in which tropes and features of vlogs are not only employed but are intra-diegetically discussed by characters on screen:52 there are debates about the right way to open53 and end54 a video or about how many subjects should be addressed;55 there are references to viewers56 and playlists;57 there are honest admissions that certain things, such as cute cat videos, are shown to boost view numbers;58 there are explanations as to how copyright issues prevent Lizzie from singing Christmas songs on camera;59 and many more.

50 51 52

53 54 55 56 57 58 59

Function.” In: Werner Wolf (ed.). Metareference across Media. Theory and Case Studies. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2009. 1–88, 39–40, 47–48. Cf. e. g. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 1:22; “Friends Forever – Ep: 42.” 2:12–2:38. Cf. e. g. “My Name Is Lizzie Bennet – Ep: 1.” 1:30. Cf. Irina O. Rajewsky’s distinction between ‘discourse’/‘form’-based and ‘story’/‘content’based metaization techniques: Rajeswky, Irina O. “Beyond ‘Metanarration’. Form-Based Metareference as a Transgeneric and Transmedial Phenomenon.” In: Werner Wolf (ed.). Metareference across Media. Theory and Case Studies. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2009. 135–68. Cf e. g. “After the Wedding: The Real Bing Lee – Ep: 5.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 23 April, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vV3JJUpwC40 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:27. Cf e. g. “My Sisters: Problematic to Practically Perfect – Ep: 2.” 3:21–3:28; “My Parents: Opposingly Supportive – Ep: 3.” 2:58–3:03. Cf. “The Charming Mr. Lee – Ep: 11.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 14 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4I_Vaw9MbOI (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:31–2:34. Cf. e. g. “The Semester is Over – Ep: 21.” 0:46–0:56, 1:16–1:18. Cf. “Welcome to Netherfield – Ep: 27.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 9 July, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nabp4vu_kv0 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:27–0:30. Cf. “Cats and Chinchillas – Ep: 10.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 10 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdhKqIXGq2k (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:04–0:20. Cf. “Merry Christmas – Ep: 75.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 24 December, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYfwqsz5_9Q (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:49–1:08.

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In addition, there are also more ‘professional’ or even theoretical conversations on the topic of webvideo: Lizzie and Charlotte debate how polished a video should be since viewers demand a feeling of “authenticity”.60 Mr Collins gives several speeches on the untapped market potential of webvideo now that the newest generation is supposedly leaving conventional media for youtube just like the previous left broadcast for cable;61 and Mr Collins also points out the market value of Lizzie’s emotional connection to her audience62 – an obviously very mercantile approach to her vlog which is eventually juxtaposed by Darcy complimenting her on her ability to create works which resonate with people.63 And then there is even an almost academic conversation between Darcy and Lizzie on the concept of hyper-mediation and the function of costume theatre in her videos.64 Most importantly, however, and often in close relation to the social issues mentioned before, a lot of screen time is spent on explicitly debating the moral concerns raised by posting content on the internet. For example, there is the question of how far one should go when insulting people. I have already mentioned the kind of derogatory words Lizzie uses when talking about Lydia in her early vlogs, and her initial treatment of Darcy65 and Mr Collins66 is not any different. Admittedly, she is not much less energetic when fighting with either of them in person67 – yet the fact that she increasingly worries about people knowing about her videos68 (and that she at one point even realises that Darcy could sue her for some of the things she has said69) still shows that, as she 60 Cf. “Charlotte’s Back! – Ep: 8.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 3 May, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grSiQyC2RoY (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:00–0:14. 61 Cf. “Mr. Collins Returns (Extended Edition) – Ep: 36.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 11 August, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EG5VOu_hME4 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:41–2:53. 62 Cf. “Mr. Collins Returns (Extended Edition) – Ep: 36.” 3:38–3:44. 63 Cf. “Corporate Interview – Ep: 83.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 28 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FZv3LsrOEsY (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:49. 64 Cf. “Hyper-Mediation in New Media – Ep: 80.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 17 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ambbh_61wAw (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:37–2:20. 65 Cf. “Snobby Mr. Douchey – Ep: 6.” 66 Cf. “Vidcon Interruption – Ep: 25.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 2 July, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU6nVwRPcp8 (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:25–3:00. 67 Cf. “The Insistent Proposal – Ep: 39.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 20 August, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmZzaAsPHNo (accessed 10 May, 2014). 4:10–4:32; “Are You Kidding Me! – Ep: 60.” 2:17–4:30. 68 Cf. “Tour Leader – Ep: 77.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 7 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6 J0lWiItdTA (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:45, 2:50. 69 Cf. “Yeah I Know – Ep: 61.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 5 November, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlZ86QA9Qro (accessed 10 May, 2014). 1:41–1:50.

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matures through her experiences, she feels less and less comfortable with some of the things she has posted for the whole world to see. In a way, Lizzie is thus shown to demonstrate and grow out of at least partial traits of the typical and rather paradoxical pseudo-anonymous ‘troll’-behaviour social media is so often criticised for enticing. Another good example of moral issues brought up by The Lizzie Bennet Diaries in the context of social media would be the question of how much of others, or even of oneself, one should share with the internet in the first place, seeing how, as Lizzie points out to Lydia, “the internet is forever”70 and publicised transgressions can therefore have a lingering negative impact on one’s future. Being part of web-culture themselves, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries unsurprisingly do not answer this question too negatively – for even while the webseries exposes the pitfalls of new media and warns the audience about them, it also depicts the potential of the medium to do good. Eventually, both Lydia71 and Georgiana72 express the need to appear on camera, to open up and to publically share their experience with Wickham as a way of proving their own strength as well as of hopefully helping others who might have had similar experiences. To sum things up: There is a consensus amongst many critics that Pride and Prejudice is at its core a novel about society and social conventions.73 Even if many present-day adaptations seem to focus on the nostalgic and romantic facets of the novel74 up to such an extreme degree that, as Lisa Hopkins remarks, “Austen herself might be surprised at the extent to which her strong impulses to satire and social comedy have been subordinated to a stress on the erotic appeal 70 “Consequences – Ep: 85.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 4 February, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97SJYdxQPcg (accessed 10 May, 2014). 3:34–3:44. 71 Cf. e. g. “Revelations – Ep: 94.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 7 March, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrPen-GwIuA (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:26–0:36, 3:49–4:04. 72 Cf. e. g. “Checks and Balances – Ep: 82.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 24 January, 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3nUxHf-BuM (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:36–1:12. 73 Cf. e. g. Deresiewicz. “Community and Cognition” for the idea of society being its own character in the novel; McMaster, Juliet. “Class.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Second Edition. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 111–26 for Austen as a “social commentator[…]” (114); Tanner, Tony. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London et al.: Penguin Books, 2003 [1813]. xi–xxxvi for Austen’s writings as “detailed analyses of social manners” (xiv); Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” 139, 142 for the nineteenthcentury appreciation of Austen’s depiction of women and society. 74 Cf. e. g. Carroll and Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” 162–63; Sutherland, Kathryn. “Jane Austen on Screen.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 215–31, 220; Tanner. “Introduction.” xii.

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of a wet-shirted Mr. Darcy”,75 Austen’s work is in reality filled to the brim with observations on what was expected of both women and men in the early nineteenth century, what the rules of interaction and communication were and what was generally considered acceptable behaviour in that society. Similarly, I would argue that, two centuries later, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries attempt to uncover the rules and conventions of our present-day new-mediasaturated society through the use of adaptation as a means to expose these rules and conventions by contrasting and mirroring them with the traditional norms of Austen’s time as well as her medium. By doing this in the form of a fictional vlog, the creators had the opportunity to entertain through parodist elements and to demonstrate new media’s potential for critical work76 – but most importantly they had the opportunity to reach exactly the audience they wanted to educate about the strengths and weaknesses of social media, namely the people that actively engage in it. Just as the original Elizabeth, and through her the novel’s readers, needed to learn that pride and prejudice are not a reliable base for finding happiness, modern-day Lizzie and her audience are asked to learn to step beyond the use of social media as a mere exhibitionist platform to show off one’s own opinionated self, and to instead use the new means at their disposal to be creative and to exchange ideas with a community, never forgetting to try and see things through other people’s eyes (one only needs to compare the striking difference between Lizzie’s initial use of costume theatre merely to make fun of others with her later use of the same to honestly view a situation from other people’s perspective77). Last but not least, the webseries’ viewers are further encouraged to eventually let go of what Jane in one episode refers to as Lizzie’s “safety-blanket”78 and to enter into actual real-life social interactions. After all, as Lizzie observes herself, “Talking to the internet – not the same as talking to people”.79

75 Hopkins, Lisa. “Shakespeare to Austen on Screen.” In: Deborah Cartmell (ed.). Literature, Film, and Adaptation. Oxford et al.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. 241–55, 242. 76 Cf. Wolf. “Metareference across Media.” 65–68 for a more detailed, theoretical analysis of these functions of metareference. 77 Cf. e. g. the depiction of Mrs Bennet in “Bing Lee and His 500 Teenage Prostitutes – Ep: 4.” 0:52–1:30 vs. the way Lizzie tries to imagine what Charlotte would say to her in “Talking to Myself – Ep: 96.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 14 March, 2013. http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkGIftBxcOw (accessed 10 May, 2014). 2:33–3:08. 78 “Nope! He Doesn’t Like Me! – Ep: 33.” The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 30 July, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOIPj5JPhiA (accessed 10 May, 2014). 0:28. 79 “Talking to Myself – Ep: 96.” 3:36.

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References Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London et al.: Penguin, 2003 [1813]. Carroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73. Deresiewicz, William. “Community and Cognition in Pride and Prejudice.” In: ELH: English Literary History 64,2 (1997): 503–35. Emig, Rainer. “Adaptation in Theory.” In: Pascal Nicklas and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin/Boston, MA: Walter de Gruyter, 2012. 14–24. Harris, Jocelyn. “Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 39–54. Hopkins, Lisa. “Shakespeare to Austen on Screen.” In: Deborah Cartmell (ed.). Literature, Film, and Adaptation. Oxford et al.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. 241–55. Keymer, Thomas. “Narrative.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 1–14. Leitch, Thomas. “Adaptation and Intertextuality, or, What isn’t an Adaptation, and What Does it Matter?” In: Deborah Cartmell (ed.). Literature, Film, and Adaptation. Oxford et al.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012. 87–104. Lydia Bennet’s Channel. Pemberley Digital 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/ TheLydiaBennet (accessed 10 May, 2014). Maria Lu’s Channel. Pemberley Digital 2012. http://www.youtube.com/user/MariaOfTheLu (accessed 10 May, 2014). Markley, Robert. “The Economic Context.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 79–96. McMaster, Juliet. “Class.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 111–26. Nicklas, Pascal and Oliver Lindner. “Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation.” In: Pascal Nicklas and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin/ Boston, MA: Walter de Gruyter, 2012. 1–13. Rajeswky, Irina O. “Beyond ‘Metanarration’. Form-Based Metareference as a Transgeneric and Transmedial Phenomenon.” In: Werner Wolf (ed.). Metareference across Media. Theory and Case Studies. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2009. 135–68. Russell, Gillian. “Sociability.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 176–91. Selwyn, David. “Making a Living.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 144–58.

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Stafford, Fiona. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Fiona Stafford. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, 2008 [1813]. vii–xxxii. Sutherland, Kathryn. “Jane Austen on Screen.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. 2nd edn. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 215–31. Tandon, Bharat. “The Historical Background.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 67–78. Tanner, Tony. “Introduction.” In: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Vivien Jones. London et al.: Penguin Books, 2003 [1813]. xi–xxxvi. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/ LizzieBennet (accessed 10 May, 2014). Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge et al.: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49. Wolf, Werner. “Metareference across Media. The Concept, its Transmedial Potentials and Problems, Main Forms and Function.” In: Werner Wolf (ed.). Metareference across Media. Theory and Case Studies. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2009. 1–88.

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Jane Austen Meets Bollywood: Forms and Functions of Transcultural Adaptations

1.

Introduction

Jane Austen is a global phenomenon. Not only does Austen play a vital role in England’s national heritage industry, but the transnational circulation and reception of Austen books and films shape the cultural imaginary well beyond the confines of Britain. One of the factors that fuels Austen’s popularity is the transformation of her work into a site for negotiating contemporary cultural identities. In the following, I am interested in exploring these transformations by concentrating on the Bollywoodization of Austen in film adaptations of her novels. The expression ‘Bollywood’ originally referred to the commercial Hindi movies that were produced in Bombay (today’s Mumbai), but it has meanwhile become a household-term for Indian mainstream cinema regardless of the production location.1 Contemporary Indian filmmakers may be drawn to Austen’s fiction due to her intense focus on local communities, the sociology of the family and the socio-economic dimension of marriage.2 Bollywood movies are renowned for their focus on kinship relations and on melodramatic emotions. Both of these elements are tied together as Tejaswini Ganti explains: for […] [Indian] filmmakers emotions are not about an individual but about his or her relationship with others. Rather than referring to internal states, filmmakers are re1 Many film scholars reject this term due to “its homogenizing strains and its suggestions of Indian cinema’s derivativeness” (Roy, Anjali Gera. “Introduction.” In: Anjali Gera Roy (ed.). The Magic of Bollywood. At Home and Abroad. New Delhi et al.: SAGE, 2012. 1–24, 2). 2 Cf. Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield: “What most fascinates the writers and directors from India to America are Austen’s focused descriptions of the family’s place within a social structure of a local and limited community, the tensions within the family, and the relationship of the male outsiders and potential mates to that family structure. Thus, Austen’s intense localism paradoxically allows Austen, in this generation of films, to go global. The search for a soul mate and the relationships of sisters and parents in a tight community can be duplicated easily and naturally, whether in Amritsar or Provo.” (Troost, Linda and Sayre Greenfield. “Appropriating Austen: Localism on the Global Scene.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008) n.p.).

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ferring to social life in their discussions about emotion […], which has been described as a general feature of the discourse of emotion in India […]. Therefore, adding emotions to a film involves placing a character in a web of social relations of which kin are the most significant and common in Hindi films. The absence of kinship-related conflicts and dilemmas in Hollywood films […] is offered [by Indian filmmakers] as a reason for [Indian] audiences’ inability to identify with such films.3

Austen’s detailed portrayals of family life hence appear as amenable to crosscultural adaptation in a cinematic culture that places prime importance on kinship. In order to analyse forms and functions of transcultural film adaptations, I will be working with two case studies by means of comparison: Rajiv Menon’s adaptation of Austen’s Sense and Sensibility in his Tamil-language movie Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000) and Gurinder Chadha’s Bride & Prejudice (2005). Menon’s movie was not marketed as a Jane Austen adaptation when it was originally released, but this changed with the reissued DVD in 2005, which targeted an international audience. The DVD boasted the English title I Have Found It, provided English subtitles (but no English synchronisation) and made explicit reference to Austen on its cover. In contrast to I Have Found It, Chadha’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice does not belong to Indian cinema, but is instead the result of a British-American co-production. It is notable for its striking mix of Hollywood and Bollywood conventions. While both adaptations use the creative appropriation of an English canonical text for a ‘postcolonial filming back’,4 they differ in their self-reflexive use of the adaptation process to gauge cultural identity in today’s globalized world. The ideal of transcultural communication and identity championed in Bride & Prejudice contrasts to the nationalist coding of metafilmic elements in I Have Found It. However, as I will show through the ensuing analysis, both movies lastly turn out to be more similar than different due to their domestication of alterity.

3 Ganti, Tejaswini. “ ‘ And Yet My Heart Is Still Indian’: The Bombay Film Industry and the (H)Indianization of Hollywood.” In: Lila Abu-Lughod, Faye Ginsburg and Brian Larkin (eds.). Media Worlds: Anthropology on New Terrain. Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2002. 281–300, 291. 4 On Bride & Prejudice as an example of ‘postcolonial talking back’, see Mathur, Suchitra. “From British ‘Pride’ to Indian ‘Bride’: Mapping the Contours of a Globalised (Post?)Colonialism.” In: M/C Journal: A Journal of Media and Culture 10,2 (2007). http://journal.mediaculture.org.au/0705/06-mathur.php (accessed 10 July, 2012).

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I Have Found It: The ‘Indianization’ of Austen’s Sense and Sensibility

Rajiv Menon appropriates Austen’s text to explore individual, but also national identity in an India treading the path between tradition and modernity. I Have Found It is set in contemporary India and explores different forms of subjectivity by concentrating on the two sisters Sowmya and Meenakshi, who have different attitudes towards arranged marriage. While the level-headed Sowmya embraces this tradition, Meenakshi strictly rejects entering an arranged marriage and instead dreams of passionate love with a hero prone to quote poetry. These different stances roughly correlate with the contrast of ‘sense’ and ‘sensibility’ in Austen’s novel. While Elinor Dashwood follows the rule of reason and social conventions, her sister Marianne espouses the cult of sensibility that markedly shaped literature during Austen’s time. Menon’s movie depicts family tensions and the impoverishment of the family after they have been excluded from inheritance before moving on to concentrate on the love interests of both sisters, who marry in the end. The twists of the plot draw on Ang Lee’s film adaptation of Sense and Sensibility (1995).5 In the following, I will focus on the metafilmic elements in I Have Found It because they can be read as a direct comment on the filmic process of transcultural adaptation and its cultural significance. A high number of metafilmic elements riddles the plot strand dealing with the young aspiring filmmaker Manohar (~ Edward Ferrars), who has set himself the goal of producing a Western action movie in India, namely a film entitled Speed. I Have Found It plays with the blatant plagiarism of Jan de Bont’s movie of the same title. Manohar is forced to make a number of changes in his film script in order to accommodate the Indian audience. A metafilmic dimension is introduced by the striking analogies between Manohar’s changes to his Western film script and Rajiv Menon’s film adaptation of Austen’s fiction. In both cases, one can identify what Tejaswini Ganti calls ‘indianization’. Ganti uses this term to describe how a film is adapted to the conventions of Indian commercial cinema. Her focus is not on determining “what is uniquely ‘Indian’ about the codes and conventions of mainstream [Indian] […] cinema”.6 Instead, she is interested in “how Hindi filmmakers think about and construct their audiences”

5 Cf. Simhan, R.N. “The Banquet of Desire: A South Indian Sense and Sensibility.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p.; Troost and Greenfield. “Appropriating Austen: Localism on the Global Scene.”; Hudelet, Ariane. “The Construction of a Myth: The ‘Cinematic Jane Austen’ as a Cross-Cultural Icon.” In: David Monaghan, Ariane Hudelet and John Wiltshire (eds.). The Cinematic Jane Austen: Essays on the Filmic Sensibility of the Novels. Jefferson, NC/London: McFarland, 2009. 148–59, 150. 6 Ganti. “And Yet My Heart Is Still Indian.” 283.

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in the context of cross-cultural adaptations.7 By introducing the character of an Indian filmmaker, whose nickname is Mister New York, Menon seems to comment on his own role as a “cultural mediato[r]”, who “evaluat[es] the appropriateness for […] [the Indian] audiences of stories, characterizations, and themes from certain Hollywood films”.8 The indianization of Western movies functions as a “practice of constituting difference – between India and the West”.9 According to Ganti, the process of indianization typically involves three elements.10 First of all, a strong focus on emotions is introduced. This element of ‘emotional excess’ explains why Western recipients often connect Indian mainstream movies with the Western tradition of melodrama.11 Secondly, the narrative is expanded to include a wealth of sub-plots, as in the case of I Have Found It with its plot line about Manohar’s film career. In this context, it is significant that the original title of Manohar’s film script is Speed. Indian filmmakers invariably cite this Hollywood blockbuster as a prime example of a film that would never have been produced like that in India due to its strict mono-linear structure.12 In keeping with Bollywood conventions, Manohar is required to produce a typical masala-film. The inclusion of song and dance scenes is an essential part of such an Indian multi-genre film and thus constitutes the third element of indianization. Due to these processes of indianization, I Have Found It presents Austen’s Sense and Sensibility as a colourful mix of melodramatic love story, spectacle and comedy. The indianization of Sense and Sensibility illustrates the interpretive acts of appropriation on which film adaptation rests and shows how these acts are influenced by the cultural context.13 Film censorship is still the rule in India, and many Indian filmmakers cater to what they assume to be a morally conservative audience. Against this backdrop, the song and dance scenes (especially the love 7 8 9 10 11

Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. 290. Alexandra Schneider offers an intriguing explanation for the ‘emotional excess’ in Indian cinema. It is typical for Bollywood movies to present characters as social types and not as fully-fledged individuals with psychological depth. Precisely because the audience is confronted with flat characters and not round characters an amplifier is needed to ensure an emotional response of the audience: hence the emotional excess. Schneider also briefly discusses the coding of emotions in Indian cinema in the context of Rasa theory – an ancient Indian theory of aesthetics. (Schneider, Alexandra. “ ‘ Ein folkloristisches Strassentheater, das unbeabsichtigt einen Brecht oder Godard gibt.’ Zur Kodierung von Emotionen im zeitgenössischen Hindi-Mainstream-Film.” In: Matthias Brütsch et al. (eds.). Kinogefühle. Emotionalität und Film. Marburg: Schüren, 2009 [2005]. 137–52.) 12 Cf. Ganti. “And Yet My Heart Is Still Indian.” 292–93. 13 Hutcheon, Linda. A Theory of Adaptation. New York/London: Routledge, 2006. 8, 142–67.

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songs) are of heightened importance because they constitute an imaginary realm – a break with realist causality –, which allows for the expression of wish fantasies and sexual desire.14 The imaginary quality of the song scenes helps to explain the often abrupt and for Western audiences baffling transitions between settings with the beginning of a song sequence. A case in point is the sensuous love song that Meenakshi and Srikanth (~ Willoughby) sing. The song transports the lovers from India to the Scottish highlands. The imaginary nature of the sexually charged dancing between Meenakshi and Srikanth is emphasized by a mise-en-abyme structure: we see Meenakshi watching how she and Srikanth are dancing together. The setting of their love song in the Scottish mountain regions is endowed with added meaning in an Indian context. Mountain regions like the Scottish highlands or the Alps are a popular setting for songs that express yearning for a beloved one because they resemble the landscape of Kashmir : The strategic importance of Kashmir as the eroticized landscape of mind in the social imaginary of Indians (paralleling perhaps its political importance in configurations of the integrity and unity of the Indian nation-state) can hardly be overstated. […] Kashmir, over which India has fought several wars with Pakistan, serves as the limittext of what it means to be Indian: its geographical location at India’s apex, […] its demographic admixture of Hindus and Muslims, perhaps its ambivalent status as at once virgin (‘no compromise on Kashmir’, say the politicians) and coquette (eternally coveted by neighboring states) – all these serve to render Kashmir as both site of fantasy and national projection of overarching identity and connectedness.15

I Have Found It aims at strengthening national identity by showing that globalization is not a threat due to the easy appropriation of Western products. The transcultural adaptation of Jane Austen is especially suited for this nationalist function due to her status as an icon of Englishness. The indianization of English cultural heritage undermines the authority of the former colonial power in terms of a ‘filming back’. The same observation holds true for Manohar’s indianization of a Hollywood blockbuster.16 After all, Hollywood counts as the hegemonic centre of Western commercial cinema. British and American cultural imperialism is warded off by appropriating Western cultural signifiers for an Indian nationalist agenda. The casting of Aishwarya Rai in the lead role of Meenakshi is arguably tied to this agenda: Rai won the Miss World Pageant (1994) 14 Cf. Ganti. “And Yet My Heart Is Still Indian.” 249. 15 Chakravarty, Sumita. “The National-Heroic Image: Masculinity and Masquerade.” In: Rajinder Dudrah and Jigna Desai (eds.). The Bollywood Reader. Maidenhead, Berkshire: Open University Press, 2008. 84–96, 90. 16 For a critical discussion of the often voiced charge that Bollywood only copies Hollywood movies, see Dudrah, Rajinder Kumar. Bollywood. Sociology Goes to the Movies. New Delhi et al.: Sage, 2006. 143ff.

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and may therefore function as a signifier for the world-wide admiration India inspires. The pronounced focus on the Indian nation is introduced early on in I Have Found It through a change in the plot of Austen’s novel. The opening scenes of Menon’s movie feature a political and military conflict: the Kargil War. Ruptures in the social imaginary become apparent when one of the Indian soldiers openly voices doubts about India’s fight for Kashmir and these doubts are then not set to rest by the commanding officer Major Bala (~ Colonel Brandon). Shortly afterwards, Major Bala triggers a huge explosion when he trips over a booby trap bomb. Far from stabilizing Indian national identity, the beginning of Menon’s movie confronts its viewers with doubts regarding military service to the Indian nation and stages fragmented masculinity. Major Bala loses his leg in the explosion as the viewer learns later. He quits the army and becomes a drunkard because he finds no meaning in life. The sequence of scenes at the beginning of I Have Found It is highly significant. After the opening episode with its image of a bomb explosion that visually references Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979), the title and opening credits are shown before there is a cut to a woman clad in a sexy red dress who badly lip-synchs Tamil vocal music. This song sequence unexpectedly turns out to be a scene that is being shot for a movie: the viewer suddenly hears off-screen the angry shouts “Cut! Cut!” and only then does the camera zoom out to reveal a film set. This metafilmic scene can be read as a comment on the cultural functions of Indian film. The staging of the sensual woman as a fetish masks ruptures and tensions within national identity and bolsters masculinity : she is the object of the male gaze.17 The violent red of the explosion is replaced by the red dress of the fetishized woman in the iconic Marilyn Monroe white dress pose. One implication of the camera’s lingering on the woman’s feet becomes clear once the camera zooms out: the main protagonist is not the woman, but the film assistant Manohar, who is crouching near her feet, holding a part of her dress to ensure that the scene remains decorous. This is, however, not the only implication that the camera movement from the woman’s feet upwards holds. The direction of the viewer’s gaze in a lazy movement upwards is one with which the Western audience is familiar from Hollywood movies. In this scopic regime the woman is reduced to a sexual object. In the context of Indian visual culture, however, the direction of the viewer’s gaze takes on additional meaning: “This gazing sequence for romantic devotion, beginning with the feet before moving 17 On the male gaze in I Have Found It, see also Simhan: “Director Rajiv Menon replaces Austen’s ironic distance with a desiring gaze. […] The heroines […] are caught by a decidedly masculine gaze […].” Simhan. “The Banquet of Desire.” n.p.

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up the body, is precisely the visual sequence that a devotee undertakes frequently when performing darshan of a deity.”18 Such a ‘devotional’ coding of the gaze points to the stabilizing or ‘quasi-religious’ function that the film’s patriarchal staging of femininity fulfils. What is crucial about this scene is that the filmic illusion fails due to the linguistic and cultural diversity within India. As the director crossly exclaims, “This Punjabi girl cannot lip-sinc”. I Have Found It aims at healing the portrayed ruptures in the Indian social imaginary. The stabilising of the national imaginary can be illustrated by means of Major Bala’s flowering relationship to Meenakshi, who embodies India. Meenakshi is constantly associated with Indian national symbols, ranging from Kathakalidancers to national animals such as the elephant or the peacock. When Bala meets Meenakshi for the first time, the traumatic events of the Kargil War metaphorically repeat themselves. On seeing her, he stumbles and loses his leg (artificial limb) again. Bala is attracted to Meenakshi, but at the same time she reminds him of the military service he rendered India. He feels betrayed by his country because it does not commemorate its dead or wounded soldiers. When Meenakshi – after many twists of events – finally declares her love for him, he feels reconciled with the world and re-interprets his war injuries as the workings of fate that led him to the love of his life. He vows to take care of Meenakshi. One is tempted to add that he will do so just like he loyally served his country. Like many Bollywood movies, I Have Found It stages a grand narrative of history and nation that centres on the themes unity and destiny. The stabilisation of a monolithic national identity is also signalled by the fact that the prominent issue of language diversity and linguistic misunderstandings no longer plays a role by the end of the movie.19 Nationhood and gender are closely intertwined in Bollywood movies. It is not only that a traditional image of femininity is used to embody India as a unified nation. The images of femininity in I Have Found It also suggest a harmonious balance between the forces of modernity and tradition.20 The professions of the 18 Taylor, Woodman. “Penetrating Gazes: The Poetics of Sight and Visual Display in Popular Indian Cinema.” In: Contributions to Indian Sociology 36,1–2 (2002): 297–322, 310. The above quote from Taylor does not specifically refer to I Have Found It, but is a general observation on the coding of visuality in Indian mainstream film. The term ‘darshan’ (= seeing) is “used most often in the context of religious worship, where it is a two-way look between the devotee and the deity that establishes religious authority […], although it may also be applied to social and political authority. It is a look that establishes an authoritative figure or icon and the space around him or her, assigning positions in a hierarchy that may be open to negotiation and change.” Dwyer, Rachel and Divia Patel. Cinema India. The Visual Culture of Hindi Film. London: Reaktion Books, 2002. 45. For a discussion of the role darshan plays in Indian cinema, see Dwyer and Patel. Cinema India. 45–46. 19 Simhan. “The Banquet of Desire.” 20 See also Munshi: “The liberalization of the economy, expanded through policy changes in

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two sisters position them in a modernized world: Sowmya is a computer scientist and Meenakshi is a successful playback singer for Bollywood movies. At the same time, their embracement of patriarchal values signals the continuity of family traditions. I Have Found It not only celebrates the myth of the nation, but also itself. Nearly all of the characters in the movie are linked to the film industry in one way or the other.21 This is not surprising given the prominent role that Bollywood movies played in fostering the notion of national unity, as many scholars emphasize. A case in point is the following statement by the cultural theorist Rajinder Dudrah: “Bollywood represents an ideal India in the collective imagination, not the real, problematised nation but the shared cultural fantasy of an idealised India that is constantly striven for.”22

3.

Bride & Prejudice: Idealising Transculturality

Gurinder Chadha’s Bride & Prejudice translates the class conflict of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice into a conflict between contemporary Indian and Western culture. The movie is mostly set in India, but there are also some scenes that play in Los Angeles and London. William Darcy is a wealthy American hotelier, who antagonizes Lalita Bakshi (~ Elizabeth Bennet) and her family early on through his arrogance and ignorance regarding Indian culture. ‘Hicksville India’, as he condescendingly dubs Amritsar, is only of interest to him as a place for making profit. He plans to open a five-star hotel in Lalita’s hometown. This neo-imperialist attitude is harshly criticized by Lalita, who accuses him of wanting to turn India into a theme park for rich tourists. Darcy’s initial inability to think outside of cultural stereotypes is visualized through the use of an internal frame in the scene that features his heated exchange with Lalita: his head is literally India in the early 1990s, also further developed the role of (middle-class) women as markers of nationalist ideologies as they are increasingly configured as occupying both modernization (through their labor and consumption) and tradition (through their location in the family) (Desai, 2004).” (Munshi, Soniya. “Culture Weds Capital: A Critical Reading of Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice.” In: Donaldo Macedo and Shirly R. Steinberg (eds.). Media Literacy : A Reader. New York et al.: Peter Lang, 2007. 316–31, 323.) On the importance of traditional gender stereotypes to bolster Hindi nationalism, cf. Virdi, Jyotika. The Cinematic ImagiNation. Indian Popular Films as Social History. New Brunswick, New Jersey/ London: Rutgers University Press, 2003. 72–73. 21 See also Simhan: “Kandukondain Kandukondain makes […] [an] idealized world visible and audible even as it reveals that it is essentially a cinematic creation. The family house doubles as a film set, Meenakshi as the voice of an actress, Sowmya as the imagined lead of a film. What links the protagonists is not just love, but the film industry itself.” (Simhan. “The Banquet of Desire.”) 22 Dudrah. Bollywood. Sociology Goes to the Movies. 63.

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shown to be inside a box (see appendix, fig. 1). Chadha’s film critically targets the commodification of ethnic difference and shows how Indians themselves are complicit in selling exoticism. A case in point is Lalita’s younger sister Maya, who performs the traditional Indian Cobra-dance in order to impress male visitors from abroad. The strategic use of exoticism is highlighted and criticized by satirically exaggerating Maya’s hilarious attempts to capitalize on her Indianness.23 The presentation of Maya in a Dutch angle shot towards the end of her dance emphasizes how ‘unfitting’ her performance of Indianness and femininity is (see appendix, fig. 2). Bride & Prejudice connects the fetishization of national stereotypes and commodification with specific models of the self. This can be seen by the example of the wealthy Indian accountant Mr. Kholi (~ Mr. Collins). His intense desire to assimilate to American culture, for which he expounds capitalist praise, turns him into a living caricature. The song “No Life without Wife” satirizes the clich¦d image of the USA that Kholi subscribes to by presenting this image in props such as huge dollar signs, the obligatory fitness-trainer, tourist landmarks, hamburgers and hotdogs (see appendix, fig. 3). The role of the media in constructing cultural or national identity is highlighted by displaying the sign “Kholliwood” in the background. This conflation of ‘Kholi’ and ‘Hollywood’ indicates that Kholi’s identity is scripted by the world of film. The prominence of commodities visualizes that his form of subjectivity is reduced to a consumer self: Kholi’s self-stylization as an American is based on performative acts of consumption. Against this backdrop, it is highly significant that Kholi is presented as a sloppy eater during dinner with the Bakshi family. His sloppy habits of consumption can be interpreted metaphorically : he is unable to develop a nuanced and self-reflexive perception of American and Indian culture. Kholi appears as a media stereotype,24 very much analogous to his own thinking in clich¦s. Kholi’s intense desire to assimilate to US-American culture emphasizes the USA’s ‘soft power’. The political scientist Joseph Nye, who coined the term, 23 Cf. Nunius, Sabine. “Exoticism and Authenticity in Contemporary British-Asian Popular Culture. The Commodification of Difference in Bride & Prejudice and Apache Indian’s Music.” In: Rainer Emig and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Commodifying (Post)Colonialism: Othering, Reification, Commodification and the New Literatures and Cultures in English (Cross/Cultures). Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2010. 207–20, 212–13. The term ‘strategic exoticism’ is adopted from Huggan, Graham. The Postcolonial Exotic. Marketing the Margins. London/New York: Routledge, 2001. 32. For a discussion of the cobra-dance scene as well as other dance routines in Chadha’s film, see Wilson, Cheryl. “Bride and Prejudice: A Bollywood Comedy of Manners.” In: Literature/Film Quarterly 34,4 (2006): 323–31, 326–28. 24 Cf. Claydon, Anna. “British South Asian Cinema and Identity II: When did Mr Collins become the ‘Ugly American’? Representing America in the Films of Gurinder Chadha.” In: South Asian Cultural Studies 2,2 (2009): 47–58.

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defines soft power as the ability of a country to “ge[t] other countries to want what it wants”;25 this “co-optive power” hence differs from “hard command power” and uses resources such as “cultural attraction, ideology, and international institutions” as means of persuasion.26 The transnational appeal of American popular culture was, as Nye insists, one of the factors that helped increase the global influence of the USA after the Second World War. The international distribution of American products meant that American ideas and systems of value also circulated worldwide. Bride & Prejudice not only caricatures the USA’s soft power by its depiction of Kholi, but also asserts the soft power of Bollywood. After all, the viewer is presented with a Western production that adopts aesthetic conventions from Indian mainstream cinema. This line of argument also applies to the Bollywoodization of Jane Austen. The adaptation of Jane Austen “asserts the transnational and transhistorical validity of Jane Austen’s text yet also affirms the rise of a popular cultural industry, Bollywood”.27 The combination of Hollywood and Bollywood film conventions in Chadha’s movie does not fulfil a nationalist function. Whereas I Have Found It stresses the importance of indianization, Bride & Prejudices places equal importance on the Western appropriation of Indian formats. A distinct sign of the westernization of Bollywood is Chadha’s embedding of the songs into the storyline, hence avoiding an Indian “cinema of interruptions”.28 Moreover, the songs are nearly all sung in English and not in Hindi. The aesthetics of Bride & Prejudice reflects the model of culture it privileges: transculturality.29 Similar to the way the movie combines different cultural conventions to form a new aesthetic product, the individual is encouraged to be open to other cultures and to creatively forge his or her own identity by drawing on different cultural elements. The development of Darcy is exemplary for the identity politics that underpin Chadha’s film. Darcy moves from an internalized 25 Nye, Joseph. “Soft Power.” In: Foreign Policy 80 (1990): 153–71, 166. 26 Nye. “Soft Power.” 167. 27 Ponzanesi, Sandra. “Postcolonial Adaptations. Gained and Lost in Translation.” In: Sandra Ponzanesi and Marguerite Waller (eds.). Postcolonial Cinema Studies. London/New York: Routledge, 2012. 172–88, 176. For a discussion of Bollywood’s soft power, cf. Roy. “Introduction.” 28 Gopalan, Lalitha. Cinema of Interruptions: Action Genres in Contemporary Indian Cinema. London: British Film Institute, 2002. 29. In her book, Gopalan examines the “different kinds of interruptions that brand the narrative form of Indian cinema: song and dance sequences, the interval, and censorship.” (18) 29 See also Mathur: “While […] [the] inclusion [of song-and-dance sequences] places the film [= Bride & Prejudice] within the Bollywood tradition, their actual picturisation creates an audio-visual pastiche that freely mingles Bollywood conventions with those of Hollywood musicals as well as contemporary music videos from both sides of the globe. […] Bride and Prejudice, thus, has an ‘almost the same, but not quite’ relationship not just with Austen’s text but also with Bollywood.” (Mathur. “From British ‘Pride’ to Indian ‘Bride’.” n.p.)

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model of interculturality, which rests on a notion of culture as a closed-off and monolithic sphere, to a view of cultures as intermeshed and hybrid networks.30 The fact that Lalita repeatedly draws his attention to similarities between Indian and American culture is of crucial importance for transforming his worldview. As Wolfgang Welsch emphasizes, transculturality means “readjusting our inner compass: away from the concentration on the polarity of the own and the foreign to an attentiveness for what might be common and connective wherever we encounter things foreign”.31 Darcy’s altered inner compass is indicated at the end of the movie through his playing on an Indian drum. This image transforms the drum from a cultural signifier of Indianness into a sign of cultural hybridity : This moment is […] a sign of cultural blending […]. As Nandi Bhatia remarks […], for contemporary artists like Chadha ‘the identification with cultural symbols is one that, instead of signaling an unconditional return, engenders the possibility of exploring new strategies and alliances that refuse an exclusionist identification with the native homeland’ […].32

The choice of a music instrument, i. e. the arts, to signal this hybridity links the forging of a transcultural identity to what Andreas Reckwitz calls ‘the creativity dispositive’ in contemporary culture.33 The analogy between the film structure of Bride & Prejudice and transculturality as an identity model implies that selfreflexivity plays a crucial role in performing transcultural subjectivity. Chadha’s film is full of metafilmic elements that comment on the film’s own play with Bollywood conventions (see appendix, fig. 4). The complexity of Chadha’s hybrid play with Western and Indian cultural contexts can be illustrated by means of a brief example. At one point in the movie, Lalita dreams that she is marrying Wickham in a church set in pastoral England. This dream suddenly changes into a nightmare for her when Wickham turns into Darcy, whom she detests. She runs out of the church into the rainy night only to be swept into Darcy’s arms, who leans forward to kiss her while she dramatically swoons (see appendix, fig. 5). This depiction of Darcy has more to do with passionate Heathcliff from Emily BrontÚ’s Wuthering Heights than with 30 I am using the terms ‘interculturality’ and ‘transculturality’ according to the definition Wolfgang Welsch provides in his article “Transculturality – the Puzzling Form of Cultures Today” (1999). http://www2.uni-jena.de/welsch/Papers/transcultSociety.html (accessed 1 September, 2013). 31 Welsch. “Transculturality.” 32 Wilson. “Bride and Prejudice.” 330. 33 In his study ‘The Invention of Creativity : On the Aestheticisation of Society’, Reckwitz analyses how creativity has become a cultural imperative in contemporary society. His focus is on tracing the social structures and practices that have fed into this development, for example, the role of the ‘creative industries’, the veneration of stars in the media and the strategic urban planning of ‘creative cities’. (Reckwitz, Andreas. Die Erfindung der Kreativität. Zum Prozess gesellschaftlicher Ästhetisierung. Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 2012.)

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the self-controlled Darcy in Jane Austen’s novel. In Austen’s fiction, “masculine emotional restraint, and not display, provides proof of the heroes’ worthiness”.34 Chadha’s ‘Harlequinization’ of Austen is indebted to contemporary Western adaptations of Austen’s novel: Western film adaptations have endowed Darcy with intense emotional-physical expressivity ever since the Pride and Prejudice BBC mini-series (1995).35 The BBC series introduced a “smoldering sexuality” by constantly associating Darcy with water, e. g. in the famous ‘wet shirt scene’, and by showing how the protagonists exchange “heated looks”.36 This cinematic influence is clearly visible in Chadha’s film with its extensive use of water as sexual symbolism.37 The ‘Harlequinization’ or ‘BrontÚfication’ of Jane Austen is arguably a reflection of the current dominant ‘culture of subjectivity’ (Andreas Reckwitz) with its valorization of emotional expressivity. Bride & Prejudice references contemporary Western film adaptations of Darcy while at the same time emphasizing that this valorization of expressivity bears affinities to the melodramatic Bollywood film. The connection between popular representations of Darcy and Bollywood film is drawn by visually quoting the logo of a Bollywood studio (see appendix, fig. 5, fig. 6). The image of Darcy holding swooned Lalita exactly mimics the pose of the couple that is featured in the logo of R.K. Films, i. e. the film studio that was founded by the Bollywood actor Raj Kapoor in the year 1948.38 While there are many more examples of hybridity in Chadha’s movie, one cannot help but wonder what kind of transculturality Bride & Prejudice is actually promoting. Transculturality or hybridity are not values in themselves – they can take on subversive or assimilatory features. In Bride & Prejudice the latter is the case. Chadha’s movie conforms to precisely that commodification and domestication of ethnicity criticized on the level of content. The tourist gaze informs the representation of cultures and nations throughout the whole movie.39 An apt example of this is provided by the opening shot of Amritsar in 34 Nixon, Cheryl L. “Balancing the Courtship Hero: Masculine Emotional Display in Film Adaptations of Austen’s Novels.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky : University Press of Kentucky, 1998. 22–43, 25. 35 Cf. Demory, Pamela. “Jane Austen and the Chick Flick in the Twenty-first Century.” In: Christa Albrecht-Crane and Dennis Cutchins (eds.). Adaptation Studies: New Approaches. Cranbury, NY: Rosemont, 2010. 121–49. 132; Nixon. “Balancing the Courtship Hero.” The first film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice (1940; dir. Robert Z. Leonard) arguably already endowed Mr. Darcy with physical expressivity. This is heightened in the BBC mini-series. 36 Demory. “Jane Austen and the Chick Flick.” 145, 139. 37 Cf. ibid. 139–40. 38 Gurinder Chadha draws attention to this visual quote during her commentary on Bride & Prejudice in the bonus material of the DVD. 39 On the ‘tourist gaze’ in Chadha’s movie, see also Mohr, Dunja. “The Austen Cult Continued: Joe Wright’s Pride and Prejudice and Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice.” In: Anja Müller-Wood (ed.). Texting Culture – Culturing Texts. Trier : WVT, 2008. 147–64, 160.

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Bride & Prejudice: this image is one of the most popular postcard motifs that tourists send back home. In a similar vein, England’s capital is reduced to Landmark London. While the integration of the Sikh temple (Southall) in the list of landmarks leads to a hybridization of the national imaginary,40 this image of the temple does not disrupt the tourist gaze in any way. Furthermore, Chadha’s representation of India encourages the audience to ‘collect’ signs of exoticism: The [tourist] gaze is constructed through signs, and tourism involves the collection of signs. […] When a small village in England is seen, what they [= tourists] gaze upon is the ‘real olde England’. As Culler argues: ‘the tourist is interested in everything as a sign of itself… All over the world the unsung armies of semioticians, the tourists, are fanning out in search of […] exemplary Oriental scenes, […] traditional English pubs’ […].41

Chadha’s film caters to media stereotypes that allow for an easy consumption of what is perceived as foreign culture. India is presented as a colourful Bollywood spectacle, sanitized of all aspects that could diminish the touristy feel good factor of the movie.42 The power of the images hence overwrites the postcolonial critique voiced by characters in the movie. The postcolonial critique staged in Bride & Prejudice is further undermined by two factors: whiteness as a norm and the use of allegorized gender roles. I will comment on each of these elements in turn. A reading attuned to the politics of whiteness will take note of the casting decision and its implications: it is no coincidence that the female lead character is played by an actress with white skin. In fact, the darkest person in terms of skin colour in the whole movie is a servant of the Bakshi family, who never utters a word. Whiteness is not only an implicit norm in mainstream Hollywood movies, but also in Bollywood cinema, whose female stars are light-skinned. Lalita is further ‘whitened’ by displacing her sexuality onto the Other. Research in the field of critical whiteness studies has shown that the perception of a person as ‘white’ does not rest on his or her skin colour, but is shaped by further 40 Cf. Mathur. “From British ‘Pride’ to Indian ‘Bride’.” 41 Urry, John. The Tourist Gaze. Los Angeles et al.: Sage, 2002 [1990]. 3. 42 For a similar critique of Chadha’s movie, cf. Goswami, Namita. “The Empire Sings Back: Aesthetics, Politics, and Postcolonial Whimsey.” In: Contemporary Aesthetics 2 (2009). http://hdl.handl.net/2027/spo.7523862.spec.213 (accessed 12 July, 2012); Ponzanesi. “Postcolonial Adaptations. Gained and Lost in Translation.”; Munshi. “Culture Weds Capital.”; Mohr. “The Austen Cult Continued.” For readings that emphasize the subversive potential of Chadha’s movie, see Wilson. “Bride and Prejudice.” and Guarracino. The latter interprets Chadha’s movie as “deconstructing the idea of cultural identity” due to the use of “diverse musical languages” and “the representational strategies of parody and kitsch”; this filmic aesthetic “radically reconfigure[s] […] [the ‘East’ and ‘West’] through hybridization”. (Guarracino, Serena. “Musical ‘Contact Zones’ in Gurinder Chadha’s Cinema.” In: European Journal of Women’s Studies 16,4 (2009): 373–90, 373.)

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categories such as religion, class or sexuality.43 An apt example is the current Western ‘cultural racism’ that categorizes all Muslims as non-white no matter how fair-skinned they are. The concert scene with Ashanti demonstrates that such a ‘logic of whiteness’ underpins the portrayal of female characters in Bride & Prejudice. At first glance, the staging of the Ashanti concert serves to bolster Lalita’s critique of Western imperialism and Orientalism. Shortly after Lalita accuses Darcy of wanting to turn India into a theme park, the viewer is presented with an illustrative example of what Lalita has been criticizing: a spectacular concert in an Indian tourist resort that caters to Orientalist clich¦s. The lyrics about India that Ashanti sings in English and Hindi as well as her belly dance outfit serve to stage India as a place of exotic sensuality. The MTV-video aesthetics of her performance emphasize that this is a Western representation of India. This scene adds weight to Lalita’s critique of the Western representation and marketing of India because it provides a concrete example of ‘theme park India’.44 However, a closer look shows that a key function of this scene is to maintain Lalita’s whiteness. In Chadha’s movie, Ashanti appears as ‘the Other’ from a twofold perspective. Within the tradition of Bollywood cinema, the good Indian woman is chaste while sexuality is frequently displaced onto the ‘corrupt’ Western woman. In the scene immediately preceding the Ashanti concert, Lalita is shown together with Johnny Wickham as they stroll along the beach. The rising sexual attraction between the two of them is palpable. In order to keep Lalita ‘pure’ and hence ‘white’, Lalita’s sexual energy is displaced onto Ashanti,45 who sings “my body’s shaking, my lips are aching, take me to love”. The fact that Ashanti is an African American and sexuality is hence projected onto a nonwhite body emphasizes the politics of whiteness that underpin this act of displacement. From a traditional Indian perspective, Ashanti is Other because she represents the Western ‘vamp’.46 From a racist perspective that can be found both in Indian and Western culture, she is Other due to her non-white body. This logic of Othering explains the seemingly paradoxical structure that Ashanti can represent both the non-white Other and Western culture at the same time. As Namita Goswami notes, “Chadha makes the black female body the embodiment of the ‘ethnic’ voice and problematically positions this body as ‘Western’ in spite

43 Cf. Dyer, Richard. White. London et al.: Routledge, 2008. 44 Cf. Vogt-William, Christine. “Transcultural Gender Interrogations in Bride and Prejudice. Intertextual Encounters of the South Asian Diasporic Kind.” In: Michael Meyer (ed.). Word & Image in Colonial and Postcolonial Literatures and Cultures. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2009. 237–60, 249. 45 Cf. Goswami. “The Empire Sings Back.” 46 Cf. ibid.

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of its status as ‘outsider’ in racist U.S. history”.47 With this move, Bride & Prejudice undermines its own critique of the ethnic coding of sexuality. The postcolonial critique articulated in Bride & Prejudice is further weakened through allegorized gender roles. It is common for Bollywood movies to represent the Indian nation by a woman. The portrayal of Meenakshi in I Have Found It provides a typical example of this. In Chadha’s film, it is Lalita who embodies the Indian nation state and cultural nationalism.48 The crucial difference between Meenakshi and Lalita is that the latter is “eager to be romanced by the west” as her attraction to first Wickham and then Darcy shows.49 The coding of the East as feminine and the West as masculine corresponds with Orientalist clich¦s. Soniya Munshi teases out the problematic implications of Lalita (“East/tradition”) and Darcy’s (“West/modernity”) union: “This marriage signifies that the enactment of an Indian modernity in the current context of neo-liberalism necessarily requires a relationship with western capital.”50 Last but not least, the domestication of alterity extends to the aesthetic form of Bride & Prejudice. I mentioned earlier that Chadha presents a distinctly toned down version of Bollywood conventions. This means that the experience of alterity that a Western audience may have when confronted with the markedly different aesthetics of Indian cinema is more or less neutralised.51 Bride & Prejudice is an entertaining spectacle whose propagated ideal of hybridity and transcultural communication remains on a superficial level.

4.

Concluding discussion

The previous analysis of I Have Found It and Bride & Prejudice reveals important commonalities, but also differences in forms and functions of transcultural Austen adaptations. The combination of English high culture with Indian popular culture is used for a postcolonial filming back in both movies. The metafilmic elements that comment on the adaptation process are, however, coded differently. I Have Found It clearly emphasizes the process of indian47 48 49 50

Cf. ibid. Munshi. “Culture Weds Capital.” 328. Ibid. 329. Ibid. 328. For an analysis of the class politics in Bride & Prejudice, see Munshi, who outlines how Chadha’s movie “obscures the realities of Lalitha and Darcy’s class aligned positions that, though not equivalent, do transcend national boundaries in the current processes of globalization”. (Ibid. 326.) 51 For an in-depth critique of Chadha’s eschewal to fully embrace Bollywood aesthetics, see Goswama. “The Empire Sings Back.” In her article, Goswama is intent on “recover[ing] the devalued aesthetic dimension of the Bollywood film/song from its political over-determination as national allegory”. (Goswama. “The Empire Sings Back.”)

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ization. Cultural conflicts between India and Western countries do not play a role in this movie because Western formats and narratives are shown to be easily adaptable to an Indian nationalist agenda. National symbols serve an exclusivist identification with the nation. In contrast, Bride & Prejudice foregrounds conflicts in the relation between India and Western countries. The movie presents transcultural communication and hybrid subjectivity as the solution for the depicted tensions. In accordance with this ideal, the film presents its own mode of adaptation as an aesthetic model for transculturality. National symbols and the choice of images stress the dialogic enmeshment of different cultural elements. Despite their different ideological outlooks, the representational strategies in both movies serve to tame alterity. While I Have Found It domesticates the alterity of the USA through indianization, Bride & Prejudice offers its viewers a shallow experience of alterity. The following table offers a structured overview of the key findings: Form of the adaptation process: Relationship between India and Western countries: National symbols: Functions of the film adaptation:

I Have Found It emphasis on indianization

Bride & Prejudice emphasis on indianization and westernization

no cultural conflicts ! indianization of Western products used for exclusivist identification: the monolithic nation

critique of Western imperialism and the commodification of ethnic difference used to stage cultural hybridity

postcolonial filming back metafilmic discourse nationalism transculturality domestication of cultural alterity

The above table is not meant to be exhaustive, but instead invites further elaboration. The functions that the Austen film adaptations fulfil could, for example, be easily expanded. If both movies deal with India’s modernization, then their falling back on a Western text from the nineteenth century in order to explore India’s current transformation could be interpreted as propagating a linear model of modernization.52 This traditional model of modernization posits the developments of the Western countries as the prototype of modernization, 52 Cf. Vogt-William. “Transcultural Gender Interrogations in Bride and Prejudice.”: “An Orientalist implication in Chadha’s project might be the depiction of the Orient as Europe’s contemporary ancestor, where certain cultural constraints are seen to still prevail that have long since disappeared from European cultural frameworks. Thus India could be read as the only possible present-day setting for a Jane Austen story in the East, since European women would be considered too emancipated now.” (246)

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which other non-Western countries sooner or later follow. This idea of India’s belated modernization can frequently be found in scholarly discussions of why Sense and Sensibility may appeal to an Indian filmmaker, as the following quote illustrates: Austen wrote at a time of […] a ‘shift from traditional to commercial society, or the modern, [which] has been and is now, much later, replicated in other parts of the globe.’ […] India is precisely undergoing a comparable evolution at the turn of the twenty-first century, and Austen’s story thus provides an apt metaphor of ‘the emergence of the modern’ which is currently taking place in the subcontinent.53

The problem of such a Eurocentric view of modernization is highlighted by Suchitra Mathur, who emphasizes that “[f]rom this perspective, the Bollywood adaptation […] implicitly, marks the necessary belatedness of Bollywood as a ‘native’ cultural formation that can only mimic the ‘English book’.”54 The movies themselves, however, paint a very different picture, namely that of ‘multiple modernities’ (Shmuel Eisenstadt). As the example of I Have Found It and many other Bollywood films show, Indian mainstream cinema stages its own version of modernity : it refrains from the Western obsession with individualism by stressing the primacy of family values. Cultural theorists have pointed out that Bollywood cinema may owe its international success precisely to “offer[ing] a version of modernity that is not synonymous with Westernization”55. Against the backdrop of ‘multiple modernities’, it is striking to note that Bride & Prejudice features the yearning of the Western individual for family life when Darcy comments on how he appreciates the closeness of families in India – a form of community he misses back home in the States.56 All in all, multiple modernities constitute a key cultural context that is vital for assessing the function and appeal of transcultural Jane Austen adaptations.

References Bride & Prejudice. Gurinder Chadha (director). Path¦ Pictures/Miramax, UK/USA, 2004. Chakravarty, Sumita. “The National-Heroic Image: Masculinity and Masquerade.” In: Rajinder Dudrah and Jigna Desai (eds.). The Bollywood Reader. Maidenhead, Berkshire: Open University Press, 2008. 84–96. Claydon, Anna. “British South Asian Cinema and Identity II: When did Mr Collins become the ‘Ugly American’? Representing America in the films of Gurinder Chadha.” In: South Asian Cultural Studies 2,2 (2009): 47–58. 53 54 55 56

Hudelet. “The Construction of a Myth.” 151. Hudelet quotes John Wiltshire in this passage. Mathur. “From British ‘Pride’ to Indian ‘Bride’.” n.p. Roy. “Introduction.” 10. On the role of the family in Bride & Prejudice, cf. Mohr. “The Austen Cult Continued.” 159.

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Demory, Pamela. “Jane Austen and the Chick Flick in the Twenty-first Century.” In: Christa Albrecht-Crane and Dennis Cutchins (eds.). Adaptation Studies: New Approaches. Cranbury, NY: Rosemont, 2010. 121–49. Dudrah, Rajinder Kumar. Bollywood. Sociology Goes to the Movies. New Delhi et al.: Sage Publications, 2006. Dwyer, Rachel and Divia Patel. Cinema India. The Visual Culture of Hindi Film. London: Reaktion Books, 2002. Dyer, Richard. White. London et al.: Routledge, 2008. Ganti, Tejaswini. “ ‘ And Yet My Heart Is Still Indian’: The Bombay Film Industry and the (H)Indianization of Hollywood.” In: Lila Abu-Lughod, Faye Ginsburg and Brian Larkin (eds.). Media Worlds: Anthropology on New Terrain. Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2002. 281–300. Gopalan, Lalitha. Cinema of Interruptions: Action Genres in Contemporary Indian Cinema. London: British Film Institute, 2002. Goswami, Namita. “The Empire Sings Back: Aesthetics, Politics, and Postcolonial Whimsy.” In: Contemporary Aesthetics 2 (2009) http://hdl.handle.net/2027/spo.7523 862.spec.213 (accessed 10 July, 2012). Guarracino, Serena. “Musical ‘Contact Zones’ in Gurinder Chadha’s Cinema.” In: European Journal of Women’s Studies 16,4 (2009): 373–90. Hudelet, Ariane. “The Construction of a Myth: The ‘Cinematic Jane Austen’ as a CrossCultural Icon.” In: David Monaghan, Ariane Hudelet and John Wiltshire (eds.). The Cinematic Jane Austen: Essays on the Filmic Sensibility of the Novels. Jefferson, NC/ London: McFarland, 2009. 148–59. Huggan, Graham. The Postcolonial Exotic. Marketing the Margins. London/New York: Routledge, 2001. Hutcheon, Linda. A Theory of Adaptation. New York/London: Routledge, 2006. Kandukondain Kandukondain. [English title: I Have Found It]. Rajiv Menon (director). Sri Surya Films, 2000. Mathur, Suchitra. “From British ‘Pride’ to Indian ‘Bride’: Mapping the Contours of a Globalised (Post?)Colonialism.” In: M/C Journal: A Journal of Media and Culture 10,2 (2007). http://journal.media-culture.org.au/0705/06-mathur.php (accessed 10 July, 2012). Mohr, Dunja. “The Austen Cult Continued: Joe Wright’s Pride and Prejudice and Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice.” In: Anja Müller-Wood (ed.). Texting Culture – Culturing Texts. Trier : WVT, 2008. 147–64. Munshi, Soniya. “Culture Weds Capital: A Critical Reading of Gurinder Chadha’s Bride and Prejudice.” In: Donaldo Macedo and Shirly R. Steinberg (eds.). Media Literacy : A Reader. New York et al.: Peter Lang, 2007. 316–31. Nixon, Cheryl L. “Balancing the Courtship Hero: Masculine Emotional Display in Film Adaptations of Austen’s Novels.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, Kentucky : University Press of Kentucky, 1998. 22–43. Nunius, Sabine. “Exoticism and Authenticity in Contemporary British-Asian Popular Culture. The Commodification of Difference in Bride & Prejudice and Apache Indian’s Music.” In: Rainer Emig and Oliver Lindner (eds.). Commodifying (Post)Colonialism: Othering, Reification, Commodification and the New Literatures and Cultures in English (Cross/Cultures). Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2010. 207–20.

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Nye, Joseph. “Soft Power.” In: Foreign Policy 80 (1990): 153–71. Ponzanesi, Sandra. “Postcolonial Adaptations. Gained and Lost in Translation.” In: Sandra Ponzanesi and Marguerite Waller (eds.). Postcolonial Cinema Studies. London/ New York: Routledge, 2012. 172–88. Reckwitz, Andreas. Die Erfindung der Kreativität. Zum Prozess gesellschaftlicher Ästhetisierung. Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 2012. Roy, Anjali Gera. “Introduction.” In: Anjali Gera Roy (ed.). The Magic of Bollywood. At Home and Abroad. New Delhi et al.: SAGE, 2012. 1–24. Schneider, Alexandra. “ ‘ Ein folkloristisches Strassentheater, das unbeabsichtigt einen Brecht oder Godard gibt.’ Zur Kodierung von Emotionen im zeitgenössischen HindiMainstream-Film.” In: Matthias Brütsch et al. (eds.). Kinogefühle. Emotionalität und Film. Marburg: Schüren, 2009 [2005]. 137–52. Simhan, R.N. “The Banquet of Desire: A South Indian Sense and Sensibility.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p. Taylor, Woodman. “Penetrating Gazes: The Poetics of Sight and Visual Display in Popular Indian Cinema.” In: Contributions to Indian Sociology 36,1–2 (2002): 297–322. Troost, Linda and Sayre Greenfield. “Appropriating Austen: Localism on the Global Scene.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,2 (2008): n.p. Urry, John. The Tourist Gaze. Los Angeles et al.: Sage, 2002 [1990]. Virdi, Jyotika. The Cinematic ImagiNation. Indian Popular Films as Social History. New Brunswick/New Jersey/London: Rutgers University Press, 2003. Vogt-William, Christine. “Transcultural Gender Interrogations in Bride and Prejudice. Intertextual Encounters of the South Asian Diasporic Kind.” In: Michael Meyer (ed.). Word & Image in Colonial and Postcolonial Literatures and Cultures. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2009. 237–60. Welsch, Wolfgang. “Transculturality – the Puzzling Form of Cultures Today.” 1999. http://www2.uni-jena.de/welsch/Papers/transcultSociety.html (accessed 12 July, 2012). Wilson, Cheryl. “Bride and Prejudice: A Bollywood Comedy of Manners.” In: Literature/ Film Quarterly 34,4 (2006): 323–31.

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Appendix

Fig. 1: Visualizing Darcy’s thinking in boxes

Fig. 2: Maya’s performance of exoticism and femininity

Fig. 3: Kholi’s image of the USA

Fig. 4: Metafilmic elements

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Fig. 5: BrontÚfication of Austen

Fig. 6: Cross-cultural intertextuality : R.K. Logo (screenshot from Awara. 1951. Dir. Raj Kapoor. R.K. Films)

Imke Lichterfeld

Mr Darcy’s Shirt – An Icon of Popular Culture

1.

The statue

On 8 July 2013, a sculpture was unveiled in the Serpentine in London’s Hyde Park. The 12-foot-high statue “[m]ade of Polycarve plastic coated with fiberglass and treated with resin, for waterproofing purposes”,1 which had been “designed, constructed and painted within two months by three sculptors”,2 showed a man standing up to his waist in the lake.3 His clothes (above the surface): a white, wetlooking shirt. The statue had apparently been modelled on actor Colin Firth as Mr Darcy. Surely, some of the people who saw it thought the same thing: “I am having a bit of a strange, postmodern moment here!”4 This utterance, borrowed from the character Amanda Price in Guy Andrews’s TV mini-series Lost in Austen (2008), arguably epitomises the preoccupation of today’s Janeites (i. e. Jane Austen enthusiasts) with the male protagonist of Pride and Prejudice as well as, more specifically, with one particular scene from the 1995 BBC mini-series based on Austen’s novel. There is a lot of evidence suggesting that the following scene lives on in the minds of many viewers (or at least in the minds of many female viewers): Mr Darcy, portrayed by actor Colin Firth in the 1995 adaptation, dives into the lake at Pemberley, where he, still clad in a wet shirt, meets Elizabeth

1 Lyall, Sarah. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion? Mr. Darcy Rising.” In: The New York Times 9 July, 2013. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/10/arts/design/pride-prejudice-promotion-mr-dar cy-rising.html?_r=0 (accessed 9 July, 2013). 2 Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” In: The Yorkshire Post 9 July, 2013. http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/main-topics/general-news/ pride-prejudice-and-a-big-wet-shirt-as-mr-darcy-makes-a-splash-again-1–5835715 (accessed 9 July, 2013); cf. Caroe, Laura. “We lake Darcy’s clip best.” In: The Sun 9 July, 2013. http:// www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/4997810/Colin-Firths-famous-wet-shirt-scenein-Pride-And-Prejudice-named-most-memorable-moment-in-British-TV-drama.html (accessed 9 July, 2013). 3 Cf. Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” n.p. 4 Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. UK: ITV/Granada, 2008. 00:29:47–00:29:52.

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Bennet again.5 There is a remarkable consensus among critics that the 1995 BBC mini-series was a turning point in the history of the impact Pride and Prejudice has had on popular culture. In the following I will argue that Mr Darcy’s dive into the lake, his wet shirt and what they stand for have played a significant role in this context. When “Mr Darcy ma[de] a splash again” in 2013,6 as The Yorkshire Post put it, the statue was first and foremost meant to celebrate a new TV channel, as lead sculptor Toby Crowther explained to The Yorkshire Post: It has been built to celebrate the launch of new TV channel Drama after topping a poll […] to find the most memorable moment in British TV drama. The scene [which came first in the poll] featured in a 1995 BBC adaptation of the Jane Austen novel [Pride and Prejudice], which was published 200 years ago. The image of Firth emerging dripping wet from the lake at Lyme Park in Cheshire turned the actor into a sex symbol.7

Beyond that, the statue also celebrated the bicentenary of the publication of Pride and Prejudice and the success of the 1995 BBC mini-series, which has been seen as a crucial factor in the lasting (and even growing) appeal of Pride and Prejudice.8 Devoney Looser, for instance, argues that “Andrew Davies’s 1995 six-part BBC adaptation, starring Colin Firth, singlehandedly transformed Austen’s cultural stock”.9 The location that was chosen for displaying the Darcy statue was presumably apt to evoke a nineteenth-century, Austenesque Pride and Prejudice atmosphere; after all, “Hyde Park was a fashionable place to promenade in the early 1800s – and for decades afterwards – with Austen strolling there on a regular basis.”10 Adrian Wills, general manager of the TV channel Drama, has been quoted reminiscing on Austen’s walks around Hyde Park two hundred years ago and hoping that “she would have approved of our new dashing Darcy”.11 The statue 5 Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. UK: BBC, 1995. Film. Disc 2. 00:44:20–00:44:39 and 00:45:31–00:46:32. 6 Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” n.p. 7 Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” n.p.; cf. also: Anon. “Colin Firth Statue as Mr Darcy in ‘Pride And Prejudice’ Emerges from Hyde Park Lake to Mark Launch of UK Drama Channel.” In: Huffington Post. Entertainment 9 July, 2013. http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/07/08/colin-firth-statue-mr-darcy-pride-andprejudice-lake_n_3560981.html (accessed 9 July, 2013); cf. Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” and Caroe. “We lake Darcy’s clip best.” n.p. 8 Cf. for instance Higson, Andrew. “Brit-lit Biopics. 1990–2010.” In: Judith Buchanan (ed.). The Writer on Film: Screening Literary Authorship. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 106–11. 9 Looser, Devoney. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85, 182. 10 Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” n.p. 11 Caroe. “We lake Darcy’s clip best.” n.p.

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in the Serpentine evokes the rejuvenation of Austen’s popularity and of that of the Regency protagonist, fashioning a new, postmodern image by reiterating a popular scene from a TV mini-series; in other words, Mr Darcy “emerged from the water yet again, like some sort of Arthurian resurrection,”12 as The New York Times put it. Showing Mr Darcy in a wet shirt (and thus alluding to a famous TV moment) means that the boundaries between the fictional character, the actor and the (lively) reception of the BBC mini-series in popular culture have definitely begun to blur. What is referred to by choosing this particular image is both the fictional character and the star (and his iconic shirt). Crowther argues that the “Mr Darcy sculpture is a real mix of the many portrayals of Jane Austen’s most famous hero.”13 Yet, it is obvious that the sculpture has in fact been modelled on a specific portrayal of the literary character, i. e. that by Colin Firth. Crowther also admits though that “it’s mostly Colin”,14 adding that Darcy/Firth “does look good in a wet shirt.”15 The reactions to the statue appear to have been very positive and explicitly or implicitly often established a link with the reception of the TV series, as the following example shows: “ ‘ I liked the way the shirt was clinging to his chest,’ said Veronica Matthews, assistant manager of the Lido Cafe in Hyde Park”.16 Despite its success, the statue was only meant to be a temporary installation in London’s Hyde Park and has since been moved to Lyme Park in Cheshire, where the Pemberley scenes were filmed and where “super-keen visitors occasionally show up wearing (nonwet) Lizzie-and-Darcy costumes of their own”.17 One can of course argue that any portrayal of a literary character that has been revisited as often as Mr Darcy in both literary and audiovisual texts has not just a single referent, but a chain of referents, the 1995 one being only one of many, albeit certainly the most famous.

12 13 14 15 16 17

Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” n.p. Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” n.p. Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” n.p. Ibid. Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” n.p. Ibid. The statue remained in the lake in front of the building until February 2014. Cf. Visit Peak District & Derbyshire. “Giant Mr. Darcy wins hearts at Lyme Park.” http://visitpeakdi strictblog.com/2013/07/19/giant-mr-darcy-wins-hearts-at-lymepark-cheshire-peakdistrict/ (accessed 9 April, 2013). Cf. Bury, Liz. “Mr Darcy Surfaces as Statue in London Lake.” In: The Guardian 8 July, 2013. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jul/08/mr-darcy-statue-prideand-prejudice (accessed 10 July, 2013).

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The scene

As was pointed out above, the statue showing Mr Darcy evokes one particular scene from the 1995 BBC mini-series Pride and Prejudice. There is ample evidence of the attention this scene has received. Sarah Cardwell summarises the impact the scene has had as follows: “All it took was for him [Darcy/Firth] to […] rise, dripping and fully clothed, from an impromptu dip in a lake, and women across the country – and later the world – melted like toasted brie.”18 Adrian Wills is convinced of the lasting impact the by now 20-year-old scene has had: “It is clear from our research that Mr Darcy emerging from the lake in Pride and Prejudice continues to set hearts racing.”19 Devoney Looser likewise stresses the special significance of this scene: Firth’s jumping into the lake at Pemberley became a cultural sensation. It was said that British women held ‘Darcy parties’ to watch that scene over and over, ogling the character’s tan jodhpurs and wet white shirt clinging to his chest. To date, that fourminute excerpt has been viewed a stunning 2 million times on YouTube.20

The numbers keep going up: there were more than 3 million viewers in mid-2013 and close to 3.5 million in mid-2014.21 Elizabeth McClurg concludes from this obvious enthusiasm that “Colin Firth’s Fitzwilliam Darcy jumped into the lake at Pemberley and landed in the daydreams of Austen fans”, causing what has come to be called Darcymania and the doubling of the Jane Austen Society’s membership in 1995.22 In the context of this sudden explosion of the size of the Pride and Prejudice/Darcy fanbase Devoney Looser talks about the ‘Darcy parties’ mentioned above, “in which groups of women got together to play and replay their videotapes of Colin Firth diving into the lake.”23 Even The New York Times paid tribute to the appeal of the scene: Who would not have swooned at the sight of a manfully tousled Colin Firth striding moodily around in his wet shirt during the broadcast […]? The scene […] caused serious chest palpitations among those viewers who were not dead, and remains per18 Cardwell, Sarah. Adaptation Revisited: Television and the Classic Novel. Manchester : Manchester University Press, 2002. 155. 19 Caroe. “We lake Darcy’s clip best.” n.p. 20 Looser. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” 182. 21 Youtube. “Pride and Prejudice: The Lake Scene (Colin Firth Strips Off).” https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=hasKmDr1yrA (accessed 20 June, 2013). 22 McClurg, Elizabeth. The New Darcy and Elizabeth: How we are Reconstructing Austen’s Characters in Modern Novels. Ohio State University, Thesis, 2009. http://kb.osu.edu/dspace/ handle/1811/38878 (accessed 6 May, 2013). 8. 23 Looser, Devoney. “Feminist Implications of the Silver Screen Austen.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, KY: University of Kentucky Press, 2001. 159–76, 160.

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haps the only time a man dressed in a damp, puffy white blouse has ever looked truly hot on screen.24

Not only is the “web […] alive with mentions and variations on Pride & Prejudice”;25 there are various online resources and uploads which are linked specifically to the famous wet shirt. In 1995, Pride and Prejudice became truly iconic, and the wet shirt was part of this. Yet ‘the lake scene’, as it has come to be known, does not even exist in Austen’s novel. Thus, John Mullan is right when he argues that the statue “is an installation that celebrates the imagination of Andrew Davies rather than that of Jane Austen.”26 In many respects, the 1995 BBC adaptation, which has been hailed a “Turning Point for Period Drama”,27 can certainly be regarded as a classic novel adaptation,28 which set out to rejuvenate and intensify the viewers’ interest in so-called costume drama. Although audiovisual adaptations almost inevitably depart from the original text to a certain extent, Davies’s Pride and Prejudice on the whole appears to be a rather faithful adaptation, staying very close to the plot of Austen’s novel, its characters and even its language. Therefore, the addition of the lake scene is all the more striking. Davies believed in the potential of showing an exhausted Darcy arriving at Pemberley, as the bonus material on the DVD shows,29 which is why he granted him an impetuous, leisurely dive into the lake in order to cool down.30 The reaction to the scene ever since the mini-series was first broadcast shows that Davies was right. What is portrayed in the lake scene supports a more far-reaching tendency to modify in particular the depiction of the male protagonist. According to Robert Stam, the (literary) source for an audiovisual adaptation functions as “a dense informational network […] which the adapting film can then selectively take up, 24 Lyall. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion?” n.p. 25 Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49, 149. 26 John Mullan quoted by Bury. “Mr Darcy Surfaces as Statue in London Lake.” n.p. 27 Bonus Material, BBC DVD, Disc 2. Special Features; cf. Schaff, Barbara. “Still Lives – Tableaux Vivants: Art in British Heritage Films.” In: Eckart Voigts-Virchow (ed.). Janespotting and Beyond: British Heritage Retrovisions since the Mid-1990s. Tübingen: Narr, 2004. 125–34. The drama publicist Alan Ayres calls it “a defining moment certainly in television drama”: Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC, 1995. Disc 2. Bonus Material. “A Turning Point for Period Drama.” 00:30:16–00:30:20. 28 Cf. Sarah Cardwell’s analysis of Pride and Prejudice as a classic novel adaptation: Cardwell. Adaptation Revisited. 133–59. 29 The voice-over reveals that “the overall aim was to be as true as possible to the spirit of Jane Austen’s original book”; Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC, 1995. Disc 1. Bonus Material. “The Making of Pride and Prejudice.” 00:01:01–00:01:04. 30 Cf. Andrew Davies’s comments on the physicality of the bodies; Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC, 1995. Disc 2. Bonus Material. “A Turning Point for Period Drama.” 00:17:07–00:19:17.

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amplify, ignore, subvert or transform.”31 Austen’s Pride and Prejudice has been amplified and transformed specifically with respect to the portrayal of the male protagonist, and it is precisely this change which is epitomised in the lake scene, as Patsy Stoneman points out: Although modern readers still accept Darcy [that is Jane Austen’s Darcy from the novel] as a prototype hero of romance, we prefer the version of Darcy enacted by Colin Firth in the 1995 BBC adaptation, which is remembered most vividly for the moment – not in the novel – when he emerges, wet shirt clinging to his manly body, from his swim in the lake.32

Already before the lake scene, Darcy has become more of a physical presence and more sexually charged than Austen’s literary character is. Cara Ann Lane for instance reminds us that Darcy showed his physical prowess and his willingness to exert himself physically by fencing33 and horse-riding.34 In the presentation of Darcy, physical exertion is linked with desire. The fencing scene is shown to be an attempt to divert his thoughts from Lizzy and to “conquer”35 his feelings, but the scene is cross-cut with memories of her, showing the impact she has on him. The lake scene is likewise associated with desire, as Lane points out: After th[e] sweaty and distraught episode […], he stops by the lake and […] proceeds to strip down to a white shirt and trousers. In a final effort to subdue his emotions, he dives headfirst into the lake. This scene strongly conveys the heightened emotion and physicality of Darcy within the BBC adaptation.36

The character of Fitzwilliam Darcy is eroticised through the scene and his wet shirt,37 and his body becomes the focus of the viewer’s attention. Janet Todd argues that due to this “cinematic treatment […] Mr Darcy […] emerged as the very type of the brooding romantic hero”,38 a “model of ideal maleness”.39 Since the 1995 version of Pride and Prejudice, much more than after the 1940 or the 2005 version, Darcy has come to be seen as the prototypical romantic hero, 31 Stam, Robert. “Introduction: The Theory and Practice of Adaptation.” In: Robert Stam and Alessanda Raengo (eds.). Literature and Film: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Film Adaptation. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005. 1–53. 46. 32 Stoneman, Patsy. “Rochester and Heathcliff as Romantic Heroes.” In: BrontÚ Studies 36,1 (2011): 111–18, 111. 33 Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC, 1995. Disc 2. 00:35:14–00:35:47. 34 Ibid. 00:42:40–00:42:21. 35 “I shall conquer this. I shall.” Pride and Prejudice. Disc 2.00:35:44–00:35:47. 36 Lane, Cara Ann. “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” In: Film & History : An Interdisciplinary Journal of Film and Television Studies 33,1 (2003): 64–65, 64. 37 Cf. Aragay, Mireira and Gemma López. “Inf(l)ecting Pride and Prejudice: Dialogism, Intertextuality and Adaptation.” In: Mireira Aragay (ed.). Books in Motion: Adaptation, Intertextuality, Authorship. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2005. 201–19, 211. 38 Todd. “Criticism.” 145. 39 Ibid.

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“freighted with the crudeness of repeated and culturally supported female dreams.”40 In a similar vein, Patsy Stoneman muses that even Charlotte BrontÚ would have appreciated the romantic ardour embodied by this particular interpretation of Mr Darcy.41 Still, whether Charlotte BrontÚ, or Austen herself for that matter, would have regarded the art installation in Hyde Park as dignified is an entirely different question. In the course of the mini-series, the emphasis on Darcy’s body, which feeds the “romantic ardour” of the portrayal of the male protagonist, is also achieved by showing him repeatedly as a man who is being closely observed by Elizabeth Bennet. Drawing upon Laura Mulvey’s concept of the ‘male gaze’, Lisa Hopkins argues that Davies’s Pride and Prejudice actually time and again encourages a ‘female gaze’, exposing Darcy to Elizabeth’s intense visual scrutiny as well as to that of the (female) viewers. In the lake scene there is a sequence of camera shots which is particularly interesting in the context of this assumption of a female gaze: [I]nterest in Darcy himself is vigorously sustained. A shot of Elizabeth looking up at his portrait cuts abruptly to one of the man himself in the grounds, newly arrived from London on horseback and stripping down to his shirt. We cut back to Elizabeth, still looking, and then immediately revert to Darcy plunging into a pond, with an underwater camera to show him swimming. The fever-heat of his passion, it seems, is still in need of cooling.42

One may argue for a double female gaze focusing on Darcy in this filmic sequence: that of Elizabeth (who, for the moment at least, has only the portrait in front of her eyes) and that of the (female) viewer (who is allowed to follow Mr Darcy even underwater). As Barbara Schaff observes,43 the director – by cross-cutting Lizzy’s intense gaze at the portrait with Darcy’s arrival at home and his undressing before the dive – alludes to the physical, if not lusty, imagination of Lizzy, thereby almost transgressing “the confines of Regency England”.44 The dive and the wet shirt thus 40 Todd, Janet. “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–61, 153. 41 Stoneman. “Rochester and Heathcliff as Romantic Heroes.” 112. 42 Hopkins, Lisa. “Mr Darcy’s Body : Privileging the Female Gaze.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, KY: University of Kentucky Press, 2001. 111–21, 118; cf. Carroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73, 169; cf. Troost, Linda V. “The Nineteenth Century Novel on Film: Jane Austen.” In: Deborah Cartmell and Imelda Whelehan (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Literature on Screen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. 75–89, 84. 43 Schaff. “Still Lives – Tableaux Vivants.” 129. 44 Auerbach, Emily. “Pride and Proliferation.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 186–97, 197.

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serve to visualise both the desire felt by Darcy and the desire Elizabeth potentially feels for Darcy at this stage. In order to gauge the significance of the lake scene one also has to take into consideration what follows upon it, i. e. Darcy’s unexpected encounter with Elizabeth, which proves to be utterly embarrassing for both. In the novel, the scene is arguably more embarrassing for Elizabeth, given the fact that she runs into Mr Darcy after having turned down his proposal in no uncertain terms and that, being on his property, she is bound to feel like an intruder. In the TVadaptation, the scene is made more embarrassing for Mr Darcy than it is in the novel by showing him inappropriately (un)dressed, or, as Laura Carroll and John Wiltshire put it, “[m]etaphorically, if not literally naked”.45 Darcy here seems to be at the visual mercy of both Lizzy and the viewer. By transgressing what was deemed appropriate in Regency England the scene “spices up Darcy’s relationship with Elizabeth Bennet”.46

3.

The actor

For Colin Firth, the five-and-a-half-hour version of Pride and Prejudice brought both a BAFTA nomination and star status. The casting of Colin Firth as Fitzwilliam Darcy has made a previously rather unknown actor a celebrity.47 Firth has since not only appeared in a number of successful movies but has also gained critical acclaim: It was BBC television’s 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice that made Firth a household name. […] Firth became associated with a decidedly English brand of sexappeal and inspired an unlikely cult of attraction around the character. […] Recent years have seen his film choices diversify and his performances increase in critical recognition. BAFTA success came in 2010 when he won Best Actor for his powerfully restrained performance in Tom Ford’s A Single Man. Again, in 2011, Firth took home the Leading Actor Award for the multi-BAFTA winning film, The King’s Speech.48 45 Carroll and Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” 170. 46 Bury. “Mr Darcy Surfaces as Statue in London Lake.” n.p. 47 His most important films before Pride and Prejudice were probably A Month in the Country (1987), Valmont (1989), and Circle of Friends (1995). All of these movies were relatively successful, but after Pride and Prejudice he certainly appeared in more prestigious productions including The English Patient (1996), Fever Pitch (1997), and Shakespeare in Love (1998). Imbd. “Colin Firth. Biography.” http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000147/bio?ref_=nm_ov_bio_sm (accessed 26 June, 2013); cf. Faulstich, Werner. Grundkurs Filmanalyse. München: UTB, 2008 [2002]. 102. Hickethier asserts the importance of the aura, or the charisma of an actor : Hickethier, Knut. Film- und Fernsehanalyse. Stuttgart/Weimar : Metzler, 2012. 163. 48 Bafta. “Colin Firth: A Life in Pictures.” 9 January, 2012. http://www.bafta.org/film/features/ colin-firth-a-life-in-pictures (accessed 10 January, 2014).

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According to the International Movie Database (Imdb), “when he [Firth] was first offered the role of Darcy, his brother incredulously remarked, ‘Darcy? But isn’t he supposed to be sexy?’ ” 49 The same webpage points out that even six years after Pride and Prejudice, in 2001, Firth was still listed among the “People Magazine’s ‘50 Most Beautiful People’ ” .50 While some of the roles Firth was cast for do not seem to be related directly to Pride and Prejudice, such as The King’s Speech, he has also been made to reiterate his success as Darcy in a number of movies. The character of Mark Darcy in Helen Fielding’s successful novel Bridget Jones’s Diary (1996) is clearly modelled on Mr Darcy, and the 2001 film’s coup – an “ingenious casting”51 decision – was to present Colin Firth in the role of Mark Darcy. The female protagonists of Bridget Jones’s Diary are fascinated by Firth’s portrayal of the Regency hero and adore especially the lake scene: “In Fielding’s novels, Bridget and her friends are shown to love this particular scene.”52 Cara Ann Lane similarly suggests that “Fielding’s novel clearly conveys that Bridget’s interest in Pride and Prejudice stems from her interest in Colin Firth, due to the influence of the BBC miniseries”;53 i. e. it is not necessarily interest in Jane Austen’s novel that causes the fascination, but rather an interest in the actor playing a role. This may be seen as a self-centring, postmodern aspect of the reception: the role from the 1995 mini-series and in particular the lake scene constitute a simulacrum which turns into the object of desire in Bridget Jones’s Diary. The film “highlights Bridget’s tendency to identify more strongly with representatives of popular, and largely visual, culture than she does with classic literature.”54 This demonstrates Baudrillard’s idea that the simulacrum has replaced the original in postmodern media. He argues that “[r]ather than producing meaning, [information] exhausts itself in the staging of meaning.”55 This superficiality actually creates an “irresistible destructuration” and dissolution of

49 Imbd. “Colin Firth. Biography.” http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000147/bio?ref_=nm_ ov_bio_sm (accessed 26 June, 2013). The Drama publicist Alan Ayres confirms this: Pride and Prejudice. Disc 2. Bonus Material. “A Turning Point for Period Drama.” 00:02:52. 50 Imbd. “Colin Firth. Biography.” n.p. 51 Cf. Simons, Judy. “Jane Austen and Popular Culture.” In: Claudia L. Johnson and Clara Tuite (eds.). A Companion to Jane Austen. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. 467–77, 474. 52 Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen: V& R unipress, 2010. 23–44, 38. 53 Lane. “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” 64. 54 Ibid. 55 Baudrillard, Jean. Simulacra and Simulation. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 1994. 55.

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“meaning”56 and allows simulation or imitation of meaning to take over an apparent hyperreality.57 The references and allusions to the pseudo-original simulacrum are taken to an extreme in one particular moment from the sequel to Fielding’s novel of Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004), which is strictly speaking only a ‘bonus’ scene on the DVD, i. e. ‘the interview scene’:58 TV journalist Bridget Jones meets the actor Colin Firth in a professional context in order to interview “the complex man behind the wet shirt”,59 as she puts it, about his new film. Bridget proves to be rather preoccupied with Firth playing/‘being’ Mr Darcy.60 She appears to be emotionally reliving the moment from the mini-series:61 “As she questions the actor, Bridget cannot stop mentally replaying the famous, or infamous, scene where Darcy emerges from a plunge in a lake with a wet white shirt clinging to his semi-exposed torso.”62 Ten years after Pride and Prejudice was first broadcast, the actor, who is supposed to talk about his new (and very different) film, is clearly annoyed by Bridget’s preoccupation with the lake scene. Bridget Jones excels in reinforcing his obvious frustration by closing the interview with the words “this is Bridget Jones with Mr Darcy, sorry, Colin Firth”63 and immediately afterwards (i. e. after the official cut) embarrasses him (and herself) once more by asking: “Can I just ask you. D’you know when you’re in the wet shirt and everything, did you realise your nipples were showing through?”64 This enjoyable, highly ironic and meta-referential bonus scene privileges an erotically charged reading of the famous lake/wet shirt scene and the latter’s iconic status in popular culture. Bridget’s obsession, which reduces potential journalistic objectivism into unprofessional fandom, exemplifies the remarkable attention the lake scene tends to receive in the popular reception of Pride and Prejudice: “it underscores the absorption of those images into the collective cultural imagination”.65 When Bridget wants to find out more about shirtsplashing and wet-spraying, the “heart-throb” appears to be embarrassed.66 Yet Colin Firth actually seems to be quite willing to reiterate the famous scene again 56 Ibid. 56. 57 Cf. ibid. 84. 58 Youtube. “Bridget Jones Interviews Colin Firth.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh fOBupJckg (accessed 20 June, 2013). 59 Ibid. 0:25–0:29. 60 Cf. Marsh, Kelly A. “Contextualising Bridget Jones.” In: College Literature 31,1 (2004): 52–72, 62. 61 Faulstich briefly addresses film psychology and its implications. Cf. Faulstich, Werner. Grundkurs Filmanalyse. München: UTB, 2008. 16. 62 Lane. “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” 64. 63 Youtube. “Bridget Jones Interviews Colin Firth.” 3:03–3:11. 64 Ibid. 3:28–3:36. 65 Simons. “Jane Austen and Popular Culture.” 474. 66 Youtube. “Bridget Jones Interviews Colin Firth.” 0:07.

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and again: he echoes the scene for instance by fighting with Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant) in a fountain in Bridget Jones; he jumps into a lake in Love Actually ; and he participated in the aforementioned interview scene. So Firth is obviously quite prepared to make himself the object of the female gaze by revisiting the lake scene in later movies. Here, the postmodern character of the phenomenon that also informs the existence of the statue that was unveiled in Hyde Park surfaces: today, Pride and Prejudice is very much seen through the lens of the 1995 BBC version and its manifold intermedial influences. The impact of this adaptation and specifically of the lake scene is also obvious in the 2008 mini-series Lost in Austen, whose target audience Laurie Kaplan characterizes as follows: Broadcast on ITV in the UK during the autumn of 2008, Lost in Austen is aimed at a large, cross-over, and trifurcated (but overlapping) viewing public. The primary audience is the twenty-somethings familiar with magical doors, time-travel tales, and cultural absurdities. These Generation-Y viewers recognize the classic Elizabeth and Darcy love story from assigned readings in schools and universities, and from films and television. They are au courant with text messaging, urban slang, high street fashion and accessories, and the rituals and problems of twenty-first-century romantic relationships. The second target audience, a more general group that incorporates the first, primarily younger, segment, is made up of viewers familiar with (and likely enamoured of) Colin Firth’s wet shirt scene in Andrew Davies’s 1995 series, with the Bridget Jones books and films […]. These viewers may be slightly older than twenty-anything; it may have been a while since they have read P& P or any of Austen’s novels; and they are bound to be baffled by some of the contemporary women’s magazine expressions, silly jokes and contemporary references, and the occasionally rude vocabulary.67

In the 2008 ITV mini-series Lost in Austen, which is replete with intertextual and intermedial cross-references68 to Austen’s novel and to the previous audiovisual version(s), protagonist Amanda Price time-travels through a bathroom/cupboard from her reality in contemporary London to the parallel fictional world of Pride and Prejudice and experiences a metafictional costume drama that has been inspired by Austen’s novel, but also deviates from the proceedings of the original, thus appropriating the story for a new generation. Amanda affects the way the story unfolds: “Through the device of time travel, Amanda becomes an ‘Elizabeth Bennet figure’ ” 69 in a comical reversal of audience expectations and is “buoyed along by a script that positively frolics in the glorious fussiness of 67 Kaplan, Laurie. “ ‘ Completely without sense’: Lost in Austen.” In: Persuasions 30 (2010): 241–54, 244. 68 Raitt, George Douglas. Visualising Literature: Screen Adaptation and the Process of Reading/Viewing. Doctoral Thesis. Deakin University, 2011. 175. https://dro.deakin.edu.au/ eserv/DU:30042595/raitt-visualisingliterature-2011 A.pdf (accessed 13 June, 2013). 69 Ibid. 176.

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Georgian mores”.70 The mini-series thus features a metafictional, highly entertaining re-invention of and intervention in the original plot. Of course, Amanda, who has been an avid reader of Pride and Prejudice for a long time, has fallen in love with the novel’s hero from the Regency period. Despite her infatuation, she denies her feelings for him and does not want to accept that Mr Darcy seems to be falling in love with her instead of Elizabeth. Amanda strives to prompt the ‘proper’ ending of the novel. While refusing to requite the love Mr Darcy feels for her,71 she nevertheless at one point begs him to “do something”72 for her. Amanda is certainly granted a very postmodern agency here; the cut to the next scene reveals that this ‘something’ Amanda has asked for is a Firth-esque re-enactment of the lake scene: Mr Darcy once more emerges from the water, in this case the pool of the garden fountain, in a wet shirt,73 recreating the famous 1995 scene in a “playful revision”.74 Following in Colin Firth’s footsteps might not be the easiest task:75 Lost in Austen transposes the scene into a crossover reality and thereby “[s]creenwriter Guy Andrews achieves an additional layer of irony”76 or rather parody,77 as George Raitt points out: “Because this is a re-enactment, we may infer that Amanda sees not the physical person before her, but the idea of Darcy as portrayed by Austen (and Colin Firth)”,78 and she is thereby (once more) “fetishizing and framing Darcy and offering him up to the female gaze”.79 The idea of (re-)imagining a scene that was invented for the 1995 version in the first place when thinking of ‘the ultimate Darcy moment’ is indeed postmodern. The moment triggers Amanda’s selfreflexive utterance that was quoted at the beginning of this article: “I am having a bit of a strange, postmodern moment here”.80 The scene reaffirms the lasting impact and (pop)cultural value of the 1995 version: it “mocks Firth’s iconic 70 Dempster, Sarah. “Lost in Lost in Austen: Episode 1.” 4 September, 2008. http:// www.theguardian.com/culture/tvandradioblog/2008/sep/04/lostinlostinaustenep1 (accessed 30 June, 2013). 71 Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. UK, ITV/Granada, 2008. 00:29:31. 72 Ibid. 00:29:41. 73 Ibid. 00:29:43–00:31:08. 74 Kaplan. “ ‘ Completely without sense’.” 244. Cf. Raitt. Visualising Literature. 181. 75 The actor Elliot Cowan, who portrays Darcy in Lost in Austen, admitted: “I was most excited on my mother’s behalf as well because she had always been a big fan of Colin Firth’s rendition of the character […], and also I’m playing a guy that you kind of dig quite a lot.” Anon. “No Pressure on Darcy Role for Cowan.” First published Saturday 30 August 2008 in National Entertainment News. http://www.stalbansreview.co.uk/uk_national_entertainment/3633751. no_pressure_on_darcy_role_for_cowan/ (accessed 30 April, 2014). 76 Auerbach. “Pride and Proliferation.” 197. 77 Cf. Raitt. Visualising Literature. 179. 78 Ibid. 79 Hopkins. “Mr Darcy’s Body.” 112. 80 Lost in Austen 00:29:47–00:29:52.

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image of romantic love and sexual frustration but because it is not in the least bit ironic. It is truly an immersion. The intertextual mix adds to the richness as well as the comedy of Lost in Austen.”81 The scene even intensifies the wetness of the shirt; in Lost in Austen it seems to be completely drenched. Adaptations such as the Bridget Jones movies and Lost in Austen suggest that the simulacrum has indeed superseded the original. According to Baudrillard simulation seems to take effect when the simulacrum of Mr Darcy’s wet shirt has no relationship to the original Pride and Prejudice anymore, as Amanda’s hyperreal82 image of Mr Darcy is clearly based primarily on the 1995 mini-series, although, unlike Bridget Jones, she actually professes to be a fan of the novel. The wet shirt, which was invented by Davies, has thus reshaped the image of Mr Darcy and has truly become an icon of popular culture, taking a literary classic into the sphere of the postmodern.

4.

Beyond the wet shirt?

Although the Darcy character is fictional, both he and his shirt have become iconic: The statue epitomises the iconic role of the 1995 version; Colin Firth and the shirt he is wearing in the lake scene have become the embodiment of an idealised masculinity, as indicated by the many references to the TV series, its hero, and the actor who portrayed him. The lake scene certainly exemplifies how the significance of “the power of appearances”83 in audiovisual media can shift the centre of interest. But it could all have ended up very differently… On 9 October 2013 The Guardian reported the following story : Colin Firth’s dripping white shirt in Pride and Prejudice transformed him into a sex symbol – but the show’s writer has revealed that the scene was originally intended to go even further. Andrew Davies, who adapted Jane Austen’s novel for the BBC, told the Cheltenham literary festival that he planned Mr Darcy to be fully nude in the scene. However, Davies said Firth had other ideas: ‘The wet shirt scene was intended to be a total full-frontal nudity scene. Darcy was an actual man but he spent all his time being constrained by demands of society. He’d just spent weeks and months in London being polite with a group of stuffy people. He would have had a few hours in which he could be blissfully alone. It’s a hot day, he arrives at this lake – so I thought he would strip completely off and dive down and just become a creature, an animal, just for once.’ Davies added: ‘I don’t know the reason why – maybe they felt it would have taken too long to get him undressed. They could have always cut to him standing on the bank 81 Kaplan. “ ‘ Completely without sense’.” 247. 82 Baudrillard. Simulacra and Simulation. 10. 83 Hopkins. “Mr Darcy’s Body.” 112.

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diving in naked so it might have been something about Colin’s anxiety about love handles or something.’84

One may only speculate about the potential impact of Darcy diving naked into the lake. At any rate, both the scene as we know it and the alternative scene we might have watched exemplify how audiovisual adaptations manage to contribute to the lasting interest in Pride and Prejudice today : Why do readers and viewers continue to find Austen’s works so relevant, given that it is so bound to this particular late eighteenth and early nineteenth century period and its social and cultural structures and values? This question is best explained through the examination of contemporary film that has so determinedly adapted her works over the past fifteen years. While these films labor to interpret Austen’s novels to film, at the same time they communicate through various departures how our perspective, both culturally and about Austen’s work – and period of history – has changed. Yet even in these departures, the films resonate dynamically with values which, over the course of two hundred years, remain unchanged. Despite the numerous and apparent shifts in culture, values and structures that have occurred in our world over the past two centuries, the core of what we value – what we hold to be most true and important – remains timeless.85

Reading Austen’s Pride and Prejudice or one of its audiovisual adaptations, sequels or rewritings today is a process that is informed by what Judy Simons refers to as the “palimpsestic nature of these products [which] continue to resonate for the practiced Austen reader, aware of eighteenth-century literary conventions, the nuances of the original text, and the quirks of cinema and critical histories.”86

References Anderson, Lindsay. “Jane Austen in Contemporary Film: Interpretations and Reflections of Austen’s Novels in Contemporary Culture.” Eastern Michigan University. Thesis. 2010. http://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1207& context=ho nors (accessed 30 May, 2013). Anon. “Pride, Prejudice and a big wet shirt as Mr Darcy makes a splash again.” In: The Yorkshire Post. http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/main-topics/general-news/pride84 The Guardian. MediaMonkey. “Colin Firth’s Mr Darcy ‘was meant to be naked’.” http://www. theguardian.com/media/2013/oct/09/colin-firth-mr-darcy-naked-pride-prejudice-bbc (accessed 9 October, 2013). 85 Anderson, Lindsay. “Jane Austen in Contemporary Film: Interpretations and Reflections of Austen’s Novels in Contemporary Culture.” Eastern Michigan University. Thesis, 2010. 208. http://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1207& context=honors (accessed 30 May, 2013). 86 Simons. “Jane Austen and Popular Culture.” 474.

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prejudice-and-a-big-wet-shirt-as-mr-darcy-makes-a-splash-again-1–5835715 (accessed 9 July, 2013). Anon. “No Pressure on Darcy Role for Cowan.” First published Saturday 30 August, 2008 in National Entertainment News. http://www.stalbansreview.co.uk/uk_national_enter tainment/ 3633751.no_pressure_on_darcy_role_for_cowan/ (accessed 30 April, 2014). Anon. “Colin Firth Statue as Mr Darcy In ‘Pride and Prejudice’ Emerges from Hyde Park Lake to Mark Launch of UK Drama Channel.” In: Huffington Post. Entertainment. http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/07/08/colin-firth-statue-mr-darcy-pride-andprejudice-lake_n_3560981.html (accessed 9 July, 2013). Aragay, Mireira and Gemma López. “Inf(l)ecting Pride and Prejudice: Dialogism, Intertextuality and Adaptation.” In: Mireira Aragay (ed.). Books in Motion: Adaptation, Intertextuality, Authorship. Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, 2005. 201–19. Auerbach, Emily. “Pride and Proliferation.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 186–97. BAFTA. “Colin Firth: A Life in Pictures.” (9 January, 2012) http://www.bafta.org/film/ features/colin-firth-a-life-in-pictures (accessed 10 January, 2014). Baudrillard, Jean. Simulacra and Simulation. Trans. Sheila Faria Glaser. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 1994. Bridget Jones’s Diary. Dir. Sharon Maguire. Miramax, 2001. “Bridget Jones Interviews Colin Firth.” From EOR [Edge of Reason] Deleted Scenes. http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhfOBupJckg (accessed 20 April, 2014). Bury, Liz. “Mr Darcy Surfaces as Statue in London Lake.” In: The Guardian 8 July, 2013. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/jul/08/mr-darcy-statue-pride-and-prejudice (accessed 10 July, 2013). Cardwell, Sarah. Adaptation Revisited: Television and the Classic Novel. Manchester : Manchester University Press, 2002. Caroe, Laura. “We lake Darcy’s clip best.” In: The Sun 9 July, 2013. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/4997810/Colin-Firths-famous-wet-shirt-scene-inPride-And-Prejudice-named-most-memorable-moment-in-British-TV-drama.html (accessed 9 July, 2013). Carroll, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73. Dempster, Sarah. “Lost in Lost in Austen: Episode 1.” 4 September, 2008. http:// www.theguardian.com/culture/tvandradioblog/2008/sep/04/lostinlostinaustenep1 (accessed 30 June, 2013). Faulstich, Werner. Grundkurs Filmanalyse. München: UTB, 2008 [2002]. Fielding, Helen. Bridget Jones’s Diary. London: Picador, 1996. The Guardian. MediaMonkey. “Colin Firth’s Mr Darcy ‘was meant to be naked’.” http:// www.theguardian.com/media/2013/oct/09/colin-firth-mr-darcy-naked-pride-prejudicebbc (accessed 9 October, 2013). Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen: V& R unipress, 2010. 23–44. Hickethier, Knut. Film- und Fernsehanalyse. Stuttgart/Weimar : Metzler, 2012.

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Higson, Andrew. “Brit-lit Biopics. 1990–2010.” In: Judith Buchanan (ed.). The Writer on Film: Screening Literary Authorship. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 106–20. Hopkins, Lisa. “Mr Darcy’s Body : Privileging the Female Gaze.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, KY: University of Kentucky Press, 2001. 111–21. Imbd. “Colin Firth. Biography.” http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000147/bio?ref_=nm_ ov_bio_sm (accessed 26 June, 2013). Kaplan, Laurie. “ ‘ Completely without sense’: Lost in Austen.” In: Persuasions 30 (2010): 241–54. Lane, Cara Ann. “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” In: Film & History : An Interdisciplinary Journal of Film and Television Studies 33,1 (2003): 64–65. Looser, Devoney. “Feminist Implications of the Silver Screen Austen.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, KY: University of Kentucky Press, 2001. 159–76. – “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85. Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. UK: ITV/Granada, 2008. Lyall, Sarah. “Pride, Prejudice, Promotion? Mr. Darcy Rising.” In: The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/10/arts/design/pride-prejudice-promotion-mr-dar cy-rising.html?_r=0 (accessed 10 July, 2013). Marsh, Kelly A. “Contextualising Bridget Jones.” In: College Literature 31,1 (2004): 52–72. McClurg, Elizabeth. The New Darcy and Elizabeth: How we are Reconstructing Austen’s Characters in Modern Novels. Ohio State University. Thesis. 2009. http://kb.osu.edu/ dspace/handle/1811/38878 (accessed 6 May, 2013). Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. UK: BBC, 1995. Raitt, George Douglas. Visualising Literature: Screen Adaptation and the Process of Reading/Viewing. Doctoral Thesis. Deakin University, 2011. https://dro.deakin.edu.au/ eserv/DU:30042595/raitt-visualisingliterature-2011 A.pdf (accessed 13 June, 2013). Schaff, Barbara. “Still Lives – Tableaux Vivants: Art in British Heritage Films.” In: Eckart Voigts-Virchow (ed.). Janespotting and Beyond: British Heritage Retrovisions since the Mid-1990s. Tübingen: Narr, 2004. 125–34. Simons, Judy. “Jane Austen and Popular Culture.” In: Claudia L. Johnson and Clara Tuite (eds.). A Companion to Jane Austen. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. 467–77. Stam, Robert. “Introduction: The Theory and Practice of Adaptation.” In: Robert Stam and Alessandra Raengo (eds.). Literature and Film: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Film Adaptation. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005. 1–53. Stoneman, Patsy. “Rochester and Heathcliff as Romantic Heroes.” In: BrontÚ Studies 36,1 (2011): 111–18. Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49. – “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–61. Troost, Linda V. “The Nineteenth Century Novel on Film: Jane Austen.” In: Deborah Cartmell and Imelda Whelehan (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Literature on Screen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007. 75–89.

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Visit Peak District & Derbyshire. “Giant Mr. Darcy wins hearts at Lyme Park.” http:// visitpeakdistrictblog.com/2013/07/19/giant-mr-darcy-wins-hearts-at-lymepark-che shire-peakdistrict/ (accessed 9 April, 2013). Youtube. “Bridget Jones Interviews Colin Firth.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= BhfOBupJckg (accessed 20 June, 2013). – “Pride and Prejudice: The Lake Scene (Colin Firth Strips Off).” https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=hasKmDr1yrA (accessed 20 June, 2013).

Gislind Rohwer-Happe

The Mr. Darcy Complex – The Impact of a Literary Icon on Contemporary Chick Lit

It is a truth universally acknowledged that many if not all women suffer from a “Mr. Darcy complex”.1 No matter how little known this complex is in scientific or psychological treatises, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the female readers of Pride and Prejudice that they can only consider Mr. Darcy as the rightful object of their affections and would whole-heartedly agree that “Only Mr. Darcy will Do!”2 Even though the Mr. Darcy complex has not found its way into serious psychology (yet), it certainly exists and is widely discussed by articles in journals and magazines as well as blogs from around the world.3 One blogger sets out to define the complex as follows:

1 The ‘Mr. Darcy complex’ is not the only recognized literary ‘illness’ associated with Jane Austen. Marjorie Garber. Quotation Marks. New York: Routledge, 2003. 200, diagnosed herself to be suffering from the “Jane Austen syndrome”: “My most intimate Austen connection, however, is with my golden retriever, who rejoices in the name of Willoughby. […] Like his namesake, Willoughby is handsome, flirtatious, irresistible, and unreliable. Such are my meager credentials: amateur enthusiasm, Austen tourism and movie-watching, and pet naming. I am, for better or for worse, enunciating some of the chief symptoms of what I have dubbed the Jane Austen syndrome – my way of understanding how ‘Jane Austen’ (the sum total of her language, plots, biography, and landscape) is marketed, consumed, and disseminated today”. Juliette Wells (“Austen’s Adventures in American Popular Fiction, 1996–2006.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p.) elaborates on the “Jane Austen syndrome”: “In 2003, Marjorie Garber coined the term the ‘Jane Austen syndrome’ to encompass all of Austen’s manifestations in popular culture, from film adaptations to newspaper headlines to tea towels.” Indeed, the beginning of this article also exhibits a frequent symptom of the “Jane Austen syndrome” as it is based on the first sentences of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (cf. Garber. Quotation Marks. 204–05). 2 In Jessica Grey’s Attempting Elizabeth (Cascade, CO: Tall House Books, 2013. 13), the protagonist has decorated her fridge with a magnet with this statement. 3 Cf., for instance, Caitriona Durcan’s article in the Irish Independent (http://www.independent.ie/ unsorted/features/do-you-have-a-darcy-complex-25885427.html) or Samangie Wettimuny’s report “The Darcy complex. Are you too a ‘victim’?” in Sri Lanka’s Sunday Observer (http:// www.sundayobserver.lk/2008/05/11/imp06.asp). Blogs include http://randomcleverishness.blog spot.de/2010/08/darcy-complex.html, http://notyourmamasbiblestudy.wordpress.com/2013/09 /18/de-shmuckify-your-husband-battle-1-loose-the-mr-darcy-complex, http://thesecretworld

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What appeals to us about Mr Darcy is that for a man who at first appeared to be so grotesquely proud and haughty and destructive and anti-love, he is a pretty impressive romantic hero with all the romantic hero ideals […]: tall, rich, good looking, kind, sensitive, generous, blah blah blah. It gives us girls hope that fags may not be fags, they’re Mr Darcys – good men hiding under a bad cover.4

Another blogger explains the consequences of the Mr. Darcy complex in this way : “Let’s face it, whenever any woman says ‘I love Jane Austen’ what she is really saying is, ‘I love Mr. Darcy’ and he is the standard by which all the men I know are doomed to be judged.’ ” 5 Mr. Darcy, and here the ‘real’ Mr. Darcy – which is of course a paradox in itself – is referred to as well as the representations of his character by Colin Firth6 and Matthew Macfadyen7 and the layers of attractiveness which have been added to Darcy’s original appeal by their performances,8 apparently have a strong influence on women’s ideas of the perfect man and ideal husband.9 Indeed, it was especially Colin Firth’s representation of Mr. Darcy that transformed Jane Austen’s hero into an icon: Originating in Andrew Davies’s 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, Colin Firth’s Darcy escaped the bounds of the serial and, lusted after by millions, became a ‘free-floating signifier’, as icons are wont to do. Darcy’s appeal is primarily sexual, as is

4 5 6 7 8

9

ofladyrenegade.blogspot.de/2011/01/mr-darcy-complex.html, http://www.wattpad.com/329475 83-the-mr-darcy-complex (all accessed 5 August, 2014). http://thesecretworldofladyrenegade.blogspot.de/2011/01/mr-darcy-complex.html (accessed 5 August, 2014). http://randomcleverishness.blogspot.de/2010_08_01_archive.html (accessed 5 August, 2014). Cf. Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC/A& E, 1995. Cf. Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Joe Wright. Focus Features, 2005. Cf. Seidl, Monika. “Framing Colin: The Adaptation of Classics and Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy and after Mr. Darcy.” In: Werner Huber, Evelyne Keitel and Gunter Süß (eds.). Intermediality : New Perspectives on Literature and the Media. Trier : WVT, 2007. 37–49, 37, who regards Colin Firth’s performance as a “1995 construction of a Mr. Darcy that has meanwhile established itself as the classic Mr. Darcy figure.” Cardwell, Sarah. “Darcy’s Escape. An Icon in the Making.” In: Stella Bruzzi and Pamela Church Gibson (eds.). Fashion Cultures. Theories, Explorations and Analysis. Abingdon/New York: Routledge, 2006. 239–44, 239, explains the Colin-Firth-as-Darcy-allure as follows: “Colin-Firth-as-Darcy was born to wear period costume: it flatters his figure, drawing attention to his muscular legs and his broad, though hairless chest. In Pride and Prejudice, glowering, brooding, shooting icy looks and disdainful sneers all around, Darcy’s near-silent display of manly characteristics means that we can gaze upon him without being distracted by having to listen to what he has to say.” This assumption is supported by “a survey released in May 2003 which analysed the reading habits of women across the UK and which was commissioned by […] the firm which finances the Orange prize for fiction […W]omen were asked which fictional character they would most likely go on a date with and to name three fictional characers that they would invite to an imaginary dinner party. In both categories, Mr Darcy topped the poll.” Seidl, Monika. “Medialising Mr Darcy. Colin Firth as Extra Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (1995).” In: Jürgen Kamm (ed.). Medialised Britain: Essays on Media, Culture and Society. Passau: Karl Strutz, 2006. 81–97, 94.

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the case with ‘traditional’ icons. Yet it is the ways in which he differs from those predecessors that make him such a curious and important example of iconicity, and that, indeed, guarantee his salience in contemporary popular culture despite the apparent hindrances of his fictionality and his ‘birthplace’ (television).10

It is therefore not surprising that a character that is so attractive to women as well as the complex he causes have become recurring if not notorious topics in contemporary fiction and especially in Chick Lit, with about 200 novels available at the moment that feature the name of Mr. Darcy in their title.11 The many explicit references to Mr. Darcy in so many Chick Lit novels, as well as the fact that Chick Lit’s general plot line hearkens back to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, clearly highlight the fact that Austen’s novel can be regarded as the grandmother of Chick Lit, while Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary can safely be called the mother of Chick Lit.12 The object of this article, however, is Mr. Darcy’s impact on the granddaughters of the genre, novels with titles like A Weekend with Mr. Darcy,13 My Own Mr. Darcy,14 Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart,15 Austenland,16 Me and Mr. Darcy17 or Austentatious.18 Chick Lit is a genre that is often criticized as being trashy, a waste of time,19 not serious and antifeminist.20 Despite the fact that the literary merit of Chick Lit is thought to be minute to non-existent, it is notable for its “amazing commercial success”,21 its immense popularity and for its engagement with pop culture.22 It is defined by a fallible, imperfect heroine in her twenties or thirties,23 who tries to balance her “demanding career[…] with personal relationships”.24 In contrast to 10 Cardwell. “Darcy’s Escape.” 239. 11 Cf. Goodreads search “Mr. Darcy” https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=& query= Mr.+Darcy (accessed 5 August, 2014). 12 Cf. Ferriss, Suzanne and Mallory Young. Chick Lit: The New Woman’s Fiction. New York/ London: Routledge, 2006. 4–5. Woolston, Jennifer Mary. “ ‘ It’s not a put-down, Miss Bennet; it’s a category’: Andrew Black’s Chick Lit Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions OnLine 28,1 (2007): n.p., sums up: “If one accepts the notion […] that the genre of Chick Lit emerged from women’s writing for other women, Austen’s stories may arguably serve as one of the important inception points of the current category. Pride and Prejudice, in this sense, is one of the textual cornerstones of this increasingly popular female-centered literary genre.” 13 Connelly, Victoria. A Weekend with Mr. Darcy. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 2011. 14 White, Karey. My Own Mr. Darcy. Cedar Hills, UT: Orange Door Press, 2013. 15 Pattillo, Beth. Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart. New York: Guideposts, 2010. 16 Hale, Shannon. Austenland. New York: Bloomsbury, 2007. 17 Potter, Alexandra. Me and Mr. Darcy. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 2007. 18 Goodnight, Alyssa. Austentatious. New York: Kensington, 2012. 19 Cf. Ferriss and Young. Chick Lit. 1. 20 Cf. ibid. 9. 21 Ibid. 2. 22 Cf. ibid. 2, 3. 23 Cf. ibid. 3–4. 24 Cabot in Ferriss and Young. Chick Lit. 3.

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the traditional romance, Chick Lit “jettisons the heterosexual hero to offer a more realistic portrait of single life, dating and the dissolution of romantic ideals. Both fans and authors of Chick Lit contend the […] genre’s realism”.25 Realism and authenticity are key terms when dealing with Chick Lit as the genre encourages the illusion that it “is not fiction at all”.26 At the same time the reality effect that is crucial to Chick Lit highlights the connection between this purportedly low-brow genre and many classic predecessors written by women,27 such as Charlotte BrontÚ’s fictional autobiography and female bildungsroman Jane Eyre. The Chick Lit “urtext”28, Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary, relies heavily on Pride and Prejudice in terms of its plot and characters and is merely a modern day variation of its predecessor. However, there is no direct reference to or thematization of Austen’s novel. Only the BBC’s 1995 dramatisation starring Colin Firth is mentioned, establishing firmly the indivisability of the actor from the audience’s idea of Mr. Darcy. Although the fictional character of Darcy has certainly become inseparable from Colin Firth since 1995 and to a certain extent since 2005 also from Matthew Macfadyen,29 the most recent generation of Chick Lit, which is the subject matter of this article, frequently returns to the original, fictional character of Mr. Darcy as he was created by Austen, “recognis[ing] his fictionality as a source of his appeal.”30 There are of course the obligatory references to Colin Firth and less frequently to Matthew Macfadyen; yet they rather function as a reference to popular culture and add to the genre’s overall effort to maintain the reality effect.31 In returning not only to Jane Austen’s depiction of 25 26 27 28 29

Cf. Ferriss and Young. Chick Lit. 3. Ibid. 4. Cf. ibid. Ibid. Cf. Seidl. “Framing Colin.” 37, who acknowledges that the 1995 BBC “TV mini-series has meanwhile gained fame as a classic and has generated another classic, namely ‘the classic Mr. Darcy figure’ represented by the British actor Colin Firth.” The same might be said of Matthew Macfadyen, who by a younger generation of viewers, unaware of prior adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, has been turned into an iconic representation of Mr. Darcy as well. 30 Cardwell. “Darcy’s Escape.” 240. Cardwell in this alludes to the general ostentatious display of Darcy as a fictional character in criticism and other discourses, but her statement also very correctly describes the current tendency in Chick Lit dealing with the Mr. Darcy complex. 31 Shannon Hale’s Austenland might at first sight prove to be an exception to the rule as the heroine Jane is infatuated with Colin Firth’s performance as Mr. Darcy, clearly demonstrating the effects of “Darcymania”: “But it wasn’t until the BBC put a face on the story that those gentlemen in tight breeches had stepped out of her reader’s imagination and into her nonfiction hopes” (Hale. Austenland. 2). Yet she is very much aware that her fantasy centres around ‘Mr. Darcy’ and not Colin Firth. Moreover, she is intimately familiar with Austen’s works as she “had first read Pride and Prejudice when she was sixteen, read it a dozen times since, and read the other Austen novels at least twice, except Northanger Abbey (of course).”

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Darcy but also to the original literary text as a whole, which becomes an essential part of the narrative, the newest generation of ‘Mr. Darcy novels’ marks a significant departure from Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary. The existence of a shift or rather a rupture between Bridget Jones’s Diary and the more recent developments in Chick Lit dealing with the Mr. Darcy complex has also been recognized by Marilyn Francus, although she sees the difference in the “less flattering light”32 in which “Austen’s modern devotees”33 are depicted and in “the high standards and expectations”34 that these devotees “base[…] on their readings of Austen”,35 which result in a failure “at romance – for no man can compete with their idea of Darcy”.36 Although Francus’s definition of the Darcy complex is absolutely correct, her assessment of Chick Lit dealing with the obsession with Mr. Darcy is not entirely correct: in fact, the youngest generation clearly sets out to show that the Mr. Darcy complex can be overcome, resulting in the recognition that there are enough men in existence who – though they might not be Mr. Darcy – are adequate, desirable and even better alternatives than the admired fictional hero.37 However, it has to be noted that while the reader certainly gains the impression that the younger generation of Chick Lit dealing with the Mr. Darcy complex might employ Austen’s original version of Darcy, stripped bare of Firth/ Macfadyen, it has to be stressed that there is no such thing as a return to an original. Indeed, Chick Lit only creates the illusion of returning to Austen’s original hero, while in fact really offering just another interpretation of the source text or, as Monika Seidl observes: [E]ach activation produces ways of reading the source text, and different adaptations will make the source text mean different things. What follows from this is that we never get access to the texts in themselves, and therefore the meaning of the source text is not something which is inscribed in the text itself, meaning is rather something which is

32 33 34 35 36 37

(Hale. Austenland. 2), thus demonstrating the typical familiarity with Austen’s source text in recent ‘Mr. Darcy novels’. Francus, Marilyn. “Austen Therapy : Pride and Prejudice and Popular Culture.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Francus. “Austen Therapy.” Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. As Cardwell. “Darcy’s Escape.” 240, mentions as well, this is a notion that Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones, 215, is already very much aware of, although Bridget, of course, again only refers to Colin Firth as Darcy : “Then we [Bridget and her friend Jude] had a long discussion about the comparative merits of Mr. Darcy and Mark Darcy, both agreeing that Mr. Darcy was more attractive because he was ruder but that being imaginary was a disadvantage that could not be overlooked.”

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accumulated over time and is performed in specific contexts. […A]n original needs a copy, or at least constant activation, such as adaptations, to secure its originality.38

In this way, the latest developments in ‘Mr. Darcy Chick Lit’ can be regarded as essential to not only keeping the Mr. Darcy complex alive, but also to offering reinterpretations and reexaminations of Austen’s source text.39 In this context, the recent examples of Chick Lit focusing on Mr. Darcy as a central topic prove to be quite a unique instance of what Seidl refers to as “retroactivity”40 as they were triggered by the BBC’s 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice41 – which caused a “popular culture phenomenon termed ‘Darcymania’ ” 42 – but discard this adaptation’s representation of Mr. Darcy as the basis or rather goal of their heroine’s desires.43 Instead, they not only return to Austen’s text as a source of inspiration, thus “maintaining a distinction between the performer (Firth) and the performed (Darcy)”,44 but also share some essential features which could be regarded as generic to what will be called ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’. The novel chosen to demonstrate the impact Austen’s hero has on contemporary Chick Lit as well as to explore the prevalent engagement of ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ with reading, writing, interpreting and reworking is Jessica Grey’s Attempting Elizabeth (2013). Grey’s Pride and Prejudice variation is not only one of the most recent, but also one of the most entertaining to date as it offers a highly 38 Seidl. “Framing Colin.” 40. 39 Cano López, Marina. (“Looking Back in Desire; or How Jane Austen Rewrites Chick Lit in Alexandra Potter’s Me and Mr. Darcy.” In: Persuasions On-Line 31,1 (2010): n.p.), recognizes this to a certain extent as well. Criticizing Francus’s approach to Chick Lit, she states: “Although Francus claims that Me and Mr. Darcy does not add anything to our understanding of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, I would argue that both texts shed light on each other.” 40 Seidl. “Framing Colin.” 38ff. 41 Seidl, Monika. “Medialising Mr Darcy.” 82, comments on the main difference between Austen’s novel and the BBC adaptation, which has brought about the genre of ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’: “In the process of balancing the romance plot, the strong female character at the centre of the novel gets lost. While Darcy is brought to the foreground, the importance of Elizabeth is lessened. The Jane Austen novel is popularly remembered for its central female character, the 1995 mini-series is remembered for its central male character.” This observation is supported by Lisa Hopkins. “Mr. Darcy’s Body. Privileging the Female Gaze.” In: Linda Troost and Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington/KY: University Press of Kentucky, 2001. 111–21, 112, who assesses that “Pride and Prejudice […] is unashamed about appealing to women – in particular about fetishizing and framing Darcy and offering him up to the female gaze.” 42 Seidl. “Medialising Mr Darcy.” 82. 43 Nevertheless Colin Firth’s performance has of course an impact on the way Mr. Darcy is constructed in Chick Lit, as Firth’s Darcy has become embedded in collective memory. Similarly Seidl. “Medialising Mr Darcy.” 83, argues that: “[T]he [BBC’s] elevation of Darcy has an influence on readings of Pride and Prejudice post mini-series, as from then onwards, also readings of the novel revolve around Darcy in collective memory.” 44 Cardwell. “Darcy’s Escape.” 240.

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creative and amusing engagement with Austen’s beloved novel. The protagonist, Kelsey Edmondson, single, is currently working on her MA in Literature, which “is, in today’s economy, the epitome of procrastination”.45 The love for literature exhibited by Kelsey constitutes one of the elements common to all ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ novels: all heroines either study literature,46 work in a bookshop,47 for a magazine48 (which is also typical of Chick Lit in general)49 or as a university lecturer,50 or if they are not involved professionally in any book-related occupation, they at least possess all of Austen’s novels and are in one way or another guided by and addicted to literature.51 Literature itself thus becomes a topic in the novels and therefore one of the distinctive features of ‘Mr. Darcy fiction’, which sets this subgenre apart, as usually reading and especially literature do not rank highly for Chick Lit’s protagonists.52 The most important difference between Chick Lit in general and ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’, however, is the fact that Pride and Prejudice not only provides the point of reference for ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’, supplying to a rather large extent the plotline and character construction for all of its successors, but even becomes the central element of the narrative. The metafictional discourse already created by Helen Fielding in Bridget Jones’s Diary is thus not only copied but intensified.53 The genre benefits from the pervasive intertextuality, as “[t]he Austen connection brings some dignity to the abused genre of the Chick Lit novel by showing it to be other than one-dimensional.”54 In Jessica Grey’s Attempting Elizabeth, Kelsey Edmondson recuperates from a relationship that ended painfully in betrayal. One night her friend Tori Mansfield – in many if not all ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ at least one character’s name alludes to a character or place in Austen’s novels55 – drags her to a party and although Kelsey 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55

Grey. Attempting Elizabeth. 17. Cf. Grey’s Attempting Elizabeth. Cf. Potter’s Me and Mr. Darcy. Cf. Hale’s Austenland. Cf., for instance, Sophie Kinsella’s The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic. London: Black Swan, 2000 or Jane Green’s Jemima J. New York: Broadway, 1999. Cf. Connelly’s A Weekend with Mr. Darcy. Cf. Pattillo’s Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart. In this Chick Lit differs from its predecessor as Elizabeth Bennet is a “model reader” (Francus. “Austen Therapy.” 4). Cf. Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. Cano López. “Looking Back in Desire.” n.p. In Hale’s Austenland, for instance, the protagonist’s name is Jane, the heroine of White’s novel is named Elizabeth “after Elizabeth Bennet because she’s strong and smart and confident. All the things I wanted you to become. Dad thought it was silly to name you after a character in a book, especially since our last name is Barrett” (White. My Own Mr. Darcy. 2), as her mother explains. In Pattillo’s Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart the character who plays a major role in the heroine’s development is called Harriet, recalling Harriet Smith’s role in Emma’s discovery of her true feelings in Jane Austen’s Emma. Connelly uses a widowed Mrs. Norris, just as in Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park, and calls her heroine Katherine, albeit with a

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does not “want to go Mr. Darcy hunting”56 as she “only end[s] up with Wickhams”57 she finally assents when Tori comes up with the idea of “Wickham hunting”58 – “find[ing] you a cute, shallow playboy, and then you can treat him like dirt before he gets the chance to jerkface out on you.”59 This dialogue might readily serve to demonstrate the impact the idea of Mr. Darcy’s perfection has on the female mind. Men seemingly only fit into the Darcy or Wickham category ; unfortunately, however, the world is filled to its brim with Wickhams. Darcy is an ideal that women in their search for the perfect partner yearn for, but they are at the same time very much aware of the fact that it is much easier and therefore more probable to end up with a Wickham. As ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ in its status as a subgenre of Chick Lit insists on the obligatory happy ending, all heroines of course end up with their own version of Mr. Darcy – nevertheless the presence of a Wickham, for instance in the character of the unfaithful ex-boyfriend, is typical of Mr. Darcy fiction and constitutes just one example of character construction borrowed from Pride and Prejudice. On the level of the plot, there is of course the memorable scene of Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s first meeting that is being replayed over and over not only in ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’, but also in many other Chick Lit novels. In Attempting Elizabeth the Wickham hunting does not go too well, but Tori is sure of having found a perfect dance partner for her best friend: the hot bartender. However, in a genderreversed version of the ball scene at Meryton, Kelsey rejects the idea of dancing in true Mr. Darcy fashion. Tori’s announcement: “Don’t look now, but Hottie is right there. Oh my god, I think he is coming over here. Maybe he’s gonna ask you to dance!”60 is met by Kelsey with a sigh and the answer : “Tor, I don’t care. I don’t want to dance with anyone, especially not some slacker who tends bar for a living. I don’t care how hot anyone else thinks he is. I want to go home”.61 This response is of course overheard in true Austen-style by Mark Barnes, the bartender. The initial hostility beween heroine and hero, which is so well known from Pride and Prejudice, is a staple of Chick Lit – as it makes for a more or less interesting plotline with a strong obstacle that has to be overcome – but in ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’, the parallels with Austen’s text are emphasized and become easily

56 57 58 59 60 61

‘K’, unlike Jane Austen’s Catherine Morland in Northanger Abbey, while in Goodnight’s Austentatious Jane Austen aka “Fairy Jane” plays a crucial role and in Potter’s Me and Mr. Darcy, both Jane Austen and Mr. Darcy appear as characters. Grey. Attempting Elizabeth. 3. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. 11. Ibid.

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recognizable as parts of the first meeting between Elizabeth and Darcy and/or their dialogue are reworked as shown above. Another example for such an imitation of dialogue occurs in Alexandra Potter’s Me and Mr. Darcy. There, the heroine Emily has just reflected on how Elizabeth Bennet must have felt when overhearing Darcy’s description of her (“God, imagine being described as ‘tolerable’. How insulting. I’d die”62) when she overhears the hero’s phone conversation with a colleague in which he refers to her as “…no way. She’s not my type…She seems pretty dull…averagelooking”.63 Apart from making her furious, this description also prompts an even stronger rapport between her and Elizabeth Bennet: “Now I know how Elizabeth Bennet feels, I realise, feeling a new and powerful identification with Austen’s heroine.”64 This is followed by a direct quote from Austen’s account of Mrs. Bennet’s description of Darcy : “[H]e is a most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing. So high and so conceited that there was no enduring him! He walked here, and he walked there, fancying him so very great!”65 Emily considers Mrs. Bennet’s assessment to be an apt description of her own situation: Honestly, I couldn’t have put it better myself. Who cares what Spike thinks? He’s so conceited and full of himself I’m glad he doesn’t like me. If he did he’d only be trying to hang out with me the whole time. How horrible would that be?66

First impressions, however, can be deceptive – the truth of this notion is sooner or later discovered by all ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ heroines: the man posing as an antiquarian is actually the author of racy romances writing under the pen-name of a woman,67 the arrogant journalist who discarded the heroine as being dull turns out to be a Darcy character in disguise,68 and Mark Barnes in Attempting Elizabeth is not just a hot bartender, but also a very intelligent history teacher – interestingly enough, not only the heroines are involved with literature, but their love interests are also part of the world of books, as is illustrated by this list.69 The cited passage from Me and Mr. Darcy already vividly demonstrates the dialogue ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ tends to enter into with Pride and Prejudice, quoting directly from the novel and commenting on it or applying it to the heroine’s situation. Attempting Elizabeth takes the use of Pride and Prejudice as a crucial 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69

Potter. Me and Mr. Darcy. 57. Ibid. 61. Ibid. 62. Ibid. Ibid. Cf. Connelly. A Weekend with Mr. Darcy. Cf. Potter. Me and Mr. Darcy. Sometimes, in an attempt to confuse the reader, the Wickham character has a bibliophile profession, as in Pattillo’s Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart.

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plot element even a step further and in this proves to be extremely creative. After having had yet another unhappy encounter with Mark ‘the bartender/history teacher’ Barnes, Kelsey indulges in reading: I changed into my rattiest and most comfortable sweatpants, pulled out Pride and Prejudice, poured myself a glass of wine and stretched out on our living room couch for a date with some of my favourite characters.70

Her favourite character, naturally, is Mr. Darcy, and Kelsey’s description of her obsession with him provides the reader with yet another insight into a woman suffering from a Mr. Darcy complex: I do admit, however, that I’m not-so-secretly-in love with Mr. Darcy. What’s not to love about a handsome and rich man (“ten thousand pounds a year!”) that falls so desperately in love with a woman that he is willing to examine his own prejudices and overcome his pride to be with her?71

Kelsey does not stop her praises here; she elaborates on her complex and analyzes Darcy’s character : Actually, it’s even better than that, because Darcy changes not knowing if it will result in Lizzy falling in love with him. And he does, I think, a truly amazing and dashing thing, when he helps rescue her sister from certain ruin and wants no recognition for it. He saved her younger sister, Lydia, at great trouble and expense, just because he loved Elizabeth and didn’t want to see her hurt. Sigh.72

Kelsey’s appreciation of Darcy’s character of course not only serves as a brief summary of Pride and Prejudice’s plotline, it also underlines one of the key factors that cause the Darcy complex: Darcy’s chivalrous and unselfish behaviour in the second part of the novel in fact not only dooms all men to be compared to him, but all women to the futile search for their own Mr. Darcy. Kelsey grudgingly, albeit stubbornly admits: “And yes, I know he is a fictional character ; I’m still kind of in love with him. It’s a pity that my own attempts at finding my own Mr. Darcy had turned into such debacles.”73 While this interior monologue sets out to stress that Kelsey, in contrast to Mr. Darcy, is definitely not a fictional character, but as ‘real’ as the reader and that she and the reader share the bond of regarding a fictional character as their ideal, the further development of the plot certainly contradicts this impression and completely suspends the reality effect. Indeed, the trademark realism of Chick 70 71 72 73

Grey. Attempting Elizabeth. 42. Ibid. 42–43. Ibid. 43. Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. rightly points out that there is a strong tendency in recent literature engaging with fantasies of Mr. Darcy for the protagonist to “know that it is unhealthy to be attached to a fictional character.”

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Lit is often highly ambiguous in ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’: while the character construction and the setting absolutely comply with reality, the plotline tends to veer towards the fantastic. In Me and Mr. Darcy, Emily not only meets the ‘real’ Austen-Darcy, shares some romantic moments with him and even receives a proposal, but the guide who conducted the book tour turns out to have been Jane Austen herself in the end. In Austentatious by Alyssa Goodnight the protagonist buys a diary and all her entries are rewritten by ‘Fairy Jane’ who provides relationship advice. In Attempting Elizabeth, Kelsey falls asleep while reading and when she wakes up, she feels different and discovers that her appearance has changed. It takes Kelsey a while to understand what has happened, but finally she realizes that she has travelled not in time but into Austen’s novel – and it is this development of the plotline that makes the novel entertaining and interesting while at the same time offering the opportunity of a new reading of Jane Austen’s source text by the device of the bookjumping heroine. It is very important to emphasize that Attempting Elizabeth (apart from the protagonist’s ability to journey into the novel) has not much in common with the TV series Lost in Austen74 as Kelsey does not travel as herself but jumps into different characters and meets the other characters as – this is conveyed throughout the novel – Austen created them and not as television or movies depicted them. The first character Kelsey jumps into is Georgiana Darcy. Kelsey is, not very surprisingly, quite overtaxed by the whole situation. She tries to “mentally orient [her]self in [Pride and Prejudice’s] storyline”75 – the scene is Ramsgate, just shortly before Georgiana agrees to elope with Wickham – and Kelsey’s thorough knowledge of Pride and Prejudice is certainly an advantage as she tries to come to terms with her place in the novel. However, it is not really Georgiana’s character Kelsey is interested in. While she still questions her sanity, she already debates the possibility of finally meeting Mr. Darcy : I wondered how long it would be until [Darcy] showed up, wrecking Wickham’s and Mrs. Younge’s nefarious plans[…]. Would it be possible to stay crazy that long? Being crazy might be worth it if I got to see Mr. Darcy in the flesh. Although, I’d be his sister, which was kind of awkward and lame, but at least I’d got to see him. I must be an incredible sick cookie to be hoping to remain in a complete state of mental breakdown in order to see a hot fictional guy.76

This passage again vividly illustrates the Darcy complex: while the idea of taking a fictional hero as the role model for all possible romantic partners is at least problematic, the idea of relinquishing one’s sanity in exchange for only a short 74 Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. Mammoth Screen (2008). Lost in Austen is nevertheless of course a TV series that adheres strongly to the conventions and principles of Chick Lit. 75 Grey. Attempting Elizabeth. 48. 76 Ibid. 48–49.

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meeting with a fictional character definitely is madness. However, as the Darcy complex is a widespread phenomenon, readers certainly would rather embrace Kelsey’s thoughts. But just as in real life, Kelsey first has to cope with not just one but many Wickhams before she is allowed to meet Darcy. In a variation of the movie Groundhog Day, Kelsey’s encounter with Wickham is repeated again and again as the novel always jumps back to her first appearance as Georgiana and will only continue when Kelsey succeeds in getting the plotline right. This proves to be extremely difficult as Georgiana Darcy’s plan of eloping with Wickham is only described very briefly by Darcy in his letter to Elizabeth, thus making it very hard for Kelsey to decide on the right way to behave. At the same time, the selection of this part of Pride and Prejudice offers an opportunity to interpret, reevaluate and comment on the characters involved in this plotline. Even though Austen’s information on what happened between Wickham and Georgiana at Ramsgate is rather scant, Kelsey, being quite an expert on the novel, is definitely at an advantage, as she can see through Wickham’s behaviour from the very beginning. However, Kelsey’s prior literary knowledge also causes her some surprise: Wickham was really attractive. I am not sure what I’d expected him to look like. He’s always decently handsome in movies, and the book says he has every manner and appearance of a gentleman. But somehow I’d expected something more obvious in his appearance to proclaim him a rake. Like a big red cursive R on his chest, kind of like Hester Prynne’s A in the Scarlet Letter.77

The narrative stresses that Wickham differs from his representation in film adaptations and underlines that Wickham is not only “decently handsome”78, but indeed “really attractive”79, thus highlighting the fact that the character that Austen created has not been done justice in films so far. Apart from this, Kelsey’s disappointment that Wickham is not more obviously wicked reflects on the one hand on the credibility of Austen’s narrative – if Wickham had been marked more obviously neither Elizabeth nor Georgiana and possibly not even Lydia would have been interested in him – on the other hand the lack of the ‘rake mark’ enhances the similarity with the real world as in reality rakes are also not easily recognizable. Indeed, this seems to be one of the key conditions for developing a Darcy complex: the more often women fall for a Wickham, the more fervently they hope for a Darcy. Kelsey, in the role of Georgiana, tries to play the part as well as she can, but when Wickham’s attempts to manipulate her become too obvious, she explodes: 77 Ibid. 54–55. 78 Ibid. 54. 79 Ibid.

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I appreciate your attempts at deception here, truly I do. […] Well, sorry, Bud, that little fantasy ends here. […] You lose in the end, Wickham. So you might as well just go now and save me the trouble to be interested in this any longer.80

By working implicity or explicitly against Austen’s construction of Georgiana’s character, Kelsey is transported back to the scene in which she has entered the narrative. As she fails again and again, the scene is narrated over and over in different versions, resulting in quite an interesting array of possibilities. While this is quite entertaining to the reader, Kelsey finally tires of the situation and following the idea that she might “have to come up with something else jarring enough to shake me right out of the book”81 she decides on a rather direct approach: When Wickham came into the sitting room, after the whole bowing and curtsying charade was over and he had walked over to the settee to sit with me, I launched myself at him. I could hear Mrs. Younge’s shocked gasp as I flung myself at Wickham, pressing Georgiana’s lithe body up against his, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him for all I was worth. It was surprisingly not unpleasant. I mean, I hate the guy so I would have thought kissing him would make me want to throw up, but no. My traitorous body or mind […] refused to be completely repulsed by him. I have no defense other than he was really, really attractive. And I am apparently, really, really shallow. […] After a brief moment of surprise Wickham started kissing me back. Somehow I’d known he would – he was too much of a rake not to respond. […] He really did have an amazingly kissable mouth. […] I must have a thing for rakes. On that lowering realization, I drew back with a resigned sigh.82

The scene is not only one of Kelsey’s attempts to return to her real world, it also again illustrates her surprise in the face of Wickham’s attractiveness as well as her admission that she is not immune to rakes – neither in the fictional world of Jane Austen nor in reality. Still, all her efforts do not bring about the desired effect, and it is only when she starts to write down her name and biography that she is transported back to her real life. Writing and especially writing down one’s story in an effort to define one’s identity and regain one’s common sense is of major importance in Attempting Elizabeth; it underlines the novel’s connection to classic predecessors and it allows Kelsey to go back and forth between reality and Pride and Prejudice several times. As she is unable to control which role she will assume she returns to the novel as Lydia Bennet and Caroline Bingley respectively, although in the end she manages to jump into Elizabeth Bennet’s body. As it is, reading and writing thus become intrinsically connected to the motif of a journey : reading 80 Ibid. 68. 81 Ibid. 86. 82 Ibid. 86–87.

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allows Kelsey to jump into the novel, by writing down her autobiography she is able to travel back to her own world. With each attempt to become Elizabeth and each return to her own world she gets to know herself and her feelings better. Thus, reading and writing become synonymous with the idea of the journey to find oneself. Attempting Elizabeth – as well as essentially all ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ – thus like “Austen’s novel [Pride and Prejudice] emphasizes female self-discovery, introspection, and personal growth”.83 The written word, or rather the unwritten word, as well as the travel motif also feature strongly in Me and Mr. Darcy, in which Emily takes a copy of Pride and Prejudice on her book tour to England only to find out that more than half of the pages are blank. While she believes that she must have ended up with a faulty edition, the reader soon understands that the empty pages are symbolic of Emily’s efforts to ‘write’ her own life and love story and to take control of her life.84 In Victoria Connelly’s AWeekend with Mr. Darcy it is also the written word that brings about the happy ending: one heroine falls in love with her hero not only but also because he has actually read Austen’s novel, while the other love story is resolved by the hero dedicating his latest novel to the heroine. The most important element of ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’, however, is Austen’s novel itself. While Attempting Elizabeth sets out to rewrite parts of Pride and Prejudice only to stress the fact that it is imperative to stay true to the original, the other novels mentioned above may very well serve as an illustration of the various ways Pride and Prejudice can be interpreted. In Beth Pattillo’s Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart, the protagonist has to present a paper at a Jane Austen conference in Oxford – another allusion to the travel motif – and all essays presented at that conference are mentioned and outlined to the reader, thus offering interpretative options even to readers who up to that point have only indulged in Austen’s novels for pleasure. By providing a variety of theses, the novel Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart encourages the reader not only to reflect on Austen’s work, but also educates him/her with respect to the variety of facets to be discovered in Pride and Prejudice. More importantly, however, while being in Oxford, the heroine comes across the lost manuscript of Austen’s first draft of Pride and Prejudice, First Impressions. The novel features whole chapters of this imaginary first version, which is remarkably true to Austen’s style of writing, but gives a 83 Woolston. “ ‘ It’s not a put-down, Miss Bennet’.” n.p. Woolston refers to Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary, but her conclusion is applicable to Chick Lit in general. 84 Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. believes that Emily “acquire[s] control” by “repeatedly engag[ing] with Austen’s narrative”. This is only partly true. The knowledge of Pride and Prejudice does of course grant security ; nevertheless the fact that the pages of Emily’s edition are empty rather point out that this security is an illusion that is not transferable to reality and indeed also – if not with regard to Darcy and Elizabeth, then at least with regard to many other couples in the novel – is precariously insecure.

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completely different account of the Darcy and Elizabeth plotline, turning Colonel Fitzwilliam not only into Darcy’s rival, but ultimately also into the man who wins Elizabeth’s heart and hand. This certainly adds a fresh perspective to prior readings of Pride and Prejudice and definitely is also a very surprising idea that is used to mirror and highlight the difference and main revelation of Beth Pattillo’s novel: the character who by various implications was marked as being a or rather the ‘Darcy’ of the story actually turns out to be the Wickham, while the rather dull and uninteresting friend is in the end promoted to the role of the hero. Although Pattillo’s effort to transcend and refute conventions of ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ certainly has to be appreciated, this twist in the novel’s plotline does not necessarily please the reader, as Chick Lit is definitely a genre in which the happy ending, and especially that of the characters who the reader wishes to experience a happily ever after, had better not be tampered with. Victoria Connelly’s A Weekend with Mr. Darcy features a Jane Austen conference in Hampshire. Again, different ideas of reading Austen’s novel as well as entering into a dialogue with and reflecting on the text are advocated in this novel as the conference is open to everybody who is interested in Austen and therefore hosts a variety of talks, discussions and lectures ranging from “Undressing Mr Darcy”85 to “The importance of marriage in Jane Austen’s novels”86. As mentioned in the beginning, ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ creates the illusion of returning to ‘the real Mr. Darcy’ as Jane Austen imagined him. All the same, this of course proves to be a fruitless attempt, as each reader creates his or her own Mr. Darcy. Still, the idea of confronting the protagonist with the actual Austen-Darcy constitutes not only an exciting and coveted highlight in the plotline but again offers different interpretations of the ideal romantic hero while also promoting reflections on the basis and justification of a Darcy complex. In Me and Mr. Darcy, Emily finds out that although Darcy is indeed shockingly handsome, he definitely is not the right man for her, because his opinions concerning the treatment of servants as well as women’s conduct are outdated and not compatible with Emily’s twenty-first-century approach. Moreover, his method of courting seems excruciatingly slow to her. The contrast between reality and fiction as well as the historical differences thus lead to Emily’s leave-taking of her ideal fictional hero, which allows her to find her perfect match in a twenty-firstcentury man.87 85 This presentation is further elaborated on as being “one of the most popular events at the Purley Hall conference.[…It] was a presentation in which a rather handsome actor performed a sort of Regency striptease revealing everything that a fine pair of pantaloons could hide.” (Connelly. A Weekend with Mr. Darcy. 84.) 86 Ibid. 274. 87 Cano López in “Looking Back in Desire” (n.p.) interprets Darcy’s function in the narrative as follows: “Darcy is rewritten as a sexual myth, and this kind of fabrication is revealed as

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Attempting Elizabeth, as has already been shown, also plays with the idea of meeting the real Mr. Darcy. Interestingly enough, however, the description of Mr. Darcy’s looks is rather limited. The text mentions that Darcy has “very dark hair”88 and “incredible cheekbones, deep set hazel eyes, a straight nose, and full, wide mouth and the most amazing dimple in his chin”,89 but as these are actually commonplaces they might as well be left out. Of course, this lack of description is definitely intended, as it enables the reader to freely create the image of her own Mr. Darcy, unrestrained by information contradictory to her ideal. Even though the account of Mr. Darcy’s looks is minimal, Kelsey’s statement about him suggests that Darcy is everything one could hope for : As soon as Mr. Darcy looked up and met my eye my heart skipped a beat. He really was extraordinarily handsome. […] Mr. Darcy could give any modern day hottie a run for his money. I suppose, because he was a made up character, he could be just as attractive as the author wanted to make him in her head. Apparently, Jane Austen had really, really good taste.90

Kelsey’s appraisal of Austen’s taste in men of course suggests that there exists a real Austen-Darcy whose appearance remains indisputable. However, the initial freedom to imagine granted by the scant description of Darcy as well as the further development of the narrative show that Darcy rather features as an ideal that is highly individual and that his looks are determined not by the author’s but by the reader’s imagination. In Kelsey’s case, the encounter with Darcy is marred by her inability to banish her real-life crush Mark Barnes from her thoughts: “[W]hy was I even thinking about Mark again? […T]hinking about him while Mr. Darcy was in the room? Unacceptable.”91 The novel thus offers yet another interesting way of dealing with the Darcy fixation as the complex is ultimately reversed. In Attempting Elizabeth not all men are doomed to be judged by Darcy’s standard; it is the other way round: Darcy here, just as in Me and Mr. Darcy, ultimately cannot compare to real men and is therefore eventually dismissed and replaced by a real twenty-first-century hero. Attempting Elizabeth impressively illustrates this replacement: in the course of the novel Austen’s real Darcy gradually transforms into Mark Barnes until in the end Darcy has completely vanished and is sub-

88 89 90 91

shield against a ‘real’ relationship. […] Such a fetishized love object becomes a way of dealing with personal anxieties and insecurities – fear of commitment and maturation.” Francus in “Austen Therapy” (n.p.) sees the refusal of Darcy’s proposal as an expression of the circumstance that “just as the Darcy fantasy has overtaken [the heroines’] real lives, reality starts seeping into their Darcy fantasy.” Grey. Attempting Elizabeth. 100. Ibid. Ibid. 208. Ibid. 212.

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stituted by Mark. By using the idea of reworking Darcy, Attempting Elizabeth in the end makes clear that there obviously is no such thing as a real Austen-Darcy. The novel thus in fact acknowledges the existence of multiple readings and interpretations. As soon as Kelsey herself realizes that Darcy changes into Mark, she herself transforms back into her real body, literally leaving her fictional identity behind and realizing that reality has its very own appeal. In conclusion, it can be said that ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ not only deals with the Mr. Darcy complex as such, but regards the process of writing as well as reading or discussing Austen’s novels as some kind of therapy, but not in the rather negative sense that Marilyn Francus suggests, who decribes “comtemporary Janeites”92 as “refugees from […] the battle of the sexes”93, recognizing a risk in Austen therapy and perceiving an implicit warning in contemporary Chick Lit regarding such a therapy. In fact, however, ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ does definitely not serve as a warning against seeking guidance from Jane Austen, but rather as a guideline on how to combine or align fictional ideals with reality, emphasizing the contemporariness of Jane Austen’s novels. ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ offers its very own approach to and analysis of Jane Austen’s classic novel, modernizing the plot and acknowledging that “Mr. Darcy, after all, is not what modern women want”.94 Because of its integration of the original text into its plot, ‘Mr. Darcy Chick Lit’ promotes a diversity of readings of Pride and Prejudice, which admittedly focus on the romance plot due to Chick Lit’s generic conventions and the reader’s expectations regarding Chick Lit. The multiple reworkings offered by ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ in essence share one function: by its combination of the purportedly real and the fictional, by intermingling and mixing a portrayal of our contemporary world with Austen’s account of one of the greatest love stories in literature, each reflecting on the other and thus offering interconnected interpretations, and by allowing the heroine to finally end up with her own personal version of Mr. Darcy, the genre does not question or criticize the Mr. Darcy complex but does everything to acknowledge and assuage it. Austen’s novel is thus constantly read and a permanent object of reinterpretation. Chick Lit in its way contributes to an ongoing debate and analysis of the most popular love story of all times. Since “[o]nly a great number of copies guarantee the existence of an original and construct versions of authenticity, which effectively stand in for an original that actually never was”95, ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ in itself can be seen as an essential aspect of imagining and constructing Mr. Darcy and of fostering and maintaining the Mr. Darcy complex 92 93 94 95

Francus. “Austen Therapy.” n.p. Ibid. Cano López. “Looking Back in Desire.” n.p. Seidl, “Framing Colin.” 46.

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as the genre – in the same way as the filmic adaptations do – “seems to express the hope that there is an original somewhere lurking in the background”96. Although the origin and popularity of ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ can definitely be ascribed to the representation of Austen’s hero in filmic adaptations, ‘Mr. Darcy Lit’ does not doubt the ‘realness’ of the ‘ur-’Mr. Darcy, but “secures the originality”97 of Austen’s character, stressing the need for an adherence to this ideal and emphasizing the truthfulness of the truth universally acknowledged.

References Anon. http://notyourmamasbiblestudy.wordpress.com/2013/09/18/de-shmuckify-yourhusband-battle-1-loose-the-mr-darcy-complex (accessed 5 August, 2014). Anon. http://randomcleverishness.blogspot.de/2010/08/darcy-complex.html (accessed 5 August, 2014). Anon. http://thesecretworldofladyrenegade.blogspot.de/2011/01/mr-darcy-complex.html (accessed 5 August, 2014). Anon. http://www.wattpad.com/32947583-the-mr-darcy-complex (accessed 5 August, 2014). Cano López, Marina. “Looking Back in Desire; or How Jane Austen Rewrites Chick Lit in Alexandra Potter’s Me and Mr. Darcy.” In: Persuasions On-Line 31,1 (2010): n.p. Cardwell, Sarah. “Darcy’s Escape. An Icon in the Making.” In: Stella Bruzzi and Pamela Church Gibson (eds.). Fashion Cultures: Theories, Explorations and Analysis. Abingdon/New York: Routledge, 2006. 239–44. Connelly, Victoria. A Weekend with Mr. Darcy. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 2011. Durcan, Caitriona. “Do you have a Darcy complex?” In: Independent 2004. http://www. independent.ie/unsorted/features/do-you-have-a-darcy-complex-25885427.html (accessed 5 August, 2014). Ferriss, Suzanne and Mallory Young. Chick Lit: The New Woman’s Fiction. New York/ London: Routledge, 2006. Fielding, Helen. Bridget Jones’s Diary. London: Picador, 1996. Francus, Marilyn. “Austen Therapy : Pride and Prejudice and Popular Culture.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Garber, Marjorie. Quotation Marks. New York: Routledge, 2003. Goodnight, Alyssa. Austentatious. New York: Kensington, 2012. Goodreads, https://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=& query=Mr.+Darcy (accessed 5 August, 2014) Green, Jane. Jemima J. New York: Broadway, 1999. Grey, Jessica. Attempting Elizabeth. Cascade, CO: Tall House Books, 2013. Hale, Shannon. Austenland. New York: Bloomsbury, 2007. Hopkins, Lisa. “Mr. Darcy’s Body. Privileging the Female Gaze.” In: Linda Troost and 96 Ibid. 48. 97 Ibid. 40.

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Sayre Greenfield (eds.). Jane Austen in Hollywood. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 2001. 111–21. Kinsella, Sophie. The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic. London: Black Swan, 2000. Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. Mammoth Screen, 2008. Patillo, Beth. Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart. New York: Guideposts, 2010. Potter, Alexandra. Me and Mr. Darcy. London: Hodder and Stoughton, 2007. Pride and Prejudice. Dir. Simon Langton. BBC/A& E, 1995. Pride & Prejudice. Dir. Joe Wright. Focus Features, 2005. Seidl, Monika. “Framing Colin: The Adaptation of Classics and Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy and after Mr. Darcy.” In: Werner Huber, Evelyne Keitel and Gunter Süß (eds.). Intermediality: New Perspectives on Literature and the Media. Trier : WVT, 2007. 37–49. – “Medialising Mr Darcy : Colin Firth as Extra Darcy in Pride and Prejudice (1995).” In: Jürgen Kamm (ed.). Medialised Britain. Essays on Media, Culture and Society. Passau: Karl Strutz, 2006. 81–97. Wells, Juliette. “Austen’s Adventures in American Popular Fiction, 1996–2006.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Wettimuny, Samangie. 2008. “The Darcy complex. Are you too a ‘victim’?” In: Sunday Observer. http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2008/05/11/imp06.asp (accessed 5 August, 2014). White, Karey. My Own Mr. Darcy. Cedar Hills, UT: Orange Door Press, 2013. Woolston, Jennifer Mary. “ ‘ It’s not a put-down, Miss Bennet; it’s a category’: Andrew Black’s Chick Lit Pride and Prejudice.” In: Persuasions On-Line 28,1 (2007): n.p.

Ulrike Zimmermann

Crime Comes to Pemberley – Pride and Prejudice Sequels in Contemporary Crime Fiction

This essay will mainly address contemporary novels of crime loosely grouped together as sequels to Pride and Prejudice. In addition, it will also look at a series of novels which mix the fictional and the factual, using Jane Austen, surrounded by a cast of fictional and historical characters, as investigator. All my examples were published in the recent past. They are part of the latest Austen rewriting and revival vogue sparked off by the iconic BBC mini-series Pride and Prejudice of 1995, starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. P.D. James’s Death Comes to Pemberley, which gave me the idea for this essay and which I could not resist echoing in the title, appeared in 2011, Colleen McCullough’s The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet in 2008, and Carrie Bebris’s Pride and Prescience in 2004. The first book of Stephanie Barron’s Jane series with Jane Austen turned detective came out in 1996, with the latest (the eleventh) in 2011.1 Critics tend to distinguish between Jane Austen, the historical figure and acclaimed writer whose multifaceted texts prove inexhaustible, and “Jane Austen” as a kind of unofficial brand name.2 The public “use”3 of Austen is in itself neither specific nor new, or, as John Wiltshire puts it, “[e]very cultural creation, even a cathedral, has an afterlife, unpredictable, uncontrolled by its original architect, when another era, another cultural configuration, turns it, adapts it, to its own use.”4 However, the Austen phenomenon seems to go beyond reasonable expectations and has gathered incredible momentum in the late twentieth cen1 Stefanie Barron stresses that she wrote her first novel before the BBC series was aired. “But the book’s publication in the spring of 1996 appeared perfectly timed to capitalize upon the rediscovery of Austen’s fiction. For this apparent prescience and monetary aim, I was at times castigated; and at others, ignored.” Stephanie Barron and Francine Matthews. Stephanie Barron: Jane Austen Mysteries. 2005–2014. http://www.stephaniebarron.com/books.php (accessed 27 April, 2014). 2 John Wiltshire’s lucid introduction to his Recreating Jane Austen bears the title “ ‘ Jane Austen’ and Jane Austen”, cf. Wiltshire, John. Recreating Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. 3 Note Wiltshire’s differentiation of this term for the present context in ibid., 3. 4 Ibid. 3.

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tury. Wiltshire argues that the emphasis in cultural products dealing with Austen has shifted decidedly away “from notions of preservation and ‘faithfulness’ ” towards “the fantasies which surround the name ‘Jane Austen’ ” ,5 with series of associations, images, and projections. “Jane Austen is not and has never been any old great author, whom we might discuss more or less rationally, but a fabulous figure and the paragon of popular and elite audiences alike.”6 This fantasy – the fable and the figure – is commodified and turned into a marketable item in the texts to be analysed in this paper. A variety of critical approaches has been applied to the genre of texts dealing with crime and the solution of crime (to start with a loose, content-based definition). Countless categories and subdivisions lend themselves to consideration, and critical differentiation processes are still going on, as the genre continues to evolve. Some critics insist on a transatlantic divide, which, according to Tony Hilfer in The Crime Novel, manifests itself in a British preference for detective novels and an American preference for crime novels: The distinction is crucial, for the central presence of the detective guarantees the rationality of the world and the integrity of the self. But the central and defining feature of the crime novel is that in it, self and world, guilt and innocence are problematic. The world of the crime novel is constituted by what is problematic in it.7

According to Hilfer’s distinctions, the present essay aims to analyse detective novels without the detective, who does not feature in any of the following examples. This may have the very simple reason that the policing system in the modern sense was not yet in existence at the time the novels are set, as McGrath notes on P.D. James’s novel, “[t]here is no detective work to speak of, because in those days there were no real police. The crime is investigated by local magistrates […].”8 At the same time, it would be imaginable to establish a character as investigator even without the formal qualifications, but the texts avoid this. The crimes are solved by communal efforts or by deus-ex-machina solutions or both; if a single character is put to the fore like Elizabeth Darcy, n¦e Bennet, in Pride and Prescience and Mary Bennet in The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, she is never central and active enough in the investigation to be set up as a detective character. Only Jane Austen herself is cast as lay investigator in Stephanie Barron’s series of sequels. 5 Ibid. 6 Johnson, Claudia L. Jane Austen’s Cult and Cultures. Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press, 2012. 11–12. 7 Hilfer, Tony. The Crime Novel. A Deviant Genre. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990. 2. 8 McGrath, Charles. “A Look Back, and Ahead, at Pemberley.” In: The New York Times, December 26, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/27/books/death-comes-to-pemberleyby-p-d-james-review.html?_r=0 (accessed 27 April, 2014).

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But even without a classical detective protagonist, the sequels follow the principles of classical detective stories in the tradition of Wilkie Collins, Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers. Although they distribute the detective function among several characters, they favour a rational world in which guilt and innocence are relatively clear-cut as Hilfer describes it. However, it seems too prescriptive to reserve the term ‘crime novel’ for American fiction only, as he suggests. Since my examples come from an American, an Australian, and a British author, this essay testifies moreover to the worldwide appeal of Jane Austen rather than focussing on national characteristics of crime writing. Looking at sequels to the most famous Jane Austen text means looking at historical fiction. Putting the sequels’ historical accuracy under scrutiny would go beyond the scope of this paper. The sequels discussed here all provide a glimpse into life in Regency and pre-Regency England, and readers get their fair share of descriptions of clothes, food, transport, and socialising characteristic of the times, in short, daily life around the turn of the eighteenth to the nineteenth century as imagined by the writers.9 Classification, however, is not the main concern here. The most pertinent question is the main theme linking the examples: crime. Where and how does crime come in? How does it fit into the texts, if at all? At first glance crime and Jane Austen seem an unlikely combination. The novels are all firmly set within a more or less genteel late-eighteenth century middle class. Even P.D. James has remarked on the sense of remoteness from harsh reality, which she felt when reading Austen: A new reader, particularly if not born in England, would find it difficult to believe that the brutalities and violence of the French Revolution were a recent memory, that the country was at war with France and that there were vast gulfs between the world of the prosperous country gentlemen or the successful London merchants and that of the rural and urban poor.10

However, there are hard edges to the novels; there are margins to Austen’s society, and at least the potential of deviant behaviour is present for all who are familiar with the novels. Austen is for instance notoriously reticent on the lower classes: the household staff, the maids, gardeners and grooms. This margin is, however, not necessarily a criminal margin. Other inroads for criminality exist in Austen’s novels, and this is middle-class or upper-class criminality. There are 9 For historical and particularly meta-historical crime fiction and its status, see Korte, Barbara and Sylvia Paletschek. “Geschichte und Kriminalgeschichte(n): Texte, Kontexte, Zugänge.” In: Korte and Paletschek (eds.). Geschichte im Krimi. Beiträge aus den Kulturwissenschaften. Cologne: Böhlau, 2009. 16–22. 10 James, P.D. “P.D. James on ‘Death Comes to Pemberley’.” In: The Telegraph. November 4, 2011. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/authorinterviews/8870688/PD-James-onDeath-Comes-to-Pemberley.html (accessed 27 April, 2014).

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fortune-hunters (Wickham of Pride and Prejudice is the most famous one, but also William Elliot of Persuasion comes to mind), there is fraud and legacy hunting. Susannah Fullerton has argued that this connection between Austen and crime is quite straightforward and can be found in particular in her juvenilia.11 Any re-writer of Jane Austen will be able to choose from a variety of possibilities to connect the familiar texts and their author with criminal behaviour. Stephanie Barron (from Colorado) alias Francine Mathews has taken a straightforward route and used Jane Austen as the protagonist of a series of detective novels. The first book, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor (1996), gives insights into Barron’s approach. First of all, referring to Austen by her first name puts the text into the tradition of Janeites, the tradition in which admirers and fans of her writing (academics as well as leisurely literature afficionados) feel so connected to Austen as a person that they speak about her like one would speak about a good friend.12 Using her first name only, one might argue, implies a belittling of Jane Austen, possibly even an insistence on her feminine softness and cuteness, and a presumption on an almost personal acquaintance, which many critics (myself included) feel uneasy with. Stephanie Barron’s conception of the series is in keeping with this impression. On her website, she gives a rather interesting account of the beginnings and writing of her first Austen detective novel. She describes reading Austen very intensely one winter, an experience she imbues with supernatural qualities: This particular winter […] I had read Austen to such an extent that her syntax and oddities of speech had infiltrated my own. The third-person narrative voice of Austen’s novels is passive in its construction; and the dialogue always operates on about four different levels, replete with meaning. It is utterly at variance with the operative mode of our day – the sound-bite – which in its didactic simplicity, communicates nothing. I reveled in Austen’s speech. I adopted it as my own. I was, I am convinced, channeling Jane. I sat down to write what she told me.13

This extremely personal approach definitely rings of Janeism. It is at the same time an appealing description of how a reading process merges in a writing process, giving fans the possibility to share the creative experience. The description can also be read as a clever fiction about the naturalness of the whole idea of the series, derived directly from Austen, as it were. Together with her 11 Cf. Fullerton, Susannah. Jane Austen and Crime. Madison, WI: Jones Books, 2006. Fullerton includes contemporary views on crime and methods of punishment, of which Jane Austen would have been aware. 12 For an account of the history of Janeism, see for example Johnson. Cult and Cultures. 7–9. 13 Barron. Stephanie Barron: Jane Austen Mysteries.

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supernatural experience, however, Barron gives the readers the reason why she came to think about Austen as a detective: She [Austen] possessed and dominated everyone she knew by subjecting them to her wit – and she delighted in the past time. This was a Jane remarkably equipped to investigate murder, a Jane who understood the power of motivation and the essence of the human heart.14

It is Jane Austen’s character, as revealed in her novels and her personal writings, which is connected with crime here; Stephanie Barron suggests that Austen herself and not necessarily her fictional characters would have been intellectually well-equipped to solve criminal cases. Indeed, Austen’s sharp, ruthless eye and her power of observation of her fellow humans stand undisputed. Turning Jane Austen herself into a detective character is therefore not completely bizarre. A natural observer with a sense for detail, she also – contrary to the saccharine view of her prevalent far into the twentieth century15 – does not take pity on many of her characters but is very much aware of the fact that human nature is not essentially good. All this would speak to a knowledge of and appreciation for the dark side of humanity. The title of the first book of Barron’s series, Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor, echoes D.L. Sayers’s The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club (1928),16 consciously placing the text in the tradition of detective fiction of the Golden Age, and also carrying with it a clich¦d sense of British understatement – the ‘unpleasantness’ in question in both novels is the ultimate moral outrage, murder. The foreword to the novel is (yet another) fiction of authenticity, pretending that an editor (Barron) found long-lost letters by Jane Austen in which she recounts her daily life and her investigative exploits. That the letters, which presumably had been destroyed by Austen’s sister Cassandra, were found in Baltimore of all places can be read as a tribute to the inventor of the modern detective story, Edgar Allan Poe. Thus the historical Austen is consciously fictionalised in the series and freed to encounter a variety of crimes in her nearest social surroundings. She is drawn into investigations essentially because she wants to help friends who are affected by the crimes. In Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor, the elderly husband of a recently married friend of Jane Austen is murdered, and his young wife first 14 Ibid. 15 The first to break with this tradition was probably D.W. Harding with his seminal essay. Harding, D.W. “Regulated Hatred: An Aspect of the Work of Jane Austen.” In: Scrutiny 8,4 (1940): 346–62. 16 Sayers, Dorothy Leigh. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. New York: HarperCollins, 1995 [1928].

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accused of adultery and then his murder. Austen gets involved in order to clear her friend’s name, as she simply cannot believe the suspicions following the murder. Crucially, she turns investigator out of a sense of friendship and social obligation, and an innate desire for justice. As the plot is unravelled, Jane Austen ends up confronting the real killer and even finds herself in a dangerous situation. Furthermore, while the case is being solved, it turns out that it has larger political implications, and that the respite from the Napoleonic Wars will be brief indeed for England.17 In the Jane series, Stephanie Barron uses fictional as well as historical characters, and she creates incidents which her fictional Austen then writes down in her journal, to be used later as inspiration for her novels. Moreover, in weaving whodunits around the historical Jane Austen, throwing in glimpses of her daily life with her family, parts of well-known plots and names from Austen’s texts, Barron seems to have made it her task to fill in gaps in the readers’ knowledge of Austen – learned from reading her novels and surviving letters. Thus Barron creates spin-off texts which may have a great appeal for Austen fans, following the stages of Austen’s life, imagining what she would have done when she was not writing. Barron’s novels set in where Jane Austen’s novels tend to leave off: they deal with characters’ lives after they were married off (Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor sets in shortly after a glamorous marriage), or follow undeserving characters who would have been pushed unceremoniously off the scene in Austen. Thus Barron fleshes out extant Austen material by mixing the factual with more of the fictional, catering to the narrative greed of Austen readers.18 Filling gaps that readers love to be filled is essentially the thrust of the countless sequels to Austen’s novels in general and Pride and Prejudice in particular. Satisfying as the novel’s happy ending might be, many questions are left open for the perceptive reader. Have Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy honestly learnt to understand and appreciate each other in such a short time? How is Darcy going to deal with all his new and less than desirable relatives – first and foremost his insufferable mother-in-law, who surely will miss no opportunity to create further embarrassment for herself and her family? Will insufferable Wickham and his incorrigible Lydia really – and conveniently – remove themselves far enough to the North and stay put? How will Caroline Bingley deal with the new situation, which will certainly allow for more displays of her malice? Is Lady Catherine de Bourgh ever to be appeased, and is it a good idea to have her appeased and consequently invite her to interfere in the future? A closer look at the happy ending with the double marriage yields many ques17 The narrative is set in 1802/03. 18 For a discussion of the idea of ‘narrative greed’, see below.

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tions which the text does not answer. In the following, three sequels to Pride and Prejudice will be analysed. They are very different from each other, but have the common characteristic of bringing crime to Pemberley. Furthest away from a classical detective story is Colleen McCullough’s The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, which she published in 2008. The author of the Thorn Birds (1977) does not claim any historical accuracy for her project, stating she had merely always wondered what would happen to the tedious, bookish middle sister Mary. She is also convinced that the marriage of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy would not have been a happy one, as they were both too intrinsically different.19 The title of the book seems promising. Producing a text with the most disregarded of the Bennet sisters at its centre could have been an interesting project of rewriting. Mary Bennet, who is noteworthy for her extensive reading, her stilted speech, and her plain looks, is an unlikely protagonist. The idea of bringing the disregarded middle sister to the fore is compelling. As only to be expected, Mary Bennet – in McCullough’s text – recounts her childhood and youth as having been psychologically and physically in the shadows. Her two elder sisters Jane and Elizabeth are intelligent and attractive and the centre of the family’s attention as they enter the marriage market. Her two younger sisters, Kitty and Lydia, are flighty and silly, with Lydia and her elopement with the scoundrel Wickham giving cause for grave concern and commanding negative attention. McCullough picks a character from the margins for her project. Unfortunately, she does not seem to be quite clear on what kind of narrative to endow Mary with. McCullough is not afraid of provoking fans and critics,20 and a shaking up of the genteel Austen world is one of the assets of her novel. A lack of respect for Austen and her characters is not necessarily a deplorable feature of a text. However, convincing new patterns of narrative do not emerge. The novel sets in roughly 20 years after the double weddings of Elizabeth to Mr. Darcy and Jane to Mr. Bingley. Kitty married an elderly nobleman and is now left a wealthy widow; Lydia is still married to Wickham, who has been sent abroad and is killed in action early in the narrative. The novel sets out describing a very unhappy marriage between Darcy and Elizabeth. He has not lost any of his hauteur, and Elizabeth’s sense of humour has palled on him over the years. Moreover, he is extremely ambitious and works on a career in politics, planning to become Prime Minister in the near future. Mary Bennet has remained the spinster daughter and was forced to look after 19 Cf. the interview with Steven Dow: Dow, Steven. “Age shall not weary her.” http://www. stevedow.com/au/default.aspx?id=360. September 28, 2008 (accessed 27 April, 2014). 20 “Annoying the literati is almost a hobby […]”, as Rosalie Higson notes. Higson, Rosalie. “The Perils of Colleen.” In: The Australian. 24 October, 2008. http://www.theaustralian.com. au/arts/the-perils-of-colleen/story-e6frg8n6–1111117643516 (accessed 27 April, 2014).

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the sisters’ aging parents: first at Longbourn, then at Shelby Manor, the home the Bennet family had to move to after the death of Mr. Bennet. It is the death of Mrs. Bennet which brings enormous changes to Mary’s life and triggers the novel’s events. Mary is now 38 and has spent most of her grown-up life in Shelby Manor, which, as it turns out, Mr. Darcy bought for her mother and herself to see as little of the two as possible. The reader gets to know that Mary has shed her adolescent imperfections and has grown into an unconventionally beautiful woman – the prototypical ugly duckling. Mary cannot mourn for her mother, who tyrannised the household with her silly and peevish ways, which are so familiar from Pride and Prejudice. This interior monologue shows how Mary experiences the beginning of a new stage in her life, and it is also a good example for the tone of the novel: Why am I so unprepared for this moment? Where has my mind wandered, when time has hung so heavily upon me? I have been at the beck and call of an empty vessel called Mama, but empty vessels hardly ever manage to scratch up an observation, a comment, an idea. So I have spent my time waiting. Just waiting. […] Mama did not need me; I was there as a sop to the proprieties. How I hate the word, propriety! An ironbound code of conduct invented to intimidate and subjugate women […]. Of course Fitz felt that Mama had to be chaperoned by a member of the family in case she took to travelling to Pemberley or Bingley Hall.21

All of a sudden, she is set free from all familial duties and keen on embarking on her own life before others decide for her once again. Hence, the beginning of the novel reads like a feminist manifesto Mary might be developing: “All I want is to be of use, to have a purpose. To have something to do that would make a difference. But will I be let? No. My elder sisters and their grand husbands will descend upon Shelby Manor within the week, and a new sentence of lethargy will be levied upon Aunt Mary.”22 Casting about for an occupation, Mary Bennet comes to the conclusion that her main interest outside her family is the plight of the poor in the burgeoning industrial cities of the North, not far removed from Pemberley. In the past years, she was deeply impressed by a series of articles on the situation of the working classes, published under a pseudonym in the Westminster Chronicle.23 She resolves to study the conditions of the poor in Manchester and sets out on her trip on her own, despite various efforts on the part of her family to prevent this: Elizabeth and Jane have concerns for her safety, while Mr. Darcy is worried about 21 McCullough, Colleen. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. London: HarperCollins 2009 [2008]. 4–5. 22 McCullough. Independence. 5. 23 The Westminster Chronicle was founded in 1857; so this is an anachronism. Cf. Anon. “Westminster Chronicle.” British Newspapers Online. http://www.britishpapers.co.uk/eng land-london/westminster-chronicle/ (accessed 27 April, 2014).

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propriety : an unconventional sister-in-law could reflect negatively on his own reputation and political ambitions. Readers of Pride and Prejudice will recognise this fear, which is part of Mr. Darcy’s motivation in tracing Lydia and Wickham and effecting a marriage between them. Expectations that Mary might be successful on her mission despite her family’s misgivings are disappointed very soon as the novel takes its sensational course. First, Mary falls prey to a notorious highwayman, Captain Thunder. She is rescued from him by a travelling monk. As it turns out, Father Dominus is a crazed religious fanatic. Trying to write a religious tract to end all religious tracts, he has established a settlement in some of the natural caves of the Peak District, where he keeps orphaned children captive. They have to work for the community until, on reaching puberty, they are killed by Father Dominus. He imprisons Mary and uses her skills as a scribe. The arrangement works until Mary cannot write down Father Dominus’s heresies in silence any longer and protests against his doctrines. Enraged, he locks her into a tiny cell to let her starve. Mary manages to escape by a lucky coincidence: an earthquake in the caves destroys most of the inhabited parts and the iron bars of her prison cave. Restored to her sisters, she abandons the book project only to meet the love of her life: Angus Sinclair, a Scottish businessman who turns out to have been behind the pseudonym of the article series which incited Mary to embark on her adventure in the first place. With its various plot lines, the text seethes with activity in the spectrum between the immoral and the criminal. Underneath a thin veneer of respectability, almost every character in the book harbours dark secrets. Mr. Darcy’s late father, as is revealed towards the end of the novel, was no respectable member of the landed gentry, but gained his fortune out of morally reprehensible economic pursuits like keeping thieves’ dens and brothels. Towards the end of the narrative Ned Skinner, Darcy’s servant and constant companion, is revealed as Darcy’s illegitimate brother, only officially acknowledged after his death: he loses his life heroically in the attempt to capture Father Dominus. On his deathbed he confesses to the cold-blooded murder of Lydia Wickham, whose dissolute way of life he saw as a constant threat to Darcy’s political ambitions. In fact, he acted out Darcy’s secret wish and generally embodied his dark side. This is rather clumsily realised by Ned Skinner’s dark colouring and his Byronic appearance, which is traced back to his Jamaican mother.24 The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet can be classified as a contemporary sensation novel rather than detective fiction proper. However, as we know from texts like Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White, the two can easily overlap in their focus on mysteries and melodrama and their reverberations on the lives of 24 Cf. McCullough. Independence. 385.

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the characters.25 There is no detective protagonist in The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet and no central, investigating consciousness. The cold-blooded murder of Lydia Wickham never gets any further than to the ears of Mr. Darcy and his only son, as the perpetrator is conveniently killed not much later. Mary Bennet unintentionally causes the discovery of the nightmarish sect and terror regime of Father Dominus because she is kidnapped by him. Causal connections are not the main focus here; the text seems to stumble on its issues like the characters into their adventures. There are several equally weighty strands of plot, and there are several mysteries to be solved. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet is bent on unearthing any dark potential rooted in its pre-text. Readers get to know that not all the fortunes around have been come by in honourable ways, and the genteel society does not work without its underbelly. The book emphasises this shady world, and it appears that some Austen fans who like McCullough’s novel like it for that very reason. Shannon (Giraffe Days) puts it in a nutshell on Goodreads: “Another thing that I loved was the bringing into the story of the lower echelons: the working poor, the orphans, the destitute, the thieves and prostitutes, the practices of slavery and factory.”26 There is nothing reprehensible in treating Austen’s characters the way McCullough does – why, for instance, should one not picture Darcy as still incurably cold and haughty, or Lydia descending ever further on the social and moral ladder? But the narrative casts around for purpose rather aimlessly ; the general thrust seems to be to blacken any of the characters and throw them into situations as sensational and sentimental as possible. As the reviewer on Publishers Weekly remarks, the book “vaults the characters of the original into a ridiculously bizarre world, spinning dizzily among plot lines until it finally crashes to a close.”27 A feminist agenda, which readers may have come to expect by the title, does not play any role; the title serves as a kind of marketable lip service. Although far more intelligent and interesting than in Austen, Mary Bennet is stubborn and wilful rather than truly independent. Carrie Bebris’s sequel to Pride and Prejudice in the crime fiction genre was published in 2004. Pride and Prescience, (Or, a Truth Universally Acknowledged)28 features an investigation conducted by the newly married couple 25 Kelly Marsh’s ideas about a revival of the sensation novel might be of interest here. Cf. Marsh, Kelly. “The Neo-Sensation Novel: A Contemporary Genre in the Victorian Tradition.” In: Philological Quarterly 74,1 (1995): 99–123. 26 Shannon (Giraffe Days). Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3919195-theindependence-of-miss-mary-bennet February 14, 2010 (accessed 27 April, 2014). 27 The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-41659648-6 (accessed 27 April, 2014). 28 Bebris, Carrie. Pride and Prescience. (Or, A Truth Universally Acknowledged.) A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery. New York: Forge, 2004.

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Elizabeth and Darcy. Here, Caroline Bingley is at the centre of events. This is an interesting choice, as she is depicted in Pride and Prejudice as someone who might not be content to fade into the margins after the marriage of Mr. Darcy, whom she herself had designs on. At the beginning of each chapter, a quotation from Pride and Prejudice appears as epigraph, emphasising the connection between the pre-text and its sequel. The choice of quotations creates the impression of Pride and Prejudice illustrating, commenting on and even predicting the events of Pride and Prescience. Chapter 8, for example, is headed by a quotation from Darcy’s explanatory letter to Elizabeth: “Detection could not be in your power, and suspicion certainly not in your inclination.”29 Darcy’s original observation relates to Elizabeth’s misplaced trust in Wickham, but takes on an ironic note here, as it is placed to precede Elizabeth’s first attempt at investigating on her own – so suspicion and detection are certainly both in her power now. The mystery plot is triggered by Caroline Bingley’s marriage. On the rebound after Mr. Darcy’s rejection of her, she marries an American after a very short acquaintance, who turns out to be a villain with designs on her fortune and her life, using supernatural powers and magical items he acquired in New Orleans to subjugate her. While Mr. Darcy takes a long time to believe that evil forces beyond human reason are at work, Elizabeth soon suspects this. Their main (and first) conflict in marriage in Pride and Prescience is a discussion of whether the inexplicable events they have witnessed could have a supernatural background.30 As becomes clear in the spectacular showdown, Elizabeth’s instincts have been correct, and Mr. Darcy’s reliance on rationality nearly proves fatal as he refuses to accept the presence of black magic almost to the very last. Once again, the text is a hybrid with characteristics of the detective novel, the Gothic novel, and the sensation novel. The supernatural element, however, does not enrich its fabric but seems an incongruous imposition on the crime plot, which could have worked perfectly well without the spooky trappings (since the criminal husband of Caroline Bingley could conceivably have carried out his attacks on her reason and life without resorting to witchcraft).31 Elizabeth is a rational and witty character in Pride and Prejudice. Accordingly, at the end of Pride and Prescience “she could hardly believe herself that the eerie

29 Cf. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Donald J. Gray. New York: Norton, 1966 [1813]. 140. 30 Cf. Bebris. Prescience. 237–40. 31 Wilkie Collins’s The Woman in White comes to mind here, which offers more elegant solutions for problems of plot than the contrived action of Pride and Prescience. Cf. Collins, William Wilkie. The Woman in White. Edited by Harvey Peter Sucksmith. London: Oxford University Press, 1975 [1860].

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events she’d experienced had been more than a chapter in a gothic novel”,32 echoing the sentiments of Northanger Abbey and rooting herself on solid ground again. Readers of Pride and Prescience may find it hard to believe that Elizabeth is a character with easy access to the higher – or darker – powers. Casting her as the one of the Darcys susceptible to and recipient of the supernatural can be read as a gendered decision: although she never loses her sharp intelligence in Bebris’s novel, her humour is virtually non-existent, replaced by musings on whether or not she should accept the presence of supernatural forces. Although she tries to solve the mystery, she does not get full agency but rather waits until things are revealed to her. Here the female character connects to the irrational, shadowy world of black magic while the male character relies on his intellect. This clich¦d combination is not redeemed by the fact that Elizabeth turns out to have been correct in her suspicions. In the end she can save herself, Darcy, and Caroline Bingley only by following the instructions (touching an amulet to Caroline) which a scientist and expert on witchcraft gives her.33 The final example is by P.D. James, one of the most established figures in contemporary British crime writing. Her career since the early 1960s has been exceptional; her first novel Cover Her Face (1962)34 is a classical detective story relying strongly on traditions of the Golden Age. Later, P.D. James gets darker and her plots and characters more complex, turning towards the psychological. Her Death Comes to Pemberley is a return to the concept of her early novels. The novel once again follows the characters of Pride and Prejudice into their married lives. P.D. James consciously pays homage to Austen’s text rather than trying to knock it from its pedestal. Liesl Schillinger notes this implicit respect for Austen lovers: Her innovation has been to transplant the dramatis personae from Austen into her own suspenseful universe, preserving their likenesses and life force. James clearly understands that many readers feel as close an attachment to Austen’s characters as they do to their own relatives and friends. So she cannily begins by furnishing answers to the natural question: ‘Where are they now?’35

P.D. James’s tone is her own, but she includes touches of Jane Austen’s prose. To Charles McGrath, “[t]he style of ‘Death Comes to Pemberley’ is a loose approximation of 19th-century prose, a sort of modern equivalent, rather than a painstaking imitation”.36 The narrative begins in 1803, six years after the as32 33 34 35

Bebris. Prescience. 287. Ibid. 273. James, P.D. Cover Her Face. London: Faber and Faber, 2009 [1962]. Schillinger, Liesl. “Pride and Prejudice and Murder.” In: The New York Times. 16 December, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/18/books/review/death-comes-to-pember ley-by-p-d-james-book-review.html?_r=2& pagewanted=all& (accessed 26 April, 2014). 36 McGrath, Charles. “A Look Back, and Ahead, at Pemberley.” In: The New York Times. 26

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sumed dates of the Darcy and Bingley weddings. With her first sentence, P.D. James consciously evokes the first sentence of Pride and Prejudice: “It was generally agreed by the female residents of Meryton that Mr and Mrs Bennet of Longbourn had been fortunate in the disposal in marriage of four of their five daughters.”37 As in the other examples, in James’s text, all is not well – Elizabeth finds the social burdens of being the mistress of Pemberley hard to cope with and is still beset by the detractions of Caroline Bingley. Lydia and Wickham are financially in dire straits and accustomed to live on the mercy of their richer relations, and Wickham in particular is as profligate as he was before his marriage. At the annual ball, held in honour of Mr. Darcy’s late mother, Lydia bursts upon the assembled society, screaming hysterically that her husband has been murdered. He became involved in a quarrel on the way to Pemberley, where the couple had intended to gatecrash the ball, and she assumes he was killed in the woods. However, the victim is not Wickham, but his fellow officer, Denny, which naturally turns suspicion on Wickham, who is found weeping and bloodied beside the body. Wickham is arrested and tried, and we get insights into the investigations, the lawyers’ work and the courtrooms. As it turns out, Wickham is not guilty of the murder, but his lifestyle has effectually brought about the crime; and with Denny, an innocent man was killed by mistake. The text refuses to raise hopes that these events may have a sobering effect on him; Lydia and Wickham emigrate to the United States in the end, where he becomes a horse breeder. Death Comes to Pemberley is particularly strong when it emphasises the characters’ looking back on former years. Elizabeth and Darcy both contemplate their past behaviour and are often seen in the process of mulling over their actions. This may seem overly explanatory, insulting the readers with the assumption of their unfamiliarity with Pride and Prejudice, while at the same time creating the impression of the pre-text and its events actually being present, haunting the sequel. It is the couple Lydia and Wickham who bring in a criminal element, which is reminiscent of the sub-plot of Colleen McCullough’s version; however, P.D. James stresses causalities much more than McCullough, and her Lydia is neither an alcoholic nor given to casual sexual relationships. With the twists and turns of its plot, which is much less sensational and meandering than The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet and lacks the supernatural element of Pride and Prescience, Death Comes to Pemberley stands in the tradition of classical detective fiction. Again, there is no central detective character who December, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/27/books/death-comes-to-pemberleyby-p-d-james-review.html?_r=0 (accessed 27 April, 2014). 37 James, P.D. Death Comes to Pemberley. London: Faber and Faber, 2011. 1.

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solves the puzzle. Although the reader does not get to see the low life in the style of The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, there are visits to cottagers on the Pemberley estate, to the coroner and the prison; the burden of the investigation falls on various characters, and the solution is reached by a deathbed confession from the murderer – not quite satisfactory for avid fans of whodunits. Charles McGrath notes in the New York Times, “If the novel has a weakness, oddly, it’s the mystery, which by Ms. James’s standards is pretty tame and uncomplicated.”38 Readers of Pride and Prejudice may also have come to expect a stronger, more vivacious Elizabeth. P.D. James has decidedly dimmed her in her marriage; she is unusually passive and lets other characters take the limelight.39 Jane Austen and crime are not a bad match. Austen’s texts laid the foundations, with their sharp observations of human nature and the unflinching acceptance of the baseness of some people and the weakness of all. Affinities between Austen’s writing and the darker side of human nature can be found in all of her novels. As Robert McCrum puts it in The Observer, “In all Austen’s novels, English society is displayed as an apparently ordered, custom-bound world teetering on the brink of mayhem, even madness: an ideal crime scene, perhaps.”40 It is not far-fetched to stretch Austen’s narratives to the fringes of the society they usually depict, and to the depths of the minds they probe. Even Jane Austen herself can conceivably be cast as a character with investigative skills and ambitions. Crime sequels to Austen’s novels are an enterprise to be reckoned with. As sequels, they are part of the marketing strategies of the “Jane Austen” brand. Moreover, all sequels – and the crime sequels considered in the present analysis in particular – cater to the readers’ narrative greed. Timothy Gauthier addresses this concept in his analysis of A.S. Byatt’s Possession. Narrative greed (or hunger) is much more than just basic human curiosity and the readers’ wish for neverending stories and story-telling. It can become a structural principle of texts, and is one of the touchstones of narration. Gauthier argues that behind narrative greed there is a greed for closure, and that closure makes the construction of meaning ultimately possible: “Ends give definite shape to things, allowing us to compartmentalize them, and thus feel that we truly know them.”41 This is particularly fitting if readers deal with a narrative set in the past, as is the case with 38 McGrath. “A Look Back.” 39 Notably, this tendency is even more pronounced in the BBC adaptation of Death Comes to Pemberley. Cf. Death Comes to Pemberley. Directed by Daniel Percival. BBC 2013. 40 McCrum, Robert. “Whodunnit? It was Jane Austen of course.” In: The Observer. 2 October, 2011. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/oct/02/jane-austen-pdjames-robert-mccrum. (accessed 27 April, 2014). 41 Gauthier, Timothy. Narrative Desire and Historical Reparations: A.S. Byatt, Ian McEwan, and Salman Rushdie. New York: Routledge, 2006. 67–68.

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the Austen sequels. Gauthier sees narrative desire also as a wish to deal with the past once and for all – when readers know the ending they are safe from the events narrated. This seems at first glance difficult to reconcile with the obvious desire to revive Austen and her texts in sequels. However, the twofold approach of revival and containment might be particularly tantalising in the case of the crime sequel, when plotting is circumscribed by genre and a revelation of the mystery increases the readers’ hunger. Part of the desire in telling a story derives from coming to terms with the past, containing it, and relegating it to a space wherein it no longer possesses the power to affect the present or future. That authority over the past comes in the form of established ends that reconcile whatever insecurities may have been raised in the construction of the narrative.42

The double movement of reviving Jane Austen, her time and her world, in conjunction with relegating them to a closed, fictional landscape in the past can account for the continued attractiveness of the sequels. Narrative greed, the desire to know the outcome, is also of overwhelming importance in crime fiction – the end here is the detection, the solution to puzzles, the unveiling of mysteries. In this sense, the crime sequels to Pride and Prejudice address narrative greed on two levels: the desire to know more about Jane Austen and her characters, to fill in the gaps her novels leave open in the imagination, and the desire to understand the secrets behind crime. This can account for their success and persistence on the literary market. But crime sequels can do even more: they can be seen to socially decentre their Austen pre-texts, albeit more or less successfully. Notably, a plethora of housemaids, gardeners, butlers, grooms, peasants, but also kept women, prostitutes and brothel keepers appear in the sequels, and even if they tend to be minor characters, we do actually hear some of them speak. Even if they do not get voices in their own right, they get stories: the surviving children, poor, displaced, orphaned of Father Dominus’s sect in The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. Cottager girls dreaming of a future beyond a cottage in Death Comes to Pemberley. There is a noticeable urge to expose an underground world of Austen – all writers in question certainly give the Austen characters a good shaking-up if they do not proceed to rub their noses in the dirt directly.43 42 Gauthier. Narrative Desire. 68. 43 As all the pertinent examples have been written by women authors, an analysis of implications of gender in the sequels may be a worthwhile project for future research. Maureen T. Reddy points to the connections of crime fiction with other genres extensively practiced by women: “Both gothic and sensation novels concern themselves with secrets and mysteries, violence and fear. Significantly, both genres were dominated by women authors […] and both place women’s position in society at issue, examining the terrifying underbelly of the apparently placid domestic haven idealized by official culture.” Reddy, Maureen T. Sisters in

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The crime sequels have a certain generic fluidity, mixing the classical whodunit with sensation fiction and historical writing. They all make do without a detective and have the regular cast more or less take turns at investigating the events, with the exception of Barron’s texts, which are addenda rather than sequels. Barron, however, seems to fill similar gaps as the genuine sequels do, speaking to the readers’ narrative hunger for more “Jane Austen”. A sense of justice, which provides so much of the satisfaction readers tend to get out of Jane Austen’s endings, is equally present in the crime sequels. As D.L. Sayers’s famous detective Lord Peter Wimsey once argues, crime fiction is not to be dismissed as trivial because it contains “a dream of justice” in a deeply unjust, violent, and unbalanced world.44 Interestingly, this ties in with Bran Nicol’s description of detective fiction in his Introduction to Postmodern Fiction: […] the detective story is often associated with modernity. It is the genre above all in which the modernist/Enlightenment fantasy of order and control finds expression. Each classic detective story ends with the restoration of order and a resolution of the mystery with which it began – suggesting the social cohesion and hierarchy is preserved and that the human mind, the rational faculties (supported by scientific techniques) reign supreme.45

Although the scientific techniques are still missing, reading the pre-text and its sequels as fantasies of order goes a long way towards explaining the cohesion of Austen’s novels and their crime sequels. Arguably, the sequels can also be read as texts throwing Austen’s insistence on neoclassical balance playfully out of balance, in a move comparable to the mechanisms at work in crime fiction, only to restore it once again in the end, much to the satisfaction of greedy readers.

References Anon. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. http://www.publishersweekly.com/978–1– 4165–9648–6 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Anon. “Westminster Chronicle.” British Newspapers Online. http://www.britishpapers.co. uk/england-london/westminster-chronicle/ (accessed 27 April, 2014). Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Edited by Donald J. Gray. New York: Norton, 1966 [1813]. Crime. Feminism and the Crime Novel. New York: Continuum, 1988. 7–8. This observation is highly relevant in the present context. 44 It is striking that Lord Peter’s conversation with his wife, who is a crime writer, takes place in a book which is itself a sequel to the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, written by Jill Paton Walsh with material left unfinished by D.L. Sayers. Cf. Sayers, Dorothy Leigh and Jill Paton Walsh. Thrones, Dominations. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998. 155. 45 Nicol, Bran. The Cambridge Introduction to Postmodern Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. 172.

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Barron, Stephanie. The Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor. Being the First Jane Austen Mystery. New York: Bantam, 1997 [1996]. – Stephanie Barron: Jane Austen Mysteries. http://www.stephaniebarron.com/books.php 2005–2014 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Bebris, Carrie. Pride and Prescience. (Or, a Truth Universally Acknowledged). A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery. New York: Forge, 2004. Collins, William Wilkie. The Woman in White. Edited by Harvey Peter Sucksmith. London: Oxford University Press, 1975 [1860]. Death Comes to Pemberley. Dan Percival (dir.). UK: BBC, 2013. Dow, Steve. “Age Shall not Weary Her.” 28 September, 2008. http://www.stevedow.com.au/ default.aspx?id=360 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Fullerton, Susannah. Jane Austen and Crime. Madison, WI: Jones Books, 2006. Gauthier, Timothy. Narrative Desire and Historical Reparations: A.S. Byatt, Ian McEwan, and Salman Rushdie. New York: Routledge, 2006. Harding, D.W. “Regulated Hatred. An Aspect of the Work of Jane Austen.” In: Scrutiny 8,4 (1940): 346–62. Higson, Rosalie. “The Perils of Colleen.” http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/the-per ils-of-colleen/story-e6frg8n6–11111176435 16 October 4, 2008 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Hilfer, Tony. The Crime Novel. A Deviant Genre. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1990. James, P.D. Cover Her Face. London: Faber and Faber, 2009 [1962]. – Death Comes to Pemberley. London: Faber and Faber, 2011. – “P.D. James on ‘Death Comes to Pemberley.’ ” In: The Telegraph. November 4, 2011. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/authorinterviews/8870688/PD-James-onDeath-Comes-to-Pemberley.html (accessed 27 April, 2014). Johnson, Claudia L. Jane Austen’s Cult and Cultures. Chicago/London: University of Chicago Press, 2012. Korte, Barbara and Sylvia Paletschek. “Geschichte und Kriminalgeschichte(n): Texte, Kontexte, Zugänge.” In: Korte and Paletschek (eds.). Geschichte im Krimi. Beiträge aus den Kulturwissenschaften. Cologne: Böhlau, 2009. 7–27. Marsh, Kelly. “The Neo-Sensation Novel: A Contemporary Genre in the Victorian Tradition.” In: Philological Quarterly 74,1 (1995): 99–123. McCrum, Robert. “Whodunnit? It was Jane Austen of course.” In: The Observer. October 2, 2011. http://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/oct/02/jane-austen-pdjames-rob ert-mccrum (accessed 27 April, 2014). McCullough, Colleen. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet. London: HarperCollins 2009 [2008]. McGrath, Charles. “A Look Back, and Ahead, at Pemberley.” In: The New York Times. December 26, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/27/books/death-comes-to-pem berley-by-p-d-james-review.html?_r=0 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Nicol, Bran. The Cambridge Introduction to Postmodern Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009. Reddy, Maureen T. Sisters in Crime. Feminism and the Crime Novel. New York: Continuum, 1988. Sayers, Dorothy Leigh. The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. New York: HarperCollins, 1995.

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– and Jill Paton Walsh. Thrones, Dominations. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1998. Schillinger, Liesl. “Pride and Prejudice and Murder.” In: The New York Times. December 16, 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/18/books/review/death-comes-to-pember ley-by-p-d-james-book-review.html?_r=2& pagewanted=all& (accessed 26 April, 2014). Shannon (Giraffe Days). Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3919195the-independence-of-miss-mary-bennet February 14, 2010 (accessed 27 April, 2014). Wiltshire, John. Recreating Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.

Hanne Birk

Gothic Fiction Bites Back – The Gothification of Jane Austen at the Beginning of the 21st Century “William, I love you more than life itself.” “Yes, I know. That is what keeps me going.”1

1.

Introduction

‘The Death of the Author’ was stated by Roland Barthes in 1968.2 Taken literally, this is not always true. In some of the texts this contribution focuses on, the author – in our context Jane Austen – is not only ‘not dead’, but she is downright ‘un-dead’: In 2010 Jane Austen reappeared as a vampire in Michael Thomas Ford’s Jane Bites Back and since then two more texts by Ford followed, all three of them featuring Austen as a vampire protagonist.3 Ford’s author construct is by far not the only Gothic reinvention or ‘mash-up’ of Austen and her works; Ford’s bloodthirsty Jane is definitely not left alone in the dark. Currently she is accompanied not only by hordes of zombies in Jane Austen and Seth GrahameSmith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2009) but also by several gloomy Darcys, who may shape-shift into werewolves as in Simonsen’s Mr Darcy’s Bite (2011) and Mr Darcy Bites Back (2012) or into full-blown vampires as in Grange’s Mr Darcy, Vampyre (2009). As these few examples may suggest, there are actually numerous Gothic Austen rewrites, adaptations and transformations mainly drawing upon either the author construct ‘Jane Austen’ herself or on protagonists of Austen’s works, especially – of course – on Elizabeth Bennet and (Fitzwilliam) Darcy. Following up “the enormous popularity of the Gothic – both novels and films – since the 1 Simonsen, Mary Lydon. Mr Darcy Bites Back: A Sequel to Mr Darcy’s Bite. Peoria: Quail Creek Publishing, 2012. 154. 2 Barthes, Roland. “The Death of the Author.” In: Stephen Heath (ed.). Image – Music – Text. London: Fontana, 1987 [1977]. 142–48. 3 Ford, Michael Thomas. Jane Bites Back. New York: Ballantine, 2010; Ford, Michael Thomas. Jane Goes Batty. New York: Ballantine, 2011; Ford, Michael Thomas. Jane Vows Vengeance. New York: Ballantine, 2012.

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Second World War”4 and partly due to the combination of the ‘Darcymania of the 90s’5 and the current ‘vampire hype’ – represented paradigmatically by the success of Anne Rice’s The Vampire Chronicles (1976–), Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight novels (2005–2010), True Blood (2008–2014), and the TV series The Vampire Diaries (2009–), based on L.J. Smith’s eponymous novels (1991–1992) – the number of Gothic adaptations of Jane Austen and her works is impressive.6 Maybe surprisingly, maybe as was to be expected, these novels do not attract a small or eccentric group of readers; they are highly successful, widely read and thus promise a considerable sociocultural ‘impact factor’. For example Pride and Prejudice and Zombies “made it to third place on the New York Times bestseller list”7 and “has not only sold more than 1.5 million copies (combined print and digital) but launched the mashup book category.”8 Furthermore it has been turned into a video game, and a film adaptation is in progress and expected to be released in 2015.9 Given this number, variety and success of Gothic adaptations, the core questions of this contribution are the following: Are there specific or recurring narrative forms that these texts employ, and which main functional potentials can be identified? Can the relation between the ‘Gothified’ or ‘Gothic’ rewrite and the primary text or author construct be described in analogy to the ‘writing 4 Bruhm, Steven. “The Contemporary Gothic: Why We Need It.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 259–76, 259. 5 Cf. Looser, Devoney. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85, 181–83. 6 Examples (cf. Voigts-Virchow, Eckart. “Pride and Promiscuity and Zombies, or : Miss Austen Mashed Up in the Affinity Spaces of Participatory Culture.” In: Oliver Lindner and Pascal Nicklas (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin: DeGruyter, 2012. 34–56, 51–53) include Hockensmith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls (2010) and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dreadfully Ever After (2011), Austen’s and Winter’s Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters (2009), Austen’s and Nazarian’s Mansfield Park and Mummies (2009), Josephson’s Emma and the Vampires (2010), Austen’s and Hassell’s Pride and Prejudice’s Vampires (2010), Mullany’s Jane and the Damned (2010), Jones’s Pride and Prejudice and Vampires (2012), Jeffers’s Vampire Darcy’s Desire (2009), Webber’s Pride and Prejudice and Daughters Grimm (2013), Saucier’s Pulse and Prejudice (2012) and films (cf. Child, Ben. “Pride and Predator to Give Jane Austen an Extreme Makeover.” In: theguardian.com. 17 February, 2009. http://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/feb/17/prideand-predator-to-give-jane-austen-extreme-makeover/print (accessed 30 November, 2013)). Please also see Breuer, Rolf. “Jane Austen etc. – The Completions, Continuations and Adaptations of Her Novels.” 2000. http://webdoc.gwdg.de/edoc/ia/eese/breuer/biblio.html (accessed 30 November, 2013). 7 Voigts-Virchow. “Pride and Promiscuity and Zombies.” 46. 8 Habash, Gabe. “Quirk at 10: Moving Beyond Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” In: Publishers Weekly 259,40 (2012): 8. 9 Voigts-Virchow. “Pride and Promiscuity and Zombies.” 46.

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back’ paradigm?10 Do these texts ‘bite back’ and reveal and criticize ideological frameworks of the original? Or, to borrow a pun from Ken Gelder : ‘What is at stake in these vampire narratives?’11 Can these Gothic texts be read as ironic subversions of the master narratives? Some possible answers will be provided by following a line of argument that consists of four main steps. First, the Gothic trait in Austen’s own work is addressed, in order to be able to correlate the contemporary Gothic rewrites with Austen’s Gothic parody Northanger Abbey. Secondly, an analytical sketch of four selected Gothic rewrites will be introduced and complemented by some remarks on a set of ‘transformative rules’ for generating adaptations. By transferring this framework into the context of the Gothic novels at hand, their formal conformity to general trends can be revealed. Thirdly, selected formal and functional aspects of Ford’s vampire trilogy and of Austen’s and Grahame-Smith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies will be interpreted and discussed. Fourthly, in the conclusion, some answers to the question of whether these Gothic rewrites really represent examples of a ‘biting back’ paradigm – or not – will be offered.

2.

Revisiting Northanger Abbey

As a matter of fact Jane Austen contributed to the Gothic genre with her very own and only Gothic novel: Northanger Abbey (1818). Only in “1818 […] Jane Austen’s counter-Gothic Northanger Abbey [was] published after her death the previous year”,12 although, as Punter and Byron remark, the text “was [already] completed in 1798, a time when the Gothic novel had reached the peak of its popularity but was also beginning to be increasingly attacked and satirized by its critics”.13 As a matter of fact, 1800 was “[t]he largest single year yet for number of Gothic novels published in England.”14 In Northanger Abbey Austen employs several stereotypical elements constitutive of the Gothic – such as the abbey of the title – only to reject and satirize them.15 This narrative strategy becomes 10 Cf. Ashcroft, Bill, Gareth Griffiths and Helen Tiffin. The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Literatures. London: Routledge, 2003 [1989]. 11 Cf. Gelder, Ken. Reading the Vampire. London: Routledge, 2006 [1994]. x. 12 Hogle, Jerrold E. “Chronology.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. xvii–xxv, xix. 13 Punter, David and Glennis Byron. The Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2004. 80. 14 Hogle. “Chronology.” xix. 15 Hogle defines ‘Gothic fiction’ as follows: “[W]e can specify some general parameters by which fictions can be identified as primarily or substantially Gothic. […] [A] Gothic tale usually takes place (at least some of the time) in an antiquated or seemingly antiquated space – be it a castle, a foreign palace, an abbey, a vast prison, a subterranean crypt, a graveyard, a primeval frontier or island, a large old house or theatre, an aging city or urban underworld, a

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obvious, for example, with respect to the plot structure.16 Miles defines the “codified […] female Gothic plot as an orphaned heroine in search of an absent mother, pursued by a feudal (patriarchal) father or his substitute, with the whole affair monitored by an impeccable but ineffectual suitor.”17 But the narrative voice introduces the most probable candidate for a Gothic heroine in Northanger Abbey, Catherine Morland, as follows: No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy, would have supposed her born to be a heroine. Her situation in life, the character of her father and mother, her own person and disposition, were all equally against her. Her father […] was not in the least addicted to locking up his daughters. Her mother […] had three sons before Catherine was born; and instead of dying in bringing the latter into the world, as anybody might expect, she still lived on –18

Thus the invitation to a classic Gothic plot seems to be turned down right from the beginning. As a matter of fact, the plot line – including the ‘absent mother’, i. e. a Gothic ‘secret of the past’ – is merely transferred to the male hero’s family relations. Correspondingly there are several male protagonists who do correlate with set characters of the Gothic. For example Henry Tilney is most likely to be read as the Gothic hero: He is the ‘sensitive voice of reason’, who saves Catherine from her imagination running wild, by explaining to her that his mother was not murdered by his father as Catherine suspected due to her avid reading of Radcliffean novels, and he provides her with a happy marriage based on true love. Characterization strategies position Henry Tilney in opposition to his father General Tilney, who does not only send Catherine away when he realizes her lack decaying storehouse, factory, laboratory, public building, or some new recreation of an older venue, such as an office with old filing cabinets, an overworked spaceship, or a computer memory. Within this space, or a combination of such spaces, are hidden some secrets of the past (sometimes the recent past) that haunt the characters, psychologically, physically, or otherwise at the main time of the story. These hauntings can take many forms, but they frequently assume the features of ghosts, specters, or monsters (mixing features from different realms of being, often life and death) that rise from within the antiquated space, or sometimes invade it from alien realms, to manifest unresolved crimes or conflicts that can no longer be successfully buried from view. It is at this level that Gothic fictions generally play with and oscillate between the earthly laws of conventional reality and the possibilities of the supernatural […] often siding with one of these over the other in the end, but usually raising the possibility that the boundaries between these may have been crossed, at least psychologically but also physically or both.” (Hogle, Jerrold E. “Introduction: The Gothic in Western Culture.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 1–20, 2–3.) 16 The line of argument follows Coogan, Anna. “Gothic Elements and their Depiction in Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey.” 2007. [unpublished]. 17 Miles, Robert. “Ann Radcliffe and Matthew Lewis.” In: David Punter (ed.). A Companion to the Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001 [2000]. 41–57, 43. 18 Austen, Jane. Northanger Abbey. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1985 [1818]. 37.

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of financial standing, but who – despite the fact that he is not a murderer – may not be quite innocent in the death of his wife either. It is this ‘reality check’, the revelation that the General is not a killer on the loose that led “many critics [to] read Austen’s parody as relatively straightforward demonstration of Catherine’s need to distinguish fantasy from reality, an education in which she is guided by the general’s son, Henry Tilney”.19 But it would not be adequate to conclude from the comments of the narrative voice in Northanger Abbey that the reading of Gothic novels or the imaginative power of fiction is criticised as such. As Punter and Byron put it, “Austen […] does not want to dismiss the Gothic novel completely – she gives full credit to its imaginative powers – but only to moderate the excesses of the Gothic sensibility and show the need to discipline ‘an imagination resolved on alarm’.”20 They conclude that “Austen is […] suggesting that fantasy and reality are not completely inimical. Many of the underlying fears of Radcliffean Gothic, particularly the fear of patriarchal authority, are proven to be quite valid.”21 Thus it would be fair to say that the narrative voice in Northanger Abbey communicates a warning against the powers of imagination going into overdrive due to the poietic functional potentials of rather explicit ‘horror Gothic’.22 In the same breath, the mimetic powers of fiction in general and Gothic literature in particular are selfreferentially affirmed and celebrated: Although General Tilney did not murder his wife in a literal sense, as the stereotypical representative of a patriarchal order he is to be held responsible for the, possibly even physically impairing, despair of some of his family members. In other words, the poietic understanding of an explicit ‘horror Gothic’ steps aside and gives way to a more mimetic concept of subtle psychological terror.23 This idea of a careful depiction of fear and angst is definitely not what immediately comes to mind when reading the Austenite Gothic rewrites which will be discussed in the following. First some general characteristics of adaptations will be addressed and then the focus will be shifted to an analysis of individual texts.

19 20 21 22 23

Punter and Byron. The Gothic. 81. Ibid. 80. Ibid. 81. Hogle. “Introduction.” 3. Cf. Hogle. “Introduction.” 3.

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Transformations and adaptations: Narrative strategies in and functional potentials of Austenite Gothifications

On the book cover of Jane Bites Back it says: “Jane Bites Back is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.”24 But this is not entirely true. Naturally, the Gothic adaptations feature several obvious intertextual or ‘interbiographical’ references to the Austen universe. But instead of being arbitrary they seem to correspond to a set of general tendencies Jenkins observed originally in fans’ rewritings of television shows.25 Several of these ‘transformative rules’ are immediately applicable to the Gothic rewrites at hand. These include the tendency to ‘expand the timeline’ of the original, which is readily achieved by un-dead protagonists, the ‘shifting of genres’, in the present context of course towards the Gothic and romance, and the ‘dislocation of characters’, which accounts for example for the vampire Jane Austen living in the United States under a new name in Jane Bites Back. Furthermore, the rewrites frequently feature an ‘intensification of emotions’ as well as an eroticisation, which often ties in with an emphasis on sexuality which is a typical feature of vampire narratives.26 A paradigmatic example is provided in a passage towards the end of Amanda Grange’s Mr Darcy, Vampyre (2009) in which Darcy, who has just been freed from his vampire curse by Elizabeth, gives in to his desires: “His eyes darkened and they began to smoulder, and she felt her legs grow weak. He ran the back of his hand across her cheek and she began to tremble. And there by the sea, in the new light of morning, they came together as one.”27 So, obviously, Gothic rewrites do partly follow general tendencies that can be found in other adaptations as well. But in the following some formal and functional dimensions will surface that are rather specific to the selected Gothic rewrites. In the “cross-period ‘collaboration’ Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, ‘by Jane 24 Ford. Jane Bites Back. n.p. 25 The discussion of these tendencies in the following passage relies on Jenkins, Henry. Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture. New York: Routledge, 1992. 162–77. Quoted in: Storey, John. Cultural Studies and the Study of Popular Culture. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2010 [1996]. 151–53. 26 Accordingly it could also be argued that the fact that questions of sex and gender are main issues in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is mainly due to the extraordinary status of these topics in the Gothic tradition: “One of the key issues […] has been sexuality. In part this is because of a critical perception that the Gothic often trades in tabooed representations of desire. Indeed, because the Gothic so often focuses on issues of gender and identity it means that sexuality and politics are frequently foregrounded.” (Smith, Andrew. Gothic Literature. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2013. 199.) 27 Grange, Amanda. Mr Darcy, Vampyre. Naperville: Sourcebook Landmarks, 2009. 306.

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Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith’ ” 28 the setting is made explicit right from the start. Countless zombies have invaded the area and the Bennets are fighting for the survival of the human race. Due to the fact that the Bennet sisters enjoyed an excellent education in Shaolin martial arts, Elizabeth is – in the course of repeated combat situations – able to impress Darcy. In fact, the mash-up follows the original Pride and Prejudice plot very faithfully. And this shows not only in the title hinting at the zombies being a mere addition to the ur-text but also in the make-up of the novel as a whole: In fact about 85 % of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is Pride and Prejudice, the remaining 15 % probably the zombies.29 But it has to be noted that efforts have been made to cast the product as a consistent whole by employing strategies to update and simplify the vocabulary and style in the adaptation. Characterization strategies, the plot development as well as the ending contribute to a rather ambivalent effect in the novel. The almost contradictory narrative strategies are best discussed by drawing on paradigmatic scenes depicted in the graphic edition (image 1). The images, arranged in a seemingly loose order, emphasize not only the speed of motion or the violent cruelty of battle, but they show Elizabeth in action from different angles. The drawings seem to convey the message that, regardless which perspective you choose, Elizabeth is perfect – she is strong, professional, heroic and beautiful according to comic aesthetics. As the storyline of the graphic novel follows the original very faithfully, the reader is led to expect the story to culminate on a note of emotional harmony, with the affirmation of the strength of Elizabeth and Darcy as a couple, i. e. an ending which may have been captured in an image like image 2. In this scene Elizabeth and Darcy seem to find their happiness in fighting side by side – potentially forever after. But the text disappoints the readers’ expectations. This is not at all how the story ends, as image 3 shows. Instead, on the final page, the captions read as follows: Victories were celebrated, defeats lamented, and the sisters Bennet – servants of his Majesty, protectors of Hertfordshire, beholders of the secrets of the Shaolin, and brides of death – were now, three of them, brides of man, their swords quieted by that only force more powerful than any warrior.30

28 Potter, Tiffany. “Historicizing the Popular and the Feminine: The Rape of the Lock and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” In: Tiffany Potter (ed.). Women, Popular Culture, and the Eighteenth Century. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. 5–24, 16. 29 Cf. Carone, Angela and Maureen Cavanaugh. “Interview with Linda Troost: Jane Austen and Zombies, Sea Monsters and Vampires.” http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/apr/08/janeausten-and-zombies-sea-monsters-and-vampires/ (accessed 30 November, 2013). 30 Austen, Jane and Seth Grahame-Smith. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. New York: Ballantine Books, 2010. n.p.

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Image 1. Austen, Jane, Grahame-Smith, Seth. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. New York: Ballantine Books, n.p.

Image 2. Austen, Jane, Grahame-Smith, Seth. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. New York: Ballantine Books, n.p.

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Image 3. Austen, Jane, Grahame-Smith, Seth. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. New York: Ballantine Books, n.p.

In other words, for Elizabeth Bennet marriage in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies means substituting her warrior status by simply being a loving wife. More important than the slightly disturbing fact that in this image the reader seems to occupy the perspective of a slain zombie are the gender roles implied by this ending. Apparently no matter how resourceful and professional or even perfect a woman possibly is, marriage is depicted as being the legitimate termination of anything that goes beyond being a wife. In contrast, there is far less narrative tension in Ford’s vampire trilogy. The reader encounters Jane Austen, calling herself Jane Fairfax like the character in Emma, as a contemporary vampire living in Brakeston in New York State.31 31 The fact that the vampire Jane Austen acts as a main focalizer and thus invites the readers to see her surprisingly normal world from her perspective is in line with a general development in Gothic literature: “The nineteenth-century vampire is, in the main, narrated rather than narrating: access to the vampire is limited by his or her representation in diaries and letters, or by the conventions of moral outrage or regret that characterise the narratives of participant or omniscient narrators. The twentieth-century vampire is, by contrast, more often than not either a narrator in his or her own right or the central subject of an omniscient thirdperson narrative […]. This change in emphasis has had a profound impact upon the presentation of the vampire lifestyle in fiction. The initial repulsion experienced by new initiates into vampirism, if felt at all, is rapidly replaced by a perception that the un-dead state is nothing more than a parallel lifestyle – a modified, rather than wholly new, existence,

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Although she runs her bookstore successfully, her happiness is impaired: the last novel she wrote before her death, Constance, was turned down by publishers 116 times in the last 200 years and she has to witness loads of new adaptations of her books hitting the market due to the Austen craze. Accordingly, the first book of the trilogy begins with the description of a reading event by Melodie Gladstone, author of the Pride and Prejudice sequel Waiting for Mr. Darcy, which conveys “[t]he message” that “[i]f you really want to experience the beauty of love – true love – you won’t give yourself to anyone until you’ve found it.”32 Surrounded by visitors dressed up for the occasion – “two dozen Elizabeths, and perhaps a quarter that many Darcys”33 – Jane Austen just wonders why people are “actually buying this nonsense”.34 Interestingly, despite her being extremely tired of the endless adaptations, Austen does decide to spare Seth Grahame-Smith’s life and remarks on Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The book, which had come out earlier in the year, was a surprise hit. Part of her bristled at the notion of someone taking her novel and inserting new, decidedly unorthodox text into it, and she’d briefly considered visiting some unpleasantness upon the author, but ultimately amusement had won out over irritation and she’d even begun to recommend the book to customers. Although receiving royalties from it would be nice.35

In all three books, Jane Bites Back (2010), Jane Goes Batty (2011) and Jane Vows Vengeance (2012), three main plot lines are developed: First there is the story of Austen trying to get her book published, and once she has succeeded she has to face not only contemporary marketing strategies but a film crew working on the movie adaptation. Secondly, there is a romance plot which ends with her being happily married and a mother of a little baby-girl called Cassandra. And thirdly, Austen is not the only vampire. Readers encounter among many others not only Lord Byron, who seduced and turned Austen two centuries ago, but also Austen’s so-called ‘gloomy friend’ Charlotte BrontÚ, who is depicted as her dangerous nemesis. In a mainly funny and slightly ironic manner the reader is thus confronted with an affirmation of the ‘eternal life’ of canonic works embodied by their un-dead authors.

32 33 34 35

typified by a change of diet and the imposition of a few more-or-less onerous restrictions.” (Hughes, William. “Fictional Vampires in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.” In: David Punter (ed.). A Companion to the Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001 [2000]. 143–54, 148–49.) Ford. Jane Bites Back. 6. Ibid. 5. Ibid. Ibid. 45.

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Conclusion

In the following, some tendencies regarding the forms and the functional potentials of the Austenite Gothic rewrites or mash-ups are summed up by referring back to the traditions of the classic and contemporary Gothic on the one hand and by revisiting Northanger Abbey again on the other hand. As Bruhm states: “[T]he central concerns of the classical Gothic are not that different from those of the contemporary Gothic: the dynamics of family, the limits of rationality and passion, the definition of statehood and citizenship, the cultural effects of technology.”36 So it seems that a certain degree of unchanging conditions can be identified in the development of Gothic literature and according to Bruhm “[t]he Gothic has always been a barometer of the anxieties plaguing a certain culture at a particular moment in history”,37 be it “the fear of foreign otherness and monstrous invasion” in the 1940s and 1950s due to the experiences of the Second World War, the Cold War and the space race, the horror of annihilation due to “[a]dvances in weaponry – both military and medical”, the “assaulted […] ideological supremacy of traditional values”,38 “our culture’s increasing secularity”39 or “the shattering of faith in a world that can permit the Holocaust and genocide or reconstruct us as cyborgs or clone each of us into another self.”40 If it is true that Gothic fiction can be read as revealing or at least hinting at some of our innermost fears, then what can be concluded from the depiction of a contemporary, highly intelligent and lovable Jane Austen with fangs in Ford’s Jane Bites Back, Jane Goes Batty and Jane Vows Vengeance or from the presentation of the Bennet sisters as ‘brides of death’ in (Austen’s and) GrahameSmith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies? Now, if readers were to allow their imagination to be ‘resolved on alarm’ just as Catherine Morland did and were to take the texts rather literally, thereby focussing on their poietic potentials of creating alternate universes, readers would have to conclude that authors who are un-dead, i. e. whose works have a canonic status, are still among us in the here and now, hiding their true identity behind the pen names they use for their new, also highly successful publications. Furthermore, they would have to admit that zombies are an everyday occurrence and that even for the best female zombie slayer a happy marriage is definitely preferable to enduring professionalism. 36 37 38 39 40

Bruhm. “The Contemporary Gothic.” 259. Ibid. 260. Ibid. Ibid. 261. Ibid. 273. For a “survey of contemporary critical approaches to the gothic” please see Stevens, David. The Gothic Tradition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007 [2000]. 100–11.

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But if readers employ the ‘trick’ the narrative voice in Northanger Abbey communicates and focus on the mimetic potentials of the Austenite Gothic adaptations, it is possible to identify several functional potentials which seem to be closely related to the Gothic tradition but include furthermore innovative meta-literary and didactic dimensions. First of all, potential didactic effects of the Gothic adaptations can be identified. As Hogle states: [The Gothic] is about its own blurring of different levels of discourse while it is also concerned with the interpenetration of other opposed conditions – including life/ death, natural/supernatural, ancient/modern, realistic/artificial, and unconscious/ conscious – along with the abjection of these crossings into haunting and supposedly deviant ‘others’ […].41

It can be argued that in the rewrites discussed above the “different levels of discourse”42 appear less blurred, the “opposed conditions”43 less interpenetrated than literally mashed-up. The “deviant ‘others’ ” 44 are populating our world in the alternate universe; potentially ancient beings, “the old ones”,45 the vampires, are here and now in our contemporary society. Thinking about the slaying of zombies, the border between life and death can either be seen as being defended and thus affirmed or it can be seen as dissolved; the zombies being by definition the ‘living’ or ‘walking dead’. In the alternate universes of the adaptations supernatural occurrences tend to be normal, natural events and possibly unconscious or repressed needs, such as sexual desires, are simply enjoyed. The resulting decrease of ambiguity and increase of explicitness in combination with a stylistic updating of vocabulary and simplified syntax might promote a rather easy reading process. In addition, it became obvious that these texts are mashups on yet another level because they blend genre characteristics of the Gothic and romance with ironic or humorous narrative strategies.46 In other words, these Gothifications provide enough textual signals to remind readers repeatedly 41 42 43 44 45 46

Hogle. “Introduction.” 9. Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Grange. Mr Darcy, Vampyre. 34. Another case in point is a passage at the end of Simonsen’s Mr Darcy’s Bite (2011). Increasingly worried about her husband Darcy, who is over sixty years old and regularly turning into a werewolf running wild in the woods all by himself, Elizabeth decides to take drastic measures with decidedly romantic overtones: “She put her finger into his mouth and pressed it against his tooth. After squeezing her finger to make sure there was blood, she lay down on the blanket and backed into him. As he did when he was in human form, he rested his front paw on her arm, and they spooned, or as much as a wolf and future wolf are capable of spooning.” Simonsen, Mary Lydon. Mr Darcy’s Bite. Naperville: Sourcebook Landmarks, 2011. 322.

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not to take them completely seriously and are most of the time a rather amusing read. The combination of these effects might just invite those readers to the worlds of Jane Austen who would usually not pick up an edition of Pride and Prejudice as readily. Furthermore, regarding the Austen/Grahame-Smith ‘co-production’ it may be useful to differentiate between readers who know Pride and Prejudice really well and others who do not. For habitual readers of Austen the joy of reading may be lessened by the fact that they recognize ‘inserted’ sentences or paragraphs even if they do not include explicit references to zombies or martial arts. Necessarily there are discrepancies in style between Austen and Grahame-Smith. For those readers who chose Pride and Prejudice and Zombies as their first ‘Austenish’ experience the situation is different. Among them there may be readers who would not want to finish a pure Austen text – as it says in the blurb: “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies transforms a masterpiece of world literature into something you’d actually want to read.”47 But by reading the mash-up readers do end up having read almost all of Pride and Prejudice nevertheless – which in turn might just tempt them to try another, maybe even un-mashed Austen.48 The graphic edition of the same novel offers another didactic strategy, namely the illustrations. This formal peculiarity may for example attract readers from manga fandoms. In other words, the graphic novel may contribute to a widening and potentially even a rejuvenation of the Austen readership. Secondly, seemingly contradictory functional potentials regarding sex and gender could be identified in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. On the one hand, the Bennet sisters are depicted as emotionally and physically strong characters, who are at least as heroic as the men. On the other hand, the visualisation of their appearance in the graphic edition as well as the ending, the idea that all their fighting just leads to a happy marriage, which in turn means that they will never fight again, subverts any feminist reading of the text.49 One last time the narrative voice in Northanger Abbey needs to be called upon in order to be able to focus once more on the mimetic effects of the Gothic elements and more specifically on the phenomenon of ‘intertextual mimesis’. If the formula ‘fight for your life until you achieve a happy marriage and then stop fighting’ that the mash-up seems to promote is understood as mimicking the plot structure of 47 Austen, Jane and Seth Grahame-Smith. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Philadelphia: Quirk Books, 2009. n.p. Cf. Leal, Amy. “See Jane Bite.” In: Chronicle of Higher Education 56,27 (2010): B13-B14. 48 Cf. Voigts-Virchow. “Pride and Promiscuity and Zombies.” 44. 49 Cf. Ruthven, Andrea. “Pride and Prejudice and Post-Feminist Zombies.” In: Mar†a Alonso Alonso, Jeannette Bello Mota, Alba de B¦jar Mu†Ços, Laura Torrado MariÇas (eds.). Weaving New Perspectives Together : Some Reflections on Literary Studies. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 155–70.

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Austen’s Pride and Prejudice then the mash-up is in fact an almost stereotypical instance of a ‘writing back’ – in this case ‘slaying back’ – paradigm. If so, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies reveals ideological premises supposedly underlying Pride and Prejudice and mocks Elizabeth Bennet as a heroine who is fighting for her independence within a set frame of normative rules, without breaking them, only to reproduce them in the end by conforming to marriage expectations. In other words, this mash-up might function as a subversive rewriting mediating the horror of women giving in to social and cultural restraints. Thirdly and in contrast, Ford’s vampire trilogy seems to affirm the master narratives and their author. His depiction of Austen as an almost everyday kind of vampire person is not used to diminish her literary achievement but rather to highlight its extraordinariness. In Jane Bites Back and its follow-ups, the vampiric status of Jane Fairfax/Austen is rather used to satirize the contemporary print media trade. First the financial exploitation of successful texts is exemplified and criticized. Secondly, the absurd relevance of marketing strategies is revealed and mocked. And thirdly by highlighting Jane Austen’s failure to publish another book, by mentioning her 116th rejection, it becomes clear that the artistic quality of a text is not the main hub of the book market. Taking this argument one step further : It might even be argued that Ford’s books implicitly address the issue of revising the canon by posing the question how excellent authors without a famous name could ever get published. With respect to the texts’ mimetic quality in reference to the Austen universe the vampire Jane Fairfax aka Jane Austen, ‘our gloomy friend’ aka Charlotte BrontÚ and Lord Byron can be read as partes pro toto, the un-dead authors literally re-presenting the everlasting contemporariness of their works. In other words, the ‘eternal life’ and validity of the canon is signified, affirmed and celebrated by their vampiric presence. In this case the Gothic adaptation is not biting back to Austen but rather blowing her a kiss.

References Ashcroft, Bill, Gareth Griffiths and Helen Tiffin. The Empire Writes Back: Theory and Practice in Post-Colonial Literatures. London: Routledge, 2003 [1989]. Austen, Jane. Northanger Abbey. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1985 [1818]. – Pride and Prejudice. Hertfordshire: Wordsworth, 2007 [1813]. Austen, Jane and Seth Grahame-Smith. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Philadelphia: Quirk Books, 2009. – Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. New York: Ballantine Books, 2010. Barthes, Roland. “The Death of the Author.” In: Stephen Heath (ed.). Image – Music – Text. London: Fontana, 1987 [1977]. 142–48.

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Breuer, Rolf. “Jane Austen etc. – The Completions, Continuations and Adaptations of Her Novels.” 2000. http://webdoc.gwdg.de/edoc/ia/eese/breuer/biblio.html. (accessed 30 November, 2013). Bruhm, Steven. “The Contemporary Gothic: Why We Need It.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 259–76. Carone, Angela and Maureen Cavanaugh. “Interview with Linda Troost: Jane Austen and Zombies, Sea Monsters and Vampires.” http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/apr/08/ jane-austen-and-zombies-sea-monsters-and-vampires/ (accessed 30 November, 2013). Child, Ben. “Pride and Predator to Give Jane Austen an Extreme Makeover.” In: theguardian.com. 17/02/2009. http://www.theguardian.com/film/2009/feb/17/prideand-predator-to-give-jane-austen-extreme-makeover/print (accessed 30 November, 2013). Coogan, Anna. “Gothic Elements and their Depiction in Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey.” 2007. [unpublished]. Ford, Michael Thomas. Jane Bites Back. New York: Ballantine, 2010. – Jane Goes Batty. New York: Ballantine, 2011. – Jane Vows Vengeance. New York: Ballantine, 2012. Gelder, Ken. Reading the Vampire. London: Routledge, 2006 [1994]. Grange, Amanda. Mr Darcy, Vampyre. Naperville: Sourcebook Landmarks, 2009. Habash, Gabe. “Quirk at 10: Moving Beyond Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” In: Publishers Weekly 259,40 (2012): 8. Hogle, Jerrold E. “Chronology.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. xvii–xxv. – “Introduction: The Gothic in Western Culture.” In: Jerrold E. Hogle (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Gothic Fiction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 1–20. Hughes, William. “Fictional Vampires in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.” In: David Punter (ed.). A Companion to the Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001 [2000]. 143–54. Jenkins, Henry. Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture. New York: Routledge, 1992. Leal, Amy. “See Jane Bite.” In: Chronicle of Higher Education 56,27 (2010): B13-B14. Looser, Devoney. “The Cult of Pride and Prejudice and its Author.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 174–85. Miles, Robert. “Ann Radcliffe and Matthew Lewis.” In: David Punter (ed.). A Companion to the Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001 [2000]. 41–57. Potter, Tiffany. “Historicizing the Popular and the Feminine: The Rape of the Lock and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.” In: Tiffany Potter (ed.). Women, Popular Culture, and the Eighteenth Century. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. 5–24. Punter, David and Glennis Byron. The Gothic. Oxford: Blackwell, 2004. Ruthven, Andrea. “Pride and Prejudice and Post-Feminist Zombies.” In: Mar†a Alonso Alonso, Jeannette Bello Mota, Alba de B¦jar Mu†Ços, Laura Torrado MariÇas (eds.). Weaving New Perspectives Together : Some Reflections on Literary Studies. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars, 2012. 155–70. Simonsen, Mary Lydon. Mr Darcy’s Bite. Naperville: Sourcebook Landmarks, 2011.

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– Mr Darcy Bites Back: A Sequel to Mr Darcy’s Bite. Peoria: Quail Creek Publishing, 2012. Smith, Andrew. Gothic Literature. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2013. Stevens, David. The Gothic Tradition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007 [2000]. Storey, John. Cultural Studies and the Study of Popular Culture. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2010 [1996]. Voigts-Virchow, Eckart. “Pride and Promiscuity and Zombies, or : Miss Austen Mashed Up in the Affinity Spaces of Participatory Culture.” In: Oliver Lindner and Pascal Nicklas (eds.). Adaptation and Cultural Appropriation. Berlin: DeGruyter, 2012. 34–56.

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‘Spank me Mr. Darcy’: Pride and Prejudice in Contemporary Female (Hardcore) Erotica

Dear reader : Let me start by giving you good advice: This is Erotica / Erotic Romance. This title is not for the faint of the heart and definitely for audiences 18 years and over! Contains EXPLICIT language and depictions that may be too much for some readers! Does that sound familiar to you? Well, then you most probably are used to reading stories like the following: erotic stories, erotica, porn. Most erotic rewritings of Pride and Prejudice (at least the ones published as e-books, fan fiction and other online texts) begin like this – and let me tell you: there is an ENDLESS number of those erotic stories existing around the love story of Darcy and Lizzy as it is told in this presumably harmless Regency novel called Pride and Prejudice. But as we are talking about the depiction of sex in literature, let us follow the right erotic chronology :

First encounter or: what does Pride and Prejudice have to do with it? Let us begin by having a closer look at the love theme within Pride and Prejudice – the love theme which ends in such an unsatisfactory manner for the reader or, as Martin Amis argues: These days, true, I wouldn’t have minded a rather more detailed conclusion – say, a twenty page sex scene featuring the two principals, with Mr. Darcy, furthermore, acquitting himself uncommonly well (Such a scene would take place, of course, not in a country inn or a louche lodging house in town but amid all the comfort and elegance of Pemberley, with its parklands and its vistas and its ten grand a year).1 1 Amis, Martin. “Miss Jane’s Prime.” In: The Atlantic 265,2 (1990): 100–02, 100.

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Unfortunately, in Pride and Prejudice we do not even get close to anything like this. The sexiest thing in Austen’s novel is presumably Mr. Darcy’s money, his wealth that contrasts so starkly with the lack of money of others in the text – mostly that of the poor girls. But still: There is something else, something special, which goes beyond the general plot question of who is to marry all the poor girls? and this special quality of Pride and Prejudice lies in the characterization and constitution of – our dear Elizabeth Bennet. She is by far the most passionate heroine of Jane Austen, subversively so, but still, even her father is aware of her passionate nature when he warns her that she “could be neither happy nor respectable”2 in a loveless marriage. But in the world of Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice, a rich man must marry a rich girl … and a poor man must marry a rich girl, too, in order to become independent. So the question remains: who is to marry all the poor girls? Furthermore, within this world of formality and suppressed emotions, who is expecting to find true love and passion anyway? Nobody. Mr. Bennet’s marriage is loveless and so, it seems, is everybody else’s. When Charlotte accepts Collins “from the pure and disinterested desire of an establishment” we get to know that marriage is “the only honourable provision” for women in her position, and “must be their pleasantest preservative from want”.3 The counterexample in Pride and Prejudice is Elizabeth’s sister Lydia. She runs away with Lieutenant Wickham. A scandal. Only after heavy bribery does Wickham consent to make an honest woman of her. But the shame remains. Collins advises Mr. Bennet to “never […] admit them in your sight or allow their names to be mentioned in your hearing”.4 And it is even worse: All was for nothing when we get to know that “[h]is affection for her soon sunk into indifference; hers lasted a little longer”5. Despite the prominence of the romance and marriage plot, the characters tend to pay little attention to each other before they get married in Austen. The language describing the characters hardly goes beyond descriptions like he is ‘handsome’ or ‘not at all handsome’, someone is ‘pleasing’, ‘her teeth are tolerable’, ‘her nose wants character’, or ‘he was a tall and heavy looking man of five and twenty’.6 Can you imagine? I mean, we are talking about a supposedly happy 2 “I now give it to you, if you are resolved on having him. But let me advise you to think better of it. I know your disposition, LIZZY. I know that you could be neither happy nor respectable, unless you truly esteemed your husband; unless you looked up to him as a superior. Your lively talents would place you in the greatest danger in an unequal marriage. You could scarcely escape discredit and misery. My child, let me not have the grief of seeing you unable to respect your partner in life. You know not what you are about.” (Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Ebook, Kindle free classics edition. 246.) 3 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 81. 4 Ibid. 237. 5 Ibid. 253. 6 See for instance the following passage: “ ‘ For my own part,’ she rejoined, ‘I must confess that I

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bunch of people having got nothing else to do than trying to get each other’s attention, having a good time with each other and finding good company, right? We are talking about people trying to attract each other, please each other… And all we get is a “chastened, deepened and democratized Darcy” whose wildest “romantic extravagance”7 is the opening of his arms – and his house – to Elizabeth’s aunt and uncle, who make their money through trade – and thus do not own ‘old money’ like Darcy himself. Wow! What an extravagance indeed! What a waste of potential! But Jane Austen would not be Jane Austen if she did not renew herself for each generation of readers and critics. And it is, as you will now see, exactly this dichotomy of prudery versus (suppressed) passion that opens up an infinite space of performances of desire – of female erotic rewritings of Pride and Prejudice.

Foreplay or: what does porn have to do with it? This infinite space of performances of desire serves manifold interests and affinities – or should I say appetites…? Rewriting Pride and Prejudice as a text of erotic pleasure means filling the gap between Elizabeth and her desire, the gap between the image of herself as a unified and complete person, and herself as a subject who is fragmented and bodily dysfunctional – and furthermore entrapped within the phallogocentric discourse of her society. The language of Pride and Prejudice is not her language. It does not represent her desire. She will never be able to express herself, to confess her constitution, to speak the unspeakable – the desire of her lacking body within this marginalizing discourse of money and manners. … Dear reader : Elizabeth has to grow up! So let’s try to find a language which writes female desire through the body. Let’s replace the mirror image of Elizabeth by another one, written 200 years later. Let’s practice intertextuality! Please lean back and enjoy this first performance of Pride and Prejudice in female erotica: As Clara closed the book on the last page of Pride and Prejudice she’d slipped from her world of fact into fiction. ‘It’s really such a shame,’ she thought to herself. ‘I always wished Lizzie would end up with Wickham. […] Still, I’d totally fuck the brains out of that lovely Darcy, too.’ The scene: A quiet sheltered British wood that borders a lake on never could see any beauty in her. Her face is too thin; her complexion has no brilliancy ; and her features are not at all handsome. Her nose wants character ; there is nothing marked in its lines. Her teeth are tolerable, but not out of the common way ; and as for her eyes, which have sometimes been called so fine, I never could perceive any thing extraordinary in them. They have a sharp, shrewish look, which I do not like at all; and in her air altogether, there is a selfsufficiency without fashion which is intolerable.’ ” Ibid. 172. 7 Amis. “ Miss Jane’s Prime.” 102.

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a pleasant summer afternoon, perhaps an hour’s drive from London. […] The girl: Eighteen year old Clara Brooks, […] spending her time reading and thinking about the finer things in life: […] classic literature, amigurumi and sex with tall dark men. […] The event: [Clara] lies herself down gently in the wet grass […] [she] closes her eyes and slowly pushes two fingers inside of her aching tight pussy lips, then gently works herself towards a blistering orgasm, fondling her breasts and nipples, and wriggling her body around frantically as she does so. The thought: […] Darcy’s huge throbbing cock thrusting itself slow and deep into her dripping wet pussy while she, at the same time, pleasures Wickham’s erect member with her mouth. The two handsome men enter in and out of her with a musical rhythm, one cock sliding outwards as the other penetrates her willing hole deeper and deeper.8

She goes swimming in order to cool herself down, and when she comes out of the water, she finds not only her clothes gone, but also the book she was reading: Pride and Prejudice, substituted by another she has not heard of before, namely Fanny Hill or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure. Fanny Hill by John Cleland is the first pornographic novel in English literature from the eighteenth century, and it deals with the autobiographic confessions of Fanny Hill – a former London whore. Fanny Hill is a schizophrenic text. Although the novel is autodiegetically narrated from Fanny’s point of view, the language of the text is completely masculine. Differently, but still similar to Elizabeth Bennet, Fanny Hill is entrapped within her body as well as within a masculine discourse. Fanny Hill is not authentic. The novel represents the phallogocentric power over the world of female experience. In our story Clara Brooks now withdraws from the scene. Instead, two new protagonists enter it: Darcy and Elizabeth from Pride and Prejudice. They lie down in the grass, find Fanny Hill, and Elizabeth starts reading. ‘Is this the kind of behavior that you imagine when you think about you and I Mr. Darcy?’ [Clara now watches Elizabeth unbutton Darcy and allows] the almightiest monster that lay hidden underneath (to spring free). (She starts to give him a blow job). […] His thick manhood slid firmly into the back of her throat and […] her gloved hand helped pull it back out again, wet with her saliva. […] She playfully grabbed the tool in her mouth with her teeth and artfully nibbled the tip of the cock, then swirled her tongue round and around the head. […] I like this Pride and Prejudice, it’s exactly how it would be if I had written it (Clara thinks while watching).9

Many orgasms and “Fuck me Mr. Darcy, fuck me harder” on Elizabeth’s part later, the two leave the scene – but only to have Darcy return and find naked Clara. He picks her up and bends her over his knee. 8 Brooks, Clara. Proud and Prejudged. Being a Fabulous and Erotic Adventure of Clara Brooks. Kindle E-Book, 2013. Position 10–23. 9 Ibid. Position 86–137.

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THWACK. Darcy’s hand came down firmly on Clara’s rump. Clara yelped in pain. SLAP Darcy hit her again and again […] Clara’s ass is getting raw and red and has begun to tingle quite noticeable. […] Oh no Mr. Darcy, I really think you should abuse me a little bit more […] with that big firm stick you have there. She glances over to see him holding his hard stick in his hand and moving closer towards her. […] Clara’s cum streams from inside of her and Darcy drinks it in as he pleasures her pussy, tongue working her clit […] Clara Brooks is a girl who knows what she wants and as Darcy’s throbbing hard cock penetrates her for the first time she screams out a ‘YES!’ that anyone within a mile’s radius will have been a party to her orgasmic pleasure.10

He is fucking her harder and harder, and in the end she rolls inside the lake again out of orgasmic spasms. She crawls out of the lake, closes the last page of Pride and Prejudice and slips back into the world of fact. She gets dressed, embarks on the next train to London and goes home. The real Clara Brooks, the author of this story entitled Proud and Prejudged, in the end expresses her sincere hopes that we find this work stimulating and entertaining “but [that] for the sake of [our] neighbours we managed to keep the noise down”11. That’s not female romance like in Jane Austen, that’s not even female erotica, that’s porn: no complicated plot, no feelings, no long flirty behavior, no foreplay, no relationships – just lust and physical satisfaction. So far, so good one is tempted to say, and why not? But wait a minute: According to its Greek etymological origin ‘porne¯’ and ‘graphos’, pornography means writing about whores or, similarly, the graphic description of women as prostitutes. The ‘porne¯’ was the cheapest, least regarded, least protected of all women. You could compare her to a sexual slave.12 That is exactly the reason why feminist ‘PorNO’13 activists all over the world, but especially in the United States, refuse to accept pornographic depictions as part of their society’s culture; as a cultural artifact or practice, made and practiced by men (and women!) in order to evoke sexual arousal, stimulation, and pleasure – alone or in company. Anti-porn activists claim that pornography, in contrast, is first and foremost a source of violence against women. According to the most extreme version of hardliner feminism, represented for instance by Catherine MacKinnon or Andrea Dworkin (icons of the American and world-wide anti-porn movement), pornography means the suppression of women – which does not mean that porn represents suppression or provokes suppression in women’s lives but that porn is suppression. Porn means pain and 10 Ibid. Position 187–246. 11 Ibid. Position 274. 12 See the different definitions in OED, Merriam Webster Dictionary, or the Encyclopedia Britannica. 13 See the following website for the history and definition of the ‘PorNo’ movement in Germany since 1987: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/PorNO-Kampagne.

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mutilation, humiliation, dismembering, fragmentation of body parts, penetration, degradation, injury, abasement, torture, bleeding, bruises, filth and inferiority, exploitation, servility, submission – and all that exclusively for the sexual arousal of men and for the construction of a marginalized female gender in contrast to the dominating powerful male Other. To MacKinnon, pornography is what it does, not what it says: “What pornography does, it does in the real world, not only in the mind.”14 She elaborates further : It is the pornographic industry, not the ideas in the material, that forces, threatens, blackmails, pressures, tricks, and cajoles women into sex for pictures. In pornography, women are gang raped in order to be filmed. They are not gang raped by the idea of a gang rape. It is for pornography, and not the ideas in it, the women are hurt and penetrated, tied and gagged, undressed and genitally spread and sprayed with lacquer and water so sex pictures can be made. Only for pornography are women killed, to make a sex movie, and it is not the idea of a sex killing that kills them. It is unnecessary to do any of these things to express, as ideas, the ideas pornography expresses. It is essential to do them to make pornography.15

So what pornography does essentially is that women are as a rule seen in terms of sexuality, their bodies are violated and raped (every heterosexual act is considered to be rape!), they are discriminated, marginalized, they are threatened and forced to participate in sex (there is no female consent to sex!), they are silenced, subordinated, decentered, and they do not have any control over their own bodies, their own sexuality and the sex act itself. MacKinnon says: “Pornography constructs women and sex, defines what ‘woman’ means and what sexuality is, in terms of each other.”16 And as this is a wrong construction of femininity and female identity, this has to be stopped and censored. This is what MacKinnon is fighting for. Let me now introduce a definition of porn as a literary genre in which male Pornotopia contrasts female Erotica. Female Erotica is written for women by women. Female Erotica involves sex, but the main focus lies on the relationship in which sexual encounters take place. The hero finds full satisfaction in his female partner, his sexual faithfulness is assured – he even becomes addicted to his partner. The sexual suppression of the female is substituted by the sexual control over the male by the female. The sexual act is focalized through the female and not through heterodiegetic representations of the female’s reaction to the male like in Pornotopia. The female is aroused by physical contact and not visually, for instance by seeing a gigantic penis. The male is not objectified, and 14 MacKinnon, Catharine A. Only Words. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1993. 15. 15 Ibid. 16 MacKinnon, Catharine A. “Not a Moral Issue.” In: Yale Law & Policy Review 2,2 (1984): 321–45, 314.

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the female target readership identifies with the female as the object of the male’s obsession and desire. The aim of Erotica is not primarily masturbation, as with porn, but further sexual pleasure and satisfaction in the real sex act with a real partner but with an extended version of sexual fantasies to stimulate the reader. Of course these two subgenres of pornographic writing do not constitute fixed dichotomies. The text cited above, Proud and Prejudged, is porn – but written by a woman. I use the term female hardcore Erotica for this kind of writing. Male Pornotopia corresponds to female hardcore Erotica, whereas female Erotica is contrary to it – but both, and the manifold variants in between, are part of a female erotic discourse. Proud and Prejudged is a fantasy about Pride and Prejudice; it is a metafictional, intertextual pornographic allusion to Austen’s novel. It is a female counter-writing about female desire hidden in the nineteenth-century text. It’s the uncovering and exposition of a covert level of passion hidden within the protagonist, who becomes the mirror image, the desirable other to the protagonist of Proud and Prejudged, who furthermore functions as the literary other of the writer, who observes all of these females and all of their desires – together with us! In the end we find an endless trace of female desire constructed here. Elizabeth thus becomes part of a female discourse of sexuality and femininity in which she is subject as well as object of sexuality and desire. She is inside and outside of it at the same time. She is creator as well as creation. She becomes the master of herself, her own Other ; she herself represents what she defers as well as what she lacks. She is her own unified other, the mirror image within herself which we see when we look into her text – the manifold erotic texts of Pride and Prejudice. So, please, reader, do have a closer look:

Climax or: let’s talk about sex! There are many romance rewritings of Pride and Prejudice, including Pleasing Darcy, a Pride and Prejudice short – as she calls it – by Lilian M. In those, Darcy is completely possessed by Elizabeth. “You are in my power Mr. Darcy,”17 she says accordingly. “And the hardness that rested between his thighs was to fit her slit and the channel that was made to receive him.”18 What follows is mainly a female erotic fantasy about the diverse moments and methods to please Darcy, to make him dependent on her in the way we know it from female Erotica. But the main focus lies on the relationship, the story of their erotic love. In other rewritings, such as one by the same author called Pemberley Interludes: The Darcys at 17 M., Lilian. Pleasing Darcy – a Pride and Prejudice short. Kindle E-Book. Position 95. 18 Ibid. Position 74.

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Rosings, Elizabeth – who is already pregnant in this version – becomes completely sexually dependent on Darcy, who fixes and ties her to their bed in one scene and, when she is “sobbing with her needs” already, he surprises her with a dildo: He produced an object. From her studies of his love texts, she had come to know what it was. It was an ivory imitation of a man’s cock, a dildo. That her husband had procured her one was enough to make her swallow in anticipation. […] He tapped the head of the ivory phallus against her engorged clit, making her writhe in want. […] It was smaller than her husband and not as thick, but it was hard and it had been what she needed. He poised the toy at the entrance to her sheath. […] He pushed it into her small increments, gauging her face with every move. Her pussy flowered around the phallus as he held it there, immobile, his eyes heavy lidded, watching her cant her lips in a quest for more. She was dripping, her juices seeping around the phallus as it sat within her ; it reached neither far nor deep enough. All it gave her was a taste of what she was begging for. Him.19

Darcy is in full control of her body and bodily reaction here, but we are wrong to suggest that this is the only way in which the erotic relationship between the two can be constructed. In Conjugal Obligation the control is completely on Elizabeth’s side. Now please read this: Elizabeth reached one arm down between their bodies. She stroked his scrotum hanging loose between his thighs. […] Wrapping an arm under her he deftly rolled onto his back with her on top of him. She straddled his hips, his manhood standing upright in front of her. Taking both of her hands, she wrapped them around him and milked him up and down. […] As her hands played with him, a clear drop of liquid beaded at the end of his thick penis. She rubbed it over her palms and then wrapped her hands around him again. […] She drove him wild. His hips thrust against her as she continued to straddle him. He moaned louder, breathed harder, and insisted, ‘I can take it no longer, I must be inside of you now!’ […] and then he began to thrust into her. He thrust hard. He was desperate for her. […] (afterwards) he collapsed onto his back on the bed, stiff inside of her. She had placed her hands against his muscular chest and rode him again, orgasming a second time. She may even have climaxed a third time had his manhood continued to slide in and out of her as she desired. Elizabeth even went so far as to sigh as he slipped from her body. Elizabeth stretched her body on top of him, and continued to pulse her wetness against him, loving the way he felt as his flaccid penis rubbed against her labia while their whole bodies touched. She may not have had a third orgasm, but the sensation was extremely arousing and her labored breathing and occasional squeals of delight sent erotic chills down Fitzwilliam’s spine.20

19 M., Lilian. The Darcys at Rosings. Kindle E-Book. Position 87. 20 Bray, Ayr. Conjugal Obligation. (An erotic Pride and Prejudice Continuation). Kindle EBook: RP Romance, 2013. Position 85–112.

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Here Darcy is not in control of what happens, and he is even used – not against his will, but primarily according to Elizabeth’s will – as an object of desire. This is an act in which all agency of the subject status is taken away from him. Another scene from Conjugal Obligation shows this even more. Here Elizabeth makes use of Darcy while he is sleeping so that he is unconscious. Elizabeth knelt on the bed beside him and gently arched her leg over Fitzwilliam. Gripping his erect penis in her hand she rubbed it against the opening to her vagina and saturated him with their combined lubrication. While bending the leg arched over him, she lowered herself down, gently pushing him inside of her with short, slow thrusts, coating him with her bodily fluids. Fitzwilliam stirred in his sleep, and Elizabeth stopped moving until he relaxed and settled once more. Finally he was entirely inside of her and Elizabeth placed her second leg alongside him, releasing her weight against his pelvis and fully straddling him. She was sure, he would wake, but he didn’t. Leaning forward to sustain a portion of her own weight she rested her hands on the bed above his shoulders, next to his ears, and then slowly leaned her body forward and back, sliding the full extent of his erect penis in and out of her. Having him inside her felt exquisite, she wanted to sigh and groan, but she was afraid of wakening him, so she silently enjoyed his body. Fitzwilliam slept on but his body was fully responding. His hips rocked. He occasionally moaned […]. She became wetter. […] Elizabeth clenched her muscles and thrust her body hard against him. She did not pull out, but instead sat up against him and grinded her hips into him. She felt the head of his penis rub against the deepest part of her vagina. She could not be silent any longer. ‘Ooohhh … Aaahhh … Uuuhhh … Uuuhhh … UUUHHH … UUUHHH!’ With that final grind Fitzwilliam woke up. His response was instinctual, he wrapped his arms around Elizabeth, and before he had even realized this was not a dream, he orgasmed. He came swiftly, grinding his groin against Elizabeth’s, feeling every sensation course through his entire body as he ejaculated with each thrust.21

She climaxes, too, and – he falls asleep again. Well, this is definitely porn, or rather female hardcore Erotica, according to my definition – and it is furthermore the description of a rape. To be quite frank: this is the sexual exploitation of a man, this is the degradation of the male partner to an object of desire without will, this is non-consensual sex, this is the reduction of Darcy to his male organ, his penis, this is suppression and the depiction of the male as a sex slave; at least hardcore feminists would interpret the scene that way if a woman was the sleeping object of male desire! And yes: it’s right: the patriarchal binary opposition of the strong, powerful, leading, penetrating man on the one hand and the weak, powerless, penetrated woman on the other hand is reversed, is disrupted and – in the truest sense: exposed or – inscribed on the male body…?! What is furthermore happening on a textual, discursive level? Elizabeth 21 Ibid. Position 624–51.

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withdraws from the phallogocentric discourse of Pride and Prejudice; it is no longer Darcy who constructs her identity within patriarchal structures. She is no longer the effect of phallic fantasies, but gains agency, constructs her own, real self, the true self, as Luce Irigaray puts it.22 So there is the possibility of female signification and representation – and I am not judging the intradiegetic method or strategy in that case of the exploitation of the other – I am only stating that this means an act of female emancipation of the writing of the body. Let me come to my last example: Spank me Mr. Darcy by Jane Austen and Lissa Trevor. It starts with the well-known first words of Pride and Prejudice, which have been heard and read a million times, but which are slightly modified here: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a dominant man in possession of a good set of cuffs, must be in want of a much younger, submissive wife.”23 In this version of Pride and Prejudice we are dealing with SM practices. Everybody in this rewriting of Jane Austen is part of a submissive/dominant relationship: the Bennets, Wickham, Bingley, Charlotte, Jane, the real servants in the house … and of course Elizabeth and Darcy. Elizabeth at the beginning tries to save her virginity for her future husband; so what she is used to is the licking and sucking and the fingerplays of Charlotte, which she enjoys tremendously. The setting is for the most part Netherfield. The story is a mixture of Jane Austen’s text and a hidden sexual subtext which subverts the overtly dominating story by Jane Austen. As this is happening on the structural level – the disruption of a dominant discourse (Austen’s phallogocentric story) by a covert, assumedly submissive discourse (the sexual inscriptions by Lissa Trevor) – the same is happening on the diegetic level as well: Elizabeth becomes submissive to Master Darcy, but gains not only extreme pleasure and satisfaction in this way but also enormous freedom and happiness, so that here again we are dealing with the disruption of a dominant phallogocentric discourse that by means of disruption becomes the discourse of endless individual female possibilities. Elizabeth finally gives in because she recognizes that her virginity is already gone, the hymen destroyed, by Charlotte’s experienced fingers and by then by many other people’s fingers and objects:

22 I am speaking in terms of Irigaray’s criticism of Lacan’s ideas of the ahistorical constitution of the symbolic order as it is developed by her in This Sex Which is Not One. Irigaray disagrees with Lacan’s depiction of the symbolic order as ahistorical and unchanging. Irigaray believes that language systems are malleable, and largely determined by power relationships that are in flux. She argues that the Phallus is not a purely symbolic category, but is ultimately an extension – and reinforcement – of Freud’s description of the world according to a one-sex model. According to Irigaray, the Phallus as the master signifier is evidence that the symbolic order is constructed and not ahistorical. 23 Austen, Jane and Lissa Trevor. Spank me Mr. Darcy. New York: Riverdale, 2013. Position 14.

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Elizabeth panicked, tried to get up. In that moment, Mr. Darcy shoved inside her. When her mouth opened to shout, scream, moan – Elizabeth wasn’t sure, but the handle of the flogger blocked the sound to a throaty grunt. […] ‘Miss Bennet, [you] are tight and wet. Do you like the feel of me inside you?’ ‘Mmmmm,’ Elizabeth said. He rocked into her. ‘I’m in deeper than I thought I’d get. You sheathe me well. (And) now there is only pleasure.’ Elizabeth felt complete and whole. Now, she understood what she and Charlotte came close to, but missed. This driving desire, the utter feeling of freedom, of having no responsibilities and behaving irresponsibly. When they are having sex for one of the next times, he is attaching clamps on her nipples.] ‘You are mine now, Elizabeth. Mine.’ Elizabeth felt everything more. The pain in her backside from the lashes, the heavy piercing weigh on her nipples and Mr. Darcy’s fast tongue and fingers were just too much. […] Boneless from ecstasy, Elizabeth allowed herself to be tossed up so she was on her hands and knees at the top of the loft. Mr. Darcy was behind her and inside her, pumping hard and fast, as if he couldn’t bear a moment outside her body a moment longer. […] ‘Take me Mr. Darcy,’ she cried out. ‘I am yours.’ [Elizabeth starts riding him] Whenever she slowed or paused to catch a breath from the throbbing pulse of him inside her, he pulled on the chain as if it were reins and her body strummed back to life with the jolt of pain that she could no longer differentiate from the pleasure. He slapped her buttocks as she was nearing her pleasure. ‘Again’, she groaned out in a voice she didn’t recognize as her own. ‘Spank me, Mr. Darcy.’ He obliged, laying his large hand across her until she was shrieking like a wild thing, bouncing without decorum or sanity until the wave of pleasure crashed over her and left her spent and panting against his neck. She was barely aware of him, finishing as they were kissing passionately. Swallowing his grunt of satisfaction, she tasted herself on his tongue and never felt more connected to another human being. His cock, his tongue and his fingers were inside her and that sweet oblivion hit her as she drifted off on a wave of pleasure.24

Of sequels, adaptations, and literary echoes: just do it again! Texts like the ones discussed above open up unexplored discursive spaces where feminine difference and desire can be articulated. These texts can be regarded as part of an ¦criture f¦minine writing that for which there was no language before: female sexuality, femininity and the body, which have been repressed by the patriarchal, phallogocentric order of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. These texts disrupt the phallogocentric order of the other text; they uncover the ‘unspeakable difference’ of women as it is represented in Pride and Prejudice; they disrupt the notion of women as either prudish and decent or passionate and fallen. They bring back the missing passionate mother ; they substitute female lack with an infinite space of Cixous’ jouissance – the revolutionary potential in the feminine – on three levels: on the intradiegetic level, on which female pro24 Ibid. Position 2756ff., 3164.

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tagonists experience extreme pleasure deriving from sexual orgasm, on the extradiegetic level of the narration, where female authors produce texts which write their bodies and destroy the limits of binary oppositions, and on the reception level, where pleasure produces more pleasure, the pleasure of openended textuality, wild and untamable. This pleasure becomes the pleasure of all of us. So let’s embrace female (hardcore) Erotica, say ‘hurray’ for further erotic P& Ps, welcome a grown-up and self-confident, a real Elizabeth Bennet and all her desires – because, dear reader, through her endless textual body we can experience more, and more, and wonderfully more! She undressed and held still while Mr. Darcy lovingly put her hands in restraints over her head and attached the clips that she had grown so fond of on each of her nipples. He waited until the sharp pain became an aching pleasure before making sure she was wet and ready for him to insert the glass jeweled plug. […] ‘I am the happiest creature in the world,’ Mrs. Darcy said. He raised an eyebrow, ‘Truly you could have waited until I was inside you to tell me thus.’ Elizabeth chuckled. ‘Perhaps other people have said so before, but no one with such justice. I am happier even than Jane; she only smiles, I laugh. And after she laughed, he made sure she was as satisfied as she was happy.25

I can hear Medusa laughing here. And not only this: I am loudly laughing with her and all other female protagonists in erotic rewritings of Pride and Prejudice ever created by women. So, hopefully, Cixous’ voice is heard by women writers all over the world – as we just heard the echoes of Pride and Prejudice right now in contemporary female (hardcore) Erotica. We should write as we dream; we should even try and write, we should all do it for ourselves, it’s very healthy, because it’s the only place where we never lie. At night we don’t lie. Now if we think that our whole lives are built on lying – they are strange buildings – we should try and write as our dreams teach us; shamelessly, fearlessly, and by facing what is inside every human being – sheer violence, disgust, terror, shit, invention, poetry. In our dreams we are criminals; we kill, and we kill with a lot of enjoyment. But we are also the happiest people on earth; we make love as we never make love in life. Censor the body and you censor your breath and speech at the same time. Write yourself. Your body must be heard.26

References Amis, Martin. “Miss Jane’s Prime.” In: The Atlantic 265,2 (1990): 100–02. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. E-book, Kindle free classics edition. Austen, Jane and Lissa Trevor. Spank me Mr. Darcy. New York: Riverdale, 2013. 25 Ibid. Position 3243. 26 Cixous, H¦lÀne. “Difficult Joys.” In: Helen Wilcox et al. (eds.). The Body and the Text. H¦lÀne Cixous. Reading and Teaching. New York: Harvester and Wheatsheaf, 1990. 5–30, 22.

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Bray, Ayr. Conjugal Obligation. (An erotic Pride and Prejudice Continuation). Kindle EBook: RP Romance, 2013. Brooks, Clara. Proud and Prejudged. Being a Fabulous and Erotic Adventure of Clara Brooks. Kindle E-Book, 2013. Cixous, H¦lÀne. “Difficult Joys.” In: Wilcox, Helen et al. (eds.). The Body and the Text. H¦lÀne Cixous. Reading and Teaching. New York: Harvester and Wheatsheaf, 1990. 5–30. Irigaray, Luce. This Sex Which is Not One. Cornell: Cornell University Press, 1985. M., Lilian. Pleasing Darcy – a Pride and Prejudice short. Kindle E-Book, no year. M., Lilian. The Darcys at Rosings. Kindle E-Book, no year. MacKinnon, Catharine A. Only Words. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1993. MacKinnon, Catharine A. “Not a Moral Issue.” In: Yale Law & Policy Review 2,2 (1984): 321–45.

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Participatory Transfer/mations: Inviting Pride and Prejudice Adaptations into the Foreign Language Classroom

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Introduction

The success of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1813) has triggered an astoundingly prolific production of spin-off books, follow-up narratives and multimedia adaptations in a surprising number of different genres. The essays in this collection and particularly Marion Gymnich’s introductory article “200 Years of Reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice; or Where the Literary Canon Meets Popular Culture” illustrate how frequently writers and modern media have ‘rewritten’ this classic masterpiece. As a result, it has become difficult to keep track of the many adaptations, sequels and examples of thematic persiflage of the original Pride and Prejudice material. What is more, the popularity of Austen’s novel does not seem to have waned in the least; instead, it has spread into the newest media, reaching an even broader readership of ‘fan fiction’. Two hundred years after its publication, Jane Austen’s novel is apparently more popular than ever and seems to inspire an ever-wider field of ‘spin-off ’ writing. This vast popularity makes it tempting to use Jane Austen’s novel for the foreign language classroom, which aims at developing language skills but even more so at providing pupils with (inter)cultural insights and an understanding of literary and cultural phenomena in the target culture. Pride and Prejudice would be a good choice for the foreign language classroom not only because the material is authentic,1 but also widely available and well known. Further features which make it interesting for the foreign language classroom include the wealth of different versions told in a wide range of different media and the many creative transformations of the story, which allows for analytic as well as productionoriented teaching approaches. Many other articles in this collection show that Pride and Prejudice un1 In the context of teaching foreign languages, the terms ‘authentic material’/‘authenticity’ refer to all those culture products that have not been explicitly designed or produced for teaching purposes or foreign language learners, but actually only for a native speaker audience.

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doubtedly qualifies as one of the most influential masterpieces in British literature. The wealth of Pride and Prejudice adaptations, i. e. texts in the broadest sense, also establishes huge possibilities for teaching and learning. With the prolific production of contemporary transformations in a number of different media formats, Pride and Prejudice adaptations invite teachers to combine a focus on the original text with an exploration of contemporary media retellings and students’ personal experience with various different topics, formats and media. From the wealth of Pride and Prejudice material at hand, three examples have been selected for a closer examination. First, among the recent unusual adaptations, there is a baby primer which takes Pride and Prejudice as its inspiration.2 Second, the 2008 TV mini-series Lost in Austen is noteworthy, because it constitutes a filmic transformation quite suitable for EFL purposes due to its playful juxtaposition of Austen’s time and reality in modern London.3 Third, the highly praised and Emmy-award winning 2012–13 YouTube series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is an utterly fresh web-narrative in the format of a video log that blends film sequences with other kinds of (floating) text, sketches, costume and features associated with social networks.4 In The Guardian this retelling of the Pride and Prejudice narrative was hailed as “the best adaptation around at the moment”.5 Juxtaposing the original texts and its adaptations by drawing upon the master motif of time travel or modernization, these versions invite similar strategies for classroom discussion and activities. Furthermore, they may attract a new generation of Austen fans by bridging the two hundred years between the original and the various transformed versions and by recontextualizing Pride and Prejudice material in entirely modern, new narratives that find equivalents for plotlines and roles and thus recast the story in a 21st-century British or NorthAmerican setting. Before examining the teaching opportunities offered by Pride and Prejudice in the foreign language classroom, I would like to briefly recapitulate the role of literature in foreign language teaching.

2 Adams, Jennifer and Alison Oliver. Little Jane Austen – Pride & Prejudice: A Counting Primer. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith, 2011. 3 Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. UK: ITV, 2008. 4 The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Dir. Bernie Su and Margaret Dunlap. United States, 2012–2013. For a detailed analysis and discussion cf. Elena Baeva’s essay in this collection. 5 Welsh, Kaitie. “Pride and Prejudice at 200: The Best Jane Austen Small-Screen Adaptations.” In: The Guardian, 28 January, 2013.

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Literature in the classroom

Little Miss Austen: Pride and Prejudice, written by Jennifer Adams and illustrated by Alison Oliver, is part of a whole series of baby primers. It gives Pride and Prejudice a rather unconventional and almost disfiguring twist: The picture book is set up as a ‘counting primer’ recommended for toddlers of the age of two to four. Meant to teach numbers, this rendering of Pride and Prejudice leaves hardly any traces of Austen’s famous protagonists and plotlines. Not surprisingly, the marketing for the Baby Classics includes play sets, board books, buttons, tote bags and similar merchandise. The webpage provides parents with a feel-good marketing slogan: “With the perennial popularity of classic writers like Lewis Carroll, Charlotte Bronte [sic], Jane Austen and William Shakespeare, BabyLitÒ is a fashionable way to introduce your child to the world of classic literature”.6 The books are certainly beautifully designed and illustrated. Yet, in spite of these lifestyle labels, at least with regard to the classic narratives the pedagogic approach is questionable. The toddler is to learn about counting, after all, and not so much about love or money or the peculiarities of the English gentry at the beginning of the nineteenth century. It remains rather doubtful whether a child at that age really grasps the meaning of “4 marriage proposals” or “10,000 pounds a year”, to give just two examples.7 Hence, the transformation of Jane Austen’s original novel into a baby primer – charming as it may seem – exploits what is characteristic of the book, and, quite possibly, at least the educated mother or father may gloat over and enjoy the book as much as the producers. Yet, what has the Pride and Prejudice-theme to offer for the very young learner? Is there anything in the book that inspires joy or triggers curiosity about Jane Austen’s fiction in a new generation of readers (in the broadest sense)? Or are these classics productions simply a clever marketing strategy? Although any authentic material deserves to be seriously considered for use in a foreign language and culture classroom, its suitability depends entirely on teaching intentions and learning motivations. When talking about adaptations and transformations of Pride and Prejudice, therefore, I need to take a step back and begin with considering the objectives for Teaching of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) in general and for using literature or media of popular culture – such as Pride and Prejudice adaptations – in the Foreign Language Classroom in particular. As Laurenz Volkmann points out,8 the teaching of English as a Foreign Language is currently subject to changes that reach far beyond the problem of establishing educational standards. Contemporary challenges faced 6 Baby lit®. “About.” http://www.babylit.com/about/ (accessed 31 August, 2014). 7 Adams and Oliver. Little Jane Austen – Pride & Prejudice: A Counting Primer. n.p. 8 Volkmann, Laurenz. Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tübingen: Narr, 2010. 4f.

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by the EFL teacher include globalization, the growing importance of popular culture and radical changes in terms of information, communication and distribution technologies – phenomena that are bound to have a major impact on the content of and approach to teaching English. When selecting language, culture and (multi)media material for the classroom, these challenges have to be taken into account with regard to the use of popular culture and the significance of media literacy in the acquisition of skills and competences. Popular culture has become an important asset for language learning. It stirs the field of foreign language education due to its dynamics and its prolific output of products, trends and innovations. Today’s learners have to find – or rather construct – their identities in the context of an over-abundance of hybrid, ambiguous and fragmentary elements. In order to help learners during their formative years to do just that, recent foreign language education focuses on language, culture and media awareness and attempts to bridge traditional learning contents with the actual experience of learners. Drawing upon elements of popular culture (such as movies, small-screen web applications or cultural trends), media literacy is an avenue for learners to access the increasingly globalized exchange of information and to participate in it. In this way, learners can be empowered to use their linguistic, cultural and increasingly media-literate repertoire to be able to experience, understand and act in contact situations. The diversification in the field of modern media and particularly the popularization of information, communication and distribution technologies (ICT) leave their mark on the everyday life of pupils, on their study processes, on the learners’ methods and techniques of perceiving the world, categorizing and processing it, possibly even of changing and transforming it. Media and ICT change the way pupils are going to approach texts in the broadest sense and determine how they create meaning from textual, visual or other signs. To be sure, literature – in the form of traditional genres or multi-media retellings – has been an important component of foreign language education since the latter’s institutional inception. In the course of time, the attitude towards the use of literature has oscillated between drawing upon literary masterpieces in order to teach grammar and translation, banning the use of literature entirely in favor of focusing on speaking skills or, most recently, working within the pop-cultural repertoire in an attempt to encourage the acquisition of all skills. Ansgar Nünning and Carola Surkamp argue: Da Kultur in ihrer Gesamtheit als Zeichensystem angesehen und durch das Zusammenspiel von unterschiedlich medial vermittelten Texten erzeugt wird, muss der Textbegriff auch für den fremdsprachlichen Unterricht erweitert werden. Das heißt, die Einbeziehung eines möglichst breiten Spektrums von Genres und Medien (und das

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bedeutet auch von popular literature und Produkten der Massenmedien) ist gefordert […].9

For the past decades, classical masterpieces of literature have competed with texts in the broadest sense. The latter category includes auditory and audiovisual texts, at times even behavioural cultural scripts or habits, or, more recently, the manifold and multifarious products of information and communication technologies.10 Convincing arguments can be brought forward for tapping into the potential of literature and film: 1. When engaging with literature, pupils experience the creation, construction and negotiation of meaning in individual communication situations as well as in more abstract social processes.11 An obvious avenue for teachers and learners is the exploration of the text in its relation to historical developments and within the historical context of its creation. In order to trigger learning effects, new information needs to be related to prior, individual knowledge. Often, this approach makes use of sketching the historical period with its manners or the life and times of the author. Yet, any novel – particularly if it already celebrates the bicentennial of its publication – also needs to be carefully examined with regard to the meaning it could have for today’s readers. Therefore, literary classics in the EFL classroom make it necessary for teachers and learners to interact with the text.12 This means partaking in the construction of meaning by questioning, reacting, re-imagining or renegotiating the experience of protagonists or plotlines in the light of their own experiences. To be able to do that, a network of interrelations between then and now, between Jane Austen’s time and our contemporary world needs to be activated. 2. One of the principal goals of Foreign Language Education today and, simultaneously, the major benefit of literature in the EFL classroom, is confronting the learners with different perspectives.13 For teaching purposes, Ansgar Nünning suggests three steps in this context: (1) identifying a perspective and differentiating it from one’s own; (2) adopting the other per9 Nünning, Ansgar and Carola Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten: Grundlagen und Methoden. Seelze, Velber : Kallmeyer/Klett, 2006. 43. 10 Nünning and Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten. 1. 11 Ibid. 12ff. 12 Ibid. 13. 13 Cf. for example Bredella, Lothar. Narratives und interkulturelles Verstehen: Zur Entwicklung von Empathie-, Urteils- und Kooperationsfähigkeit. Tübingen: Narr, 2012; Bredella, Lothar. Literarisches und interkulturelles Verstehen. Tübingen: Narr, 2002; Bredella, Lothar. “Fremdverstehen mit literarischen Texten.” In: Lothar Bredella, FranzJoseph Meißner, Ansgar Nünning and Dietmar Rösler (eds.). Wie ist Fremdverstehen lehrund lernbar? Tübingen: Narr, 2000. 133–63.

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spective by suspending one’s own cultural perceptual patterns or traditions and reconstructing the different perspective by using a host of cognitive and affective skills; (3) coordinating one’s own perspective and the other one on a higher, meta-cognitive level by recognizing how the perspectives possibly create tension, how they interact with or relate to each other.14 Intercultural contexts as well as literature and film are suitable for practicing these experiments with perspectives: Due to their emotional impact and individualized perspectives, they are likely to stimulate the learners’ imagination, empathy and creativity. 3. A multimedia world requires a broader understanding of ‘reading’/literacy. Hence, this term needs to be expanded to cover more skills than just mapping graphemes into phonemes and meanings. Drawing upon a semiotic, anthropological understanding of culture as a system of meaningful signs,15 the reading skill encompasses navigating all possible sign systems, including audio-visual and multimedia texts. New types of literacy, such as film literacy or media literacy, include perceptual skills regarding the medium’s specific modes of expression (viewing, listening, composition, genre), an aesthetic and critical awareness of functions and effects of the medium (artistic properties or manipulative effects of forms of expression), intercultural and communicative competence (cultural knowledge, medial representation, reflecting on culture and communication, affective reactions and the formation of personal opinions).16 It is not surprising that particularly the juxtaposition of literary masterpieces and their filmic adaptations has enjoyed considerable popularity in the foreign language classroom and is drawn upon when looking for a stimulating choice of material.17

14 Nünning, Ansgar. “Perspektivenübernahme und Perspektivenkoordination: Prozeßorientierte Schulung des Textverstehens und der Textproduktion bei der Behandlung von John Fowles’ The Collector.” In: Günther Jarfe (ed.). Literaturdidaktik – konkret: Theorie und Praxis des fremdsprachlichen Literaturunterrichts. Heidelberg: Winter, 1997. 106ff. 15 Cf. Volkmann. Fachdidaktik Englisch. 66. 16 Cf. Lütge, Christiane. Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen, 2011. 12ff.; Nünning and Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten. 245ff. 17 Cf. Lütge. Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. 75.

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Participatory transfer/mations

For teaching purposes, it may be thrilling to discover different versions of a text, adaptations or, better yet, transformations that offer manifold interfaces for the transfer of knowledge and the honing of skills in the classroom. Traditionally, teachers talked of transferring new knowledge to classroom situations or of allowing pupils to transfer knowledge from a known and controlled situation to other, unforeseeable contexts. Transfer describes the process of transmitting elements from a context of origin to another domain of knowledge or application. Hence, this is a process that actually goes beyond the communicative mediation of information or knowledge. Whatever is transferred (or learned) needs to be adapted to prior knowledge, connected and interlinked with different kinds of knowledge, thus being transformed or made accessible for quite different purposes. The more connections the learner establishes between new and familiar information, the more reliably the new information can be integrated into the individual inventory of knowledge. For this reason, comparing different versions of a book or film has a stimulating effect: Learners (and teachers) recognize certain elements, realize how certain issues or scenes have been tweaked a little to fit into an updated setting or are mystified by a turn of events that they did not see coming due to their knowledge of the original text. The term ‘transfer’ seems to be a misleading metaphor in the context outlined above, because it derives from technical contexts. In connection with globalization and commodification processes, this term possibly creates the deceptive impression that knowledge can be easily (and essentially unchanged) transmitted from a sender to a receiver. The term transformation, in contrast, more accurately describes how content information needs to be adapted to new conditions and remodelled according to the negotiated meanings. Transformations are most visible whenever crossreferences or intertextual ties between original and adaptation are recognized, when features are re-contextualized or when a stunning visualization highlights, exaggerates or warps features of the original work. In other words, transformation becomes obvious whenever the differences between original and target (learning) contexts are particularly stark. A modified communication model can help to illustrate the concept of transformation. In the planning of teaching sequences this model allows the teacher to focus on single elements, be it the author and her context of production or the role of certain topics or the novel in general at a particular point in time (biographical approaches of Landeskunde and Cultural Studies) or the process of communication with its codes and channels (the approach of Lin-

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guistics and Media Studies) or the receivers and their context of reception (Reader’s Response).18

author- and text-centered approach19

Juxtaposing a historical text such as Pride and Prejudice with its modern adaptations facilitates a focus on contexts of production and reception as well as on the media-created reality. Readers and viewers are invited to check back and forth between the different versions in order to see how closely they correspond to each other. In this way the specific features of a new medium are highlighted; yet it remains difficult to disengage from the authority of the literary original. Today, however, understanding the literary original is not the foremost goal of EFL teachers. The objective has shifted to an activation of learners and their empowerment to navigate the multimedia world or even to participate in (smallscale) media productions, to express themselves and share what they have produced via information and communication portals.20

18 Nünning and Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten. 265. Cf. also Nünning, Ansgar and Andreas H. Jucker. Orientierung Anglistik/Amerikanistik: Was sie kann, was sie will. Reinbek: Rowohlt, 1999. 60. 19 The diagram is based on the communication model as adapted for EFL teaching in Nünning and Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten. 265. 20 Cf. Lütge. Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. 122f.; Volkmann. Fachdidaktik Englisch. 238f.; Blell, Gabriele and Christiane Lütge. “Sehen, Hören, Verstehen und Handeln: Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht.” In: Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 1,6 (2004): 402–05.

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learner- and transformation-centered approach

With such a premise, the idea of transformation does not only have significance with regard to the media representation of Pride and Prejudice-related content, but also in terms of the methodological set-up for the learning process.

4.

Jane Austen, fan fiction and productive teaching opportunities

Although Jane Austen published her novels anonymously and received a fairly modest number of reviews during her life, the late nineteenth century saw a first great wave of Jane Austen enthusiasm. In the twentieth century, academic attention to and further adaptations of her works made her novels ever more popular. According to Heta Pyrhönen, Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary (1996) and the movie adaptation of this novel mark a turning point in the cult status of Jane Austen’s fiction: Since the 1990s fans have become so enthusiastic about Austen that they no longer aspire to originality or close reference to the original(s); instead, they are content with staying just in the broader perimeter of the original texts and feel compelled to flesh out characters’ biographies or continue abandoned story lines.21 Hence, in recent decades the narratives, characters and plotlines conceived by Jane Austen soared to be further developed in an astonishing number of prequels, sequels, genre retellings and 21 Cf. Pyrhönen, Heta. “Bridget Jones’s Diary : A Case Study of Austen Fan Fiction.” In: Ansgar Nünning and Kai M. Sicks (eds.). Turning Points: Concepts and Narratives of Changes in Literature and other Media. Berlin: deGruyter, 2012. 371–86, 371f.

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adaptations in modern media: Currently, even the online directory of fan fiction counts no fewer than 3,100 entries related to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.22 In her discussion of the phenomenon of the Jane Austen fan cult and the ensuing fan fiction, Pyrhönen explains: fandom is a participatory culture which transforms the experience of media consumption into the production of new texts […]. As procedure and product, fan fiction rests heavily on a sense of play and an experience of pleasure that arises from recognising and activating intertextual and allusive relationships with other texts. As adaptations, fan fiction narratives rely on such procedures as adding, supplementing, improving, innovating, complicating, expanding, grafting, varying, and contracting the parent text […].23

Scholars may be inclined to criticize fan fiction for lacking originality. Many facets of fan fiction might be attacked for lessening the literary authority, the aesthetics and the quality of the original works. If considered from the point of view of teaching, however, what may be criticized in the ‘participatory culture’ from the perspective of literary studies may actually provide impulses for classroom scenarios: – focusing on the learners’ imagination in one’s efforts of teaching literature, if need be at the cost of neglecting the original text – rejuvenating and updating certain issues, themes, actions and protagonists’ characteristics to provide a bridge to modern contexts – providing access to the literary masterpiece for a new generation. Hence, teaching fan fiction in the EFL classroom could prove to be an opportunity for using literary masterpieces as a starting point for task-based work, drawing upon original literary masterpieces as well as on contemporary fan fiction and multimedia adaptations and possibly even encouraging learners to produce their own fan fiction. The advantages of this approach are obvious: Almost all of the attention is given to the learners and their ways of reading, their imagination and their images of characters, plotlines, themes or the modern equivalents of what is presented in the literary text. Furthermore, the focus is on the process of working with issues raised by a narrative and on honing the learners’ skills in order to make it possible for them to express themselves. What has been described above are, in fact, basic principles of productionoriented teaching methods. The following techniques focus on learners’ cog22 See the online database “FanFiction: Unleash Your Imagination.” http://www.fanfiction.net/ book/Pride-and-Prejudice (accessed 31 August, 2014). 23 Pyrhönen. “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” 372. To avoid confusion I have left out the tow reference Pyrhönen makes: Jenkins, Henry. Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture. New York: Routledge, 1992; Sanders, Julie. Adaptation and Appropriation. London: Routledge, 2006.

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nitive operations and their creativity, making ample use of learners’ intertextual and intermedial knowledge as well as their experience: – finding access to the creative potential of a text; – continuing a story beyond the frame of the original or retelling it differently by shifting the narrative focus, the time frame, the genre or any other aesthetic format; – retelling the narrative by using or even mixing text types such as cartoons or a collage of pictures; – filling in gaps in the story or adding missing information, retelling the story from the perspective of a minor character or any other kind of creative rewriting of the story.24 In the interest of balancing analytic and productive/creative tasks, I would argue that good fan fiction needs to be based on a sound knowledge of the original masterpiece, which is necessary for meaningful retellings. Ultimately, it is the ability to analyze Pride and Prejudice – i. e. the skill to develop a repertoire of analytic tools, such as identifying narrative patterns, characterization, the consistency of plot features, the ways sympathy and empathy are generated, or the chronology and the stretching or condensing of time,25 – that makes for particularly effective fan fiction. Cognitive and creative flexibility, which can be acquired by working with fan fiction, is needed to navigate the postmodern globalized, intercultural and media-saturated world that learners are confronted with on a daily basis.

5.

Lost in Austen (2008)

One of the recent popular retellings of Pride and Prejudice is the four-part TV mini-series Lost in Austen. This adaptation offers fascinating possibilities for teaching, as it deliberately juxtaposes the historical context of production – the narrated time of Pride and Prejudice, i. e. the early nineteenth century – with the viewers’ context of reception in the early 21st century. In order to allude to and even parody academic as well as popular readings of original and adapted texts, Lost in Austen makes frequent use of what Laurie Kaplan calls “intercultural juxtaposition”.26 The defining idea of the series is that of a time-warp. By making protagonists time travel, similarities and differences between the two time pe24 Cf. Volkmann. Fachdidaktik Englisch. 228ff.; Nünning and Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten. 68ff. 25 Cf. Volkmann. Fachdidaktik Englisch. 230ff. 26 Kaplan, Laurie. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p.

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riods are stressed and the manifold cultural clashes that are bound to result from such an intermingling of different contexts and periods are beautifully illustrated. The ‘intercultural’ moment Kaplan refers to is a historical one in this case, which emphasizes the intra-cultural changes and dynamics which occur in the course of time. The process of adopting different perspectives, which constitutes one of the primary goals of Foreign Language Education as was pointed out above, is encouraged but also satirized by the time travelling protagonists. In contemporary London, with its constant rush, its rudeness and frustrations, Amanda Price regularly takes an evening out by simply sitting on her couch and escaping into the supposedly ideal world of “manners, language, courtesy”,27 which Pride and Prejudice embodies for her. To explain her motivation for re-reading Austen time and again, Amanda adapts the signature opening sentence as follows: “It is a truth generally acknowledged that we all long to escape.”28 In the middle of one of those nights spent reading, her boyfriend arrives and proposes to her, half-drunk and rudely burping out: “Marry me, babes.”29 At that moment of dreariness, Amanda Price – fantastically – happens to find Elizabeth Bennet in her bathroom; she subsequently explores the door that has all of a sudden appeared in her bathroom and that leads directly from her bathtub in Hammersmith (London) to the attic of the rural Bennet home, Longbourn. Adventurous Amanda steps through the door and finds herself transported back two hundred years and locked in the world of the novel with all the complications that may ensue from such a mix-up. With modern-day Amanda entering the plot of the novel and Elizabeth Bennet gone missing, a chain of events begins to unfold that increasingly deviates from Austen’s original. All of Amanda’s attempts to set the story right lead to even more confusion. The suitable working title that Jane Austen gave to her novel was First Impressions. The TV mini-series sets up a host of scenarios that illustrate how little we know about the life of the English gentry at the beginning of the nineteenth century, even if our first impressions lead us to believe that we are intimately familiar with people or situations from the novel. The opening sequences of Lost in Austen can be read as alluding to typical moments of intercultural contact. They already indicate the conflict following suit. It would be truly escapist to believe that learning from books makes us fit for reality or that studying history and intercultural contact prepares us for any real encounter. However, training one’s perception, awareness, imagination and reflection will certainly get us as far as classroom learning and media literacy can 27 Cf. Lost in Austen. I, 06:13. 28 Cf. ibid. 00:30. 29 Cf. ibid. 03:03.

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take us at all. This is particularly effective if learners are encouraged to perform their own interpretations of Pride and Prejudice-sequences or produce their own moments of time-travel or intercultural mix-up. Kaplan characterizes the Lost in Austen-series as follows: Buttressed by anachronisms, the witty intertextuality – the multiple cross-cultural, cross-class, cross-text, cross-media, and cross-linguistic references – takes the viewer backwards and forwards in time. Anachronisms abound, but not because of compositional carelessness of the writer Guy Andrews. Rather, the anachronisms set up situations that resonate with double meanings, with, for example, the social insecurities that arise when someone new to a particular environment and ignorant of the cultural codes wants to fit in but does not know quite how to behave. Lost in Austen, like Pride and Prejudice, is grounded in at least two realities, two codes of social behaviors, two cultures and two languages (even if both languages are English). Embedded cleverly in the text, the anachronisms and inconsistencies in Lost in Austen frame the comic – and uncomfortable – cultural and fictional misunderstandings.30

The special attractiveness of Lost in Austen for the classroom derives from the differences in all of the aspects mentioned by Kaplan. Anachronisms and the fantastic time-warp idea are narrative and filmic instruments which are apt to ease the learners’ way into the change of perspectives. For foreign language teaching, this is the metaphorical ‘hidden door’ that makes the TV series particularly suitable for learners, who often experience contact with another culture to be just as comic or uncomfortable as Amanda does in the unfamiliar historical context. Just like Amanda, the learners are bound to feel insecurity triggered by inappropriate behavior in intercultural contact situations. Cultural friction and the surprising consequences this may lead to play an important role in the TV series as well as in intercultural teaching scenarios.31 Because of the gap between Amanda’s time and Elizabeth Bennet’s time, a number of visible cultural signs obviously clash: clothing, hair-do, food, in parts also language. Yet, where can learners identify cultural differences on a less obvious plane? How can they discover their own ‘difference’ and possibly be invited to change places as well as perspectives with protagonists, at least imaginatively? What consequences would such a shift have for them?

30 Kaplan. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” n.p. 31 Cf. Bachmann-Medick, Doris. Kultur als Text: Die anthropologische Wende in der Literaturwissenschaft. Frankfurt a.M.: Fischer, 1998. 54; Küchler, Uwe. Interkulturelle Hochschullehre: Internationalisierung am Beispiel der Amerikanistik. Münster : LIT, 2007. 50–58.

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The Lizzie Bennet Diaries (2013)

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, which are labelled as “[a]n online modernized adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice”, constitute one of the most recent and fairly creative retellings of Austen’s novel.32 In contrast to Lost in Austen, this web narrative does not maximize on the juxtaposition of different time frames and cultural contexts. Instead, the creators of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries translate the Pride and Prejudice story into our present day, making use of modern themes, character specifics and plot twists. What is more, they do this in the contemporary format of a video log, where Lizzie Bennet, a heroine representing the ‘selfie-generation’, keeps her growing number of viewers updated about what is going on in her family. The one hundred small-scale video clips, usually around two to eight minutes long, are not only ideally suited for being watched on the latest portable devices but are also complemented by in–character facebook accounts or video logs of some of the other characters. Characters and plotlines are recognizable and in many respects stay true to the original, although the specific taste and feel of the story has been changed dramatically by being transported to contemporary, multicultural America, where middle-class graduate students grapple to find their footing in Corporate Media and Mass Communication. Those modernizations are already visible in the resourceful naming of characters: Both Charlotte Lu and Mr. Bing Lee (originally Charlotte Lucas and Mr. Bingley) are of Asian American origin. Instead of meeting Mr. Darcy during a visit at Pemberley Estate, Lizzie runs into him during her internship at the influential media corporation Pemberley Digital. Drawing upon The Lizzie Bennet Diaries in the foreign language classroom may enhance the learners’ media literacy in different ways. Throughout the video clips, editing techniques are used to combine different features: floating text and sketches as well as frequent references to media-created reality and modern America. Lizzie’s (or her friends’) mini-impersonations of off-screen characters, such as parents or love interests, constitute one of the most enjoyable features. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries makes extensive use of features that are characteristic of social media, for example by pondering the (supposedly) open discussion of individual clips in the comments section; by showing reactions to comments; and – at least in later episodes – by revealing the characters’ use of the comments section to further the plot (Caroline Lee discovers Lizzie’s vlog and demands to play a role in it; Bing Lee is tricked in front of the camera without knowing what is going on, but later discovers the vlog …). The plotlines and the format of this web narrative (seemingly) put audience 32 Anon. “Home.” www.lizziebennet.com (2014) (accessed 31 August, 2014).

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participation at the center of the story and its development. These narrative choices anticipate the role of the audience in creating or recreating, changing or blending not only Austen’s original but all material that is picked up in popular adaptations. By creatively and intertextually transforming the original, the narrative material becomes accessible for a young generation: the digital natives. But the original is also kept alive in this adaptation and is endowed with contemporary contexts and interpretations that serve to reaffirm the relevance and meaning of the nineteenth-century stories in the 21st century.

7.

Concluding thoughts

The methodological principles relevant to teaching Lost in Austen have already been whispered to us by the fan fiction approach: a strong focus on creativity, on producing one’s own textual version by drawing upon the possibilities offered by new media as much as the original text. Such an approach invites students to do what fan fiction has been doing all along: fleshing out unattended corners in the life of protagonists, exploring obscure plot-developments and, most effectively, re-imagining moments of the story in a different context and under different circumstances. Using the two exemplary adaptations Lost in Austen and The Lizzie Bennet Diaries gives learners a model for transformation but also repositions all aspects within the confines and contexts of their (inter)cultural historicity. If the modern adaptations are taught back to back with Jane Austen’s original Pride and Prejudice, analytic and creative/productive teaching techniques can be combined fruitfully.

References Adams, Jennifer and Alison Oliver. Little Jane Austen – Pride & Prejudice: A Counting Primer. Layton, UT: Gibbs Smith, 2011. BabylitÒ. “About.” http://www.babylit.com/about/ (accessed 31 August, 2014). Bachmann-Medick, Doris. Kultur als Text: Die anthropologische Wende in der Literaturwissenschaft. Frankfurt a.M.: Fischer, 1998. Blell, Gabriele and Christiane Lütge. “Sehen, Hören, Verstehen und Handeln: Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht.” In: Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 1,6 (2004): 402–05. Bredella, Lothar. “Fremdverstehen mit literarischen Texten.” In: Lothar Bredella, FranzJoseph Meißner, Ansgar Nünning and Dietmar Rösler (eds.). Wie ist Fremdverstehen lehr- und lernbar? Tübingen: Narr, 2000. 133–63. – Literarisches und interkulturelles Verstehen. Tübingen: Narr, 2002. – Narratives und interkulturelles Verstehen: Zur Entwicklung von Empathie-, Urteils- und Kooperationsfähigkeit. Tübingen: Narr, 2012.

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Jenkins, Henry. Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture. New York: Routledge, 1992. Kaplan, Laurie. “Lost in Austen and Generation-Y Janeites.” In: Persuasions On-Line 30,2 (2010): n.p. Küchler, Uwe. Interkulturelle Hochschullehre: Internationalisierung am Beispiel der Amerikanistik. Münster : LIT, 2007. Lost in Austen. Dir. Dan Zeff. Mammoth Screen, 2008. Lütge, Christiane. Mit Filmen unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen, 2011. Nünning, Ansgar. “Perspektivenübernahme und Perspektivenkoordination: Prozeßorientierte Schulung des Textverstehens und der Textproduktion bei der Behandlung von John Fowles’ The Collector.” In: Günther Jarfe (ed.). Literaturdidaktik – konkret: Theorie und Praxis des fremdsprachlichen Literaturunterrichts. Heidelberg: Winter, 1997. 137–61. Nünning, Ansgar and Andreas H. Jucker. Orientierung Anglistik/Amerikanistik: Was sie kann, was sie will. Reinbek: Rowohlt, 1999. Nünning, Ansgar and Carola Surkamp. Englische Literatur unterrichten: Grundlagen und Methoden. Seelze, Velber : Kallmeyer, Klett, 2006. Pyrhönen, Heta. “Bridget Jones’s Diary : A Case Study of Austen Fan Fiction.” In: Ansgar Nünning and Kai M. Sicks (eds.). Turning Points: Concepts and Narratives of Change in Literature and Other Media. Berlin: deGruyter, 2012. 371–86. Sanders, Julie. Adaptation and Appropriation. London: Routledge, 2006. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/ LizzieBennet (accessed 10 May, 2014). Volkmann, Laurenz. Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tübingen: Narr, 2010. Welsh, Kaitie. “Pride and Prejudice at 200: The Best Jane Austen Small-Screen Adaptations.” In: The Guardian 28 January, 2013.

Hanne Birk and Marion Gymnich with Sarah Cordes, Sarah Fißmer, Corinna Jörres, Christine Lehnen and Manuela Zehnter

Elizabeth Bennet: A Heroine Past and/or Present?

In 2009 Susannah Carson edited a volume called A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen;1 the collection of essays consists mainly of articles by famous authors, ranging from W. Somerset Maugham to Virginia Woolf and Martin Amis, who comment on why and how Jane Austen influenced them and their works. Pride and Prejudice, however, does not only appeal to famous authors, but also to students all over the world. Starting from our experience in teaching English Literature at the University of Bonn, we felt that students’ perspectives would have to be included in a volume celebrating the 200th birthday of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This is why we asked our students to contribute essays focussing on the question of whether Elizabeth Bennet is still a heroine for our times. This invitation led to a number of interesting papers. In the following we would like to present at least some highlights from these essays. Mainly due to pragmatic reasons only two contributions – Bettina Burger’s “Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our time?” and “Have a Fan-tastic 200th Birthday, Lizzy! Elizabeth Bennet in Recent Fan Fiction” by Denise Burkhard and Simone Fleischer – could be included in full. But it seemed vital to complement these essays by samples of the wide variety of further approaches and answers to the question at hand. ***** The first excerpt focuses primarily on Elizabeth Bennet’s character traits. Among many other aspects which Corinna Jörres addresses in her essay the link between heroism and the female protagonist’s ability and willingness to question her own attitudes and judgments plays a particularly prominent role. Especially the transformation of Lizzy’s attitudes, i. e. her personal development, as well as her imperfection and her ability to withstand external pressure turn Elizabeth 1 Carson, Susannah (ed.). ATruth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen. New York: Random House, 2009.

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Bennet (and her recent embodiments in popular culture) into someone whose ongoing struggles always draw the readers’/viewers’ attention to social restrictions and inadequacies.

Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our times? – by Corinna Jörres Elizabeth has to come to terms with her own pride and prejudice when she discovers throughout the novel that her judgement of people and their character, something she relishes and is proud of excelling in, is notably wrong in at least three cases. First is her best friend Charlotte Lucas, who, to Elizabeth’s dismay, proves to be far more pragmatic and becomes Mr Collins’s wife after Elizabeth turned him down. Second, the exposure of Wickham as selfish, wicked and dishonourable, despite his amiable behaviour and charming looks. Then, finally, she has to reform her opinion of Darcy himself, the development of which is a rollercoaster ride throughout the novel, descending to utter contempt before being remedied via respect to affection and love. This also means personal development and coming of age by realising and overcoming her own flaws, as well as giving up what seemed certain and thereby relinquishing a certain amount of power and control over the small circle of her acquaintances to achieve deeper self-knowledge. Ultimately, she is rewarded by her fortunate match with Darcy, which grants her social mobility, economic security and personal happiness, while he is similarly rewarded for his own personal improvement in his union with Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s heroism can be considered to be based on personal development and admitting her own flaws and errors to overcome them in favour of truth and self-knowledge. She remains true to herself as an intelligent character full of humour, but learns to check her stubbornness, temper, judgement and inclination to ridicule others. Furthermore, she does not compromise her ideals and goals in the face of social, familial or financial pressures. She rarely fails to stand up for those she loves and is loyally looking out for and protecting her family, despite having to acknowledge their embarrassing inferiority at times. These, then, are values we still hold high nowadays. […] Elizabeth Bennet and her various incarnations remain heroine-material to this very day. The numerous adaptations, rewritings and modernisations attest to that, just as their ongoing popularity does. Her character and her story represent values which we can share today as much as ever: intelligence, integrity, and selfimprovement. Lizzie of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries charms us just as Austen’s

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Regency Elizabeth does, with her wit and affection, wilfulness, courage and misguided judgement. Admitting faults and mistakes to enable personal development towards, at times painful, self-knowledge and a clearer understanding of others has definitely heroic qualities, especially when it involves going against societal norms. But the human, the flawed side of this complex character makes her truly a heroine to be loved and identify with, since, despite all her attractions and accomplishments, Elizabeth is never perfect. She falls behind Jane’s beauty, Georgiana Darcy’s or Caroline Bingley’s accomplishments and is deceived even in the judgement of her best friend, though she never becomes the caricature of a flaw, such as Mrs Bennet’s dim silliness, nor does she tend towards the simplicity of overly good Jane. That this very human and normal middle ground of “one highly developed character”2 resonates especially in our times is shown in debates about and comparisons to contemporary chicklit which at its best strives – like Austen – to address women’s everyday concerns, coming of age, being pragmatic and reasonable without forfeiting one’s ideals and continuing the fight for personal happiness despite potential struggles between the individual and society. ***** The struggle with rigid social norms and expectations and Elizabeth Bennet’s way of dealing with them are also discussed in the essay by Sarah Fißmer. In addition to the female protagonist’s courage and confidence something else is emphasised here: the fact that Elizabeth is not flawless, but is presented as someone ‘potentially real’, which can be seen as a further factor that contributes to her being perceived as a heroine who can bridge centuries.

Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our times? – by Sarah Fißmer Is Elizabeth Bennet courageous? Does she have traits and achievements which make her admirable from the perspective of the twenty-first century? Can she be a role model? With respect to the original novel, the most obvious answer would be a ‘yes’. Elizabeth shows many qualities which, especially when seen in the historical and social context in which the book was written, are worth admiring and can be classified as very positive traits – after all, she is, as Nora Nachumi puts it, successful in negotiating “between her own desires and powerful social 2 Paris, Bernard J. Characters and Conflict in Jane Austen’s Novels: A Psychological Approach. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1978. 110.

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conventions”.3 Elizabeth knows very well that she is in need of a husband with enough money to offer her a comfortable future since her father’s estate will “be entailed away from [his] children”.4 This is most obvious, for instance, in what Elizabeth tells her sister Jane at the end of the novel about her love for Darcy ; she says: “It has been coming on so gradually, that I hardly know when it began. But I believe I must date it from my first seeing his beautiful grounds at Pemberley”.5 This reference to Darcy’s wealth being – at least partially – the motivation for falling in love with him, is, as Robert Miles rightly claims, “part of Austen’s psychological realism”.6 Yet, despite financial insecurities, Elizabeth does not consent to any seemingly “eligible match”7 offered to her : Although she is certainly expected to accept him, she rejects Mr Collins’s proposal because she sees him as such “a conceited, pompous, narrow-minded, silly man […] that the woman who marries him, cannot have a proper way of thinking”.8 It is quite courageous to act against social norms, against a consensus according to which it is anticipated that women accept marriage proposals “simply because [they are] wom[e]n, poor and must want a husband and home of [their] own”,9 as Rachel M. Brownstein argues. It requires fortitude and self-esteem to turn down a proposal – especially if that turns spinsterhood into a possible future. As Mr Collins pompously claims, “it is by no means certain that another offer of marriage may ever be made”10 to Elizabeth. In rejecting not only Mr Collins’s but also Darcy’s first proposal – which is, in Brownstein’s words, “quite as arrogant and overbearing and uncomprehending of its object as the stout young clergyman’s”11 – Elizabeth demonstrates that she is quite true to her own “principle and integrity”,12 to her own morals and values and that those are more important to her than what she calls “the established mode to express a sense of obligation for the sentiments avowed”.13 Elizabeth’s behaviour with regard to Darcy’s offer of marriage also points to another positive trait: She is by no means shy and 3 Nachumi, Nora. “ ‘ I Am Elizabeth Bennet’: Defining One’s Self through Austen’s Third Novel.” In: Pedagogy : Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture 4,1 (2004): 119–24, 122. 4 Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006 [1813]. 69. 5 Ibid. 414. 6 Miles, Robert. “Character.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 15–26, 22. 7 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2006 [1813]. 153. 8 Ibid. 153–54. 9 Brownstein, Rachel M. “Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 32–35 and 49–57, 53. 10 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2006 [1813]. 122. 11 Brownstein. “Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice.” 53. 12 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2006 [1813]. 154. 13 Ibid. 212.

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silent but is confident and has a ready tongue. She does not accept without retort what she seems to experience as degradation. Thus, she answers his proposal by claiming “You could not have made me the offer of your hand in any possible way that would have tempted me to accept it” and then accuses him of “arrogance, […] conceit, and […] selfish disdain of the feelings of others”.14 There are many more scenes in the novel which emphasise that Elizabeth is a strong woman, that she is witty and eloquent and in a sense ‘emancipated’. These are all characteristics which are universally desirable – and not only from a nineteenthcentury perspective but also from that of the twenty-first century. For today’s average reader these characteristics appear to be within reach since Austen’s description of Elizabeth makes identification possible: As Reena claims, “Jane Austen’s novels hold universal truth and are still applicable to people today, showing people struck in a situation and coping with it the best way they can”;15 or, in Janet Todd’s words, “Austen [has the] power of creating personalities who can enter and inhabit a reader’s mind”.16 Elizabeth is not glorified or put on a pedestal but described as a rather normal girl. Mrs Bennet, for instance, sees her as “not half so handsome as Jane, nor half so good humoured as Lydia”,17 and the narrator tells us that Lizzy’s “performance [at the piano] was pleasing, though by no means capital”.18 Very importantly, she is not flawless – probably because Jane Austen “realized that characters could only truly be convincing to the reader if they were placed within a context and given positive and negative foils”.19 Elizabeth has, for example, a “habit of looking for the ‘ridiculous’ in her acquaintance for the self-gratification it affords of scoffing at it […]”,20 as Miles puts it. Such features turn Elizabeth into a more realistic character and they help to bridge the distance between the twenty-first-century reader and the novel’s fictional, admirable Regency heroine. ***** Sarah Cordes’ essay also stresses that both Elizabeth Bennet and Austen were ahead of their time. She discusses what Nora Nachumi experienced when she

14 Ibid. 215. 15 Reena, Reena “Women in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice.” In: Journal of Literature, Culture and Media Studies 4,7/8 (2012): 124–31, 124. 16 Todd, Janet. “Preface.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. xi–xv, xi. 17 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2006 [1813]. 5. 18 Ibid. 27. 19 Reena. “Women in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice.” 130. 20 Miles. “Character.” 22.

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taught Pride and Prejudice at an Orthodox Jewish university and highlights both female agency and social criticism which are expressed in Austen’s classic.

200 years of Pride and Prejudice pose a question: Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our times? – by Sarah Cordes Elizabeth’s views reveal themselves as strikingly ‘modern’, especially with regard to the behaviour that was expected of women and women’s predetermined roles in society at the time. The numerous traces of modern topics and critical attitudes towards traditional female responsibilities may be accounted for by assuming that Austen was “a modern-day feminist who lived at a time when such views were unwelcome”,21 as Nora Nachumi argues, or by Janet Todd’s conclusion that “with Pride and Prejudice she fashioned a work more modern sounding than any written by her female contemporaries”.22 The idea that Jane Austen was ahead of her time may provide one first hint at why her character Lizzy Bennet and her views still enjoy great popularity today. […] What Nora Nachumi observed while teaching Pride and Prejudice at an Orthodox Jewish university constitutes a very fitting example of the universal appeal of Austen’s heroine. Religion and tradition occupy an important place in these students’ lives, who have been brought up in accordance with traditional Jewish norms and values. Therefore, they live within social and cultural constraints in which they are expected to respect these customs. Although it is unusual to adopt a liberal lifestyle in their community, the female students taught in Nachumi’s course were very much aware of the obvious gap between their way of living and that of the majority. She states that “[l]ike the Bennet girls, my students have been raised in communities that consider marriage and motherhood to be women’s highest achievements. They too are expected to marry both early and well”.23 Apparently, the young women are aware of their role in society but nevertheless feel individual preferences like young women generally do. Consequently, young women in such a community have to balance and ultimately unite two separate worlds of expectations, which presupposes a critical evaluation of and reflection on their own situation: By comparing themselves to female characters, my students were able to examine and evaluate their own beliefs and behaviors. They explored similarities and differences 21 Nachumi. “ ‘ I am Elizabeth Bennet’.” 124. 22 Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49, 137. 23 Nachumi. “ ‘ I am Elizabeth Bennet’.” 124.

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between the political, economic, and ideological structures with which they live and those depicted in the literature they read. Thus they joined a conversation about issues that have concerned women for hundreds of years. As participants, they actively engaged with questions about female agency and self-definition.24

For Nachumi’s students Elizabeth Bennet is a heroine because she manages to balance her ‘separate worlds’, the expectations associated with appropriate female behaviour in accordance with society’s conventions on the one hand and her own ideas of a self-determined life on the other hand. In the end, she meets these requirements and marries well at a (relatively) young age. However, Elizabeth neither denies her nature nor gives up her attitudes and beliefs in order to fulfil the social norms of her time. In other words, “Elizabeth Bennet […] satisfies the expectations of her community without sacrificing her own happiness or her capacity for independent, rational thought. Indeed, this view of the conclusion makes Pride and Prejudice especially relevant to the students I teach”.25 This experience nicely demonstrates what classical English literature can still achieve today, not only 200 years after its publication but also in a totally different (cultural and social) context. […] Obviously, Elizabeth is not a fairy-tale-like heroine who needs to be rescued by her prince, but rather prepares the path for her own happiness. She takes the reader on her life’s journey, which includes various trials and tribulations known to anyone. Consequently, the plot’s fictional nature takes a backseat and makes Elizabeth a very ‘real’ and relatable figure whose life, like most other young women’s, is not only black and white. In addition, she grows with her challenges and constantly reflects on her behaviour and judgement in order to refine herself. Given all that, it is no wonder that “Elizabeth’s eventual change of heart results from neither sex, money, nor power, but rather from a long process of revision and self-examination”,26 which evokes respect, esteem, and gratitude for the man she treated so unjustly before, and eventually renders love possible. Elizabeth’s advantage and her greatest potential for being awarded the title of ‘timeless heroine’ is her self-awareness, which proves real strength of character, and the lesson she learns herself and teaches others: It is human to err and one does not have to be ashamed of flaws as long as one is willing to correct them. Elizabeth reminds us that improving one’s own character in order to make up for earlier misjudgements will be worthwhile and that the proverb ‘man (or woman) forges his (or her) own destiny’ is still valid. In today’s world, assumptions are as 24 Ibid. 123. 25 Ibid. 124. 26 Bander, Elaine. “Neither Sex, Money, nor Power : Why Elizabeth Finally Says ‘Yes!’ ” In: Persuasions 34 (2012): 25–41, 27.

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readily made as in Austen’s/Elizabeth’s time, but it seems that jumping to conclusions and blaming others instead of taking on the responsibility for one’s own actions is often more convenient. In the most general sense, Elizabeth has two messages: first, to promote female rights and second, to warn us against the degeneration of morals in societies where each individual (must) pursue personal aims. Since these are topics that are not restricted to any time period, social, cultural or political context, it seems rather self-evident that Elizabeth’s advice is universal. And so, for various reasons which were highlighted in this essay : YES!!! – Elizabeth Bennet is a heroine for our times, who, by defending her (modern) point of view concerning women’s roles, her determined and morally upright behaviour, and by the self-critical evaluation of her character, constitutes an example which should be appreciated, cherished and remembered, nowadays as much as in the future. ***** Manuela Zehnter, who discusses the Bollywood version Bride and Prejudice (2004) from a post-colonial perspective, also looks at the way Pride and Prejudice has been transformed in other cultural contexts. Focussing mainly on gender roles and on the consequences of introducing the category of race into the plot and character constellation of Pride and Prejudice, she argues that the Bollywood protagonist Lalita performs a very modern ‘singing back’ that also invites us to see the original text in a somewhat different light.

Lalita Bakshi: Post-Colonial Heroine of Bride and Prejudice – by Manuela Zehnter The character of Elizabeth Bennet has been appropriated superbly by Bride and Prejudice’s Lalita Bakshi, who is a figure of resistance and ‘singing back’, because she (Elizabeth) is also a very strong, smart woman who is not afraid to voice her opinion despite a rigid social class system that does not encourage transgressions. Elizabeth explains that she is stubborn and that she cannot “bear to be frightened at the will of others” because her “courage always rises with every attempt to intimidate me [Elizabeth]”.27 Her extraordinary willpower becomes apparent through the character constellation (with Jane being her foil) as well as in the lively discussions with Darcy, in which she does not hesitate to oppose him. When Darcy names the attributes of an “accomplished woman”28 Elizabeth 27 Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. London: Harper, 2013 [1813]. 168. 28 Ibid. 36.

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rejects his attitude towards women which is implied in this catalogue: “I never saw such a woman”.29 Both Elizabeth and Lalita reverse and re-define gender roles. Austen’s novel focuses on class distinctions, which in the end become permeable, as the unions of Elizabeth and Darcy, and Mr. Bingley and Jane show; Bride and Prejudice takes up this topic and adds the important factor of ‘race’. Interestingly, race functions parallel to class as both are determined by the individual’s heritage and are assumed to determine a subject’s behaviour.30 Just like Elizabeth, Lalita is in favour of a transgression of borders. The major discrepancy is that Elizabeth seems to be unaware of racial differences as they are not included in Pride and Prejudice. Yet race, just like patriarchal attitudes, has shaped the colonial discourse; thus Lalita has to dissolve the dichotomies inherent in patriarchy, race and class, which have been produced and reproduced by colonial respectively neo-colonial societies. […] Finally, Elizabeth Bennet is a heroine for our times as her appropriation by Lalita Bakshi, the post-colonial heroine of Bride and Prejudice, in her ‘decolonization’ of Darcy’s (as well as potentially the viewer’s) attitude shows. Simultaneously, Lalita overcomes her own prejudices about the American Darcy. The cultural hybridity of the movie Bride and Prejudice as well as that of Lalita and Darcy provides a solution to the (formerly) dichotomous relationship between India and North America. Presenting a range of culturally hybrid characters the film projects a positive future for multicultural societies. The film with its protagonists occupies a “Third Space of enunciation”31 and is heard because “for many people today the image of Pride and Prejudice is not just dependent on the literary text, but also on its audiovisual adaptations, including their reinterpretation of gender roles”.32 Hence, adaptations and appropriations receive

29 Ibid. 37; cf. Lalita’s reaction: “I’m not surprised Mr. Darcy hasn’t found his ideal woman […]. Does this mean you are an ideal man?” Bride and Prejudice. 0:25:43–0:25:45. 30 Cf. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2013 [1813]. 91: “[…] considering his descent, one could not expect much better”. Parallel to class distinctions, racial classifications imply the division of people into “unchanging natural types, recognizable by physical features that are transmitted ‘through the blood’ ” (Ashcroft, Bill, Gareth Griffiths and Helen Tiffin. Post-Colonial Studies: The Key Concepts. London: Routledge, 2007. 180). In colonial societies this assumption led to a differentiation between ‘pure’ and ‘mixed’ races that have to be kept separated as the behaviour and thoughts of people were believed to be determined by their racial origin. This was held to guarantee the ‘pure’ race’s justification for their moral superiority connected to their white skin and fear of miscegenation. 31 Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. London: Routledge, 1994. 54. 32 Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen: V& R unipress, 2010. 23–44, 43.

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much attention and “being almost the same, but not quite”,33 privilege hybridity. Bride and Prejudice marks the “strategic reversal of the process of domination through disavowal”34 with Lalita’s ‘singing back’ challenging the status of Austen’s novel as Western ‘mastertext’. ***** While the essays so far mainly discussed Elizabeth Bennet and her potential heroic characteristics in various cultural spaces and places, Christine Lehnen took a step back and questioned the concept ‘heroine’ itself by conducting a survey. The first passage describes the methods she used and the second one summarises the results.

The Heroines of our time: And why we should be grateful that Elizabeth Bennet is celebrating her 200th birthday – by Christine Lehnen In order to find out what the lay concept of heroines implies I devised a questionnaire to elicit empirical data specifically pertaining to the question of this essay. The online questionnaire was divided into three parts, the first one asking for age and gender ; the second one asking for intrinsic and constitutive characteristics of heroines and testing scenarios adapted from Pride and Prejudice for their ‘heroic quality’; and the third one posing questions specifically about Pride and Prejudice and its protagonist Elizabeth. […] First, I attempted to find a definition of the term ‘heroine’. Academic research yields no answers except that it is impossible to find a reliable definition; the next step consisted in trying to narrow down a definition that defines heroines of our time by means of a questionnaire. The survey led to the following results: Heroines of our time are brave and selfless. Testing these attributes in specific scenarios one realizes that the characteristic that is most likely to be labelled constitutive is selflessness, while going one’s own way seems to be more closely related to role models. In a third part, I sought to show that Elizabeth indeed acts selfishly, as is illustrated by her major decision of turning down Mr. Collins’s proposal. She goes her own way, departing from social norms. Although much more empirical work would have to be done, a tendency can certainly be identified: Elizabeth is not a heroine, but a role model. 33 Bhabha. The Location of Culture. 123. 34 Ibid. 159.

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Actually, this is what one could congratulate Elizabeth on on the occasion of her 200th birthday : while hundreds of thousands of teenagers are reading Twilight, Elizabeth remains a role model and shows what should really matter in love for a young person: not giving yourself up completely, as Bella does (“a teenager who abandons everything she knows (school, family, home) for a boyfriend who could kill her”)35, but to insist on your dignity and your needs even in the face of the threat of poverty and immense social pressure. Indeed, it seems we need her now more than ever.

References Ashcroft, Bill, Gareth Griffiths and Helen Tiffin. Post-Colonial Studies: The Key Concepts. London: Routledge, 2007. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006 [1813]. – Pride and Prejudice. London: Harper, 2013 [1813]. Bander, Elaine. “Neither Sex, Money, nor Power : Why Elizabeth Finally Says ‘Yes!’ ” In: Persuasions 34 (2012): 25–41. Bhabha, Homi K. The Location of Culture. London: Routledge, 1994. Bride & Prejudice. Gurinder Chadha (dir). Path¦ Pictures/Miramax, UK/USA, 2004. Brownstein, Rachel M. “Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. 32–35 and 49–57. Carson, Susannah (ed.). A Truth Universally Acknowledged: 33 Great Writers on Why We Read Jane Austen. New York: Random House, 2009. Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen: V& R unipress, 2010. 23–44. Miles, Robert. “Character.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 15–26. Nachumi, Nora. “ ‘ I am Elizabeth Bennet’: Defining One’s Self Through Austen’s Third Novel.” In: Pedagogy : Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition and Culture 4,1 (2004): 119–24. Neill, Rosemary. “Twilight series’ Bella Swan is every parents’ worst nightmare.” In: The Australian.com.au. News Corp Australia, 24 November, 2012. http://www.theaustra lian.com.au/arts/review/twilight-series-heroine-bella-swan-is-every-parents-worstnightmare/story-fn9n8gph-1226521828274 (accessed 7 November, 2013).

35 Neill, Rosemary. “Twilight series’ Bella Swan is every parents’ worst nightmare.” In: theaustralian.com.au. News Corp Australia, 24 November, 2012. http://www.theaustral ian.com.au/arts/review/twilight-series-heroine-bella-swan-is-every-parents-worst-night mare/story-fn9n8gph-1226521828274 (accessed 7 November, 2013).

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Paris, Bernard J. Characters and Conflict in Jane Austen’s Novels: A Psychological Approach. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1978. Reena, R. “Women in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice.” In: Journal of Literature, Culture and Media Studies 4,7/8 (2012): 124–31. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Pemberley Digital. 2012–2013. http://www.youtube.com/user/ LizzieBennet or www.lizziebennet.com (accessed 20 November, 2013). Todd, Janet. “Criticism.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 137–49. – “Preface.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. xi–xv.

Bettina Burger

Is Elizabeth Bennet really a heroine for our time?

With a multitude of movie adaptations, sequels and other contemporary novels about its characters, Pride and Prejudice and its female protagonist Elizabeth Bennet are without any doubt still very present in the public imagination. There are, of course, works of fiction which focus more on other characters from Jane Austen’s most famous novel, such as Amanda Grange’s Mr. Darcy’s Diary, which re-tells the story from the point of view of its male hero, or Jean Burnett’s Who needs Mr Darcy?, which explores Lydia Bennet’s further life. Despite this shift of interest towards minor characters and changed points of view, Elizabeth Bennet remains an important figure in the popular imagination, as the “wide range of literary texts and films from the twentieth and twenty-first century”1 which are associated with Pride and Prejudice suggests. The many direct adaptations as well as variations on the original novel, such as the Bollywood version Bride and Prejudice, Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones’s Diary or the ITV mini-series Lost in Austen clearly mark her importance as a cultural icon. Considering the fact that Pride and Prejudice was published 200 years ago, in 1813, the novel’s continued ability “to speak to its readers”2 seems surprising and has to be critically examined. It is necessary to ask whether Jane Austen’s famous protagonist, created in 1813, can still be a relevant heroine in our times. At first, the answer to this question seems self-evident, as the aforementioned adaptations of and variations on Pride and Prejudice certainly point to a continued interest in Elizabeth Bennet. However, adaptations tend to change the original material in order to make it more appealing to a larger audience. This essay will employ two strategies in order to determine Elizabeth Bennet’s suitability as a contemporary 1 Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen/Bonn: V& R Unipress/Bonn University Press, 2010. 23–44, 23. 2 Carrol, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73, 162.

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heroine. Firstly, the character traits ascribed to Elizabeth in Austen’s novel will be closely examined. This makes it possible to evaluate whether these qualities are still relatable for modern readers or whether they seem outdated today. Secondly, the essay will explore in how far these qualities are retained in recent adaptations and in what ways Elizabeth is changed to make her even more appealing to a modern audience. Elizabeth’s character is immediately established as being different from her sisters’, even though Mrs. Bennet insists that she is “not a bit better than the others”.3 However, Elizabeth’s mother has already been presented as an unreliable character at this point, and the reader is therefore more inclined to believe Mr. Bennet’s judgment, who claims that Elizabeth has “something more of quickness than her sisters”.4 She is portrayed as intelligent and thoughtful. In fact, she is even “shown to possess an intelligence only Darcy and her father can match”.5 This focus on her intelligence turns her into a suitable heroine for our times, in which, ideally, women should not be judged on the basis of their outer beauty but rather their inner qualities. The novel also deals more generally with the idea of what makes a woman desirable or, in this context, ‘accomplished’. Being accomplished is defined by Caroline Bingley as possessing “a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, and the modern languages […] and besides all this, […] a certain something in her air and manner of walking, the tone of her voice, her address and expressions”,6 which, in our time, would admittedly be a rather unusual set of skills. Mr. Darcy qualifies this description by adding “the improvement of her mind by extensive reading”7 to his definition of female accomplishment. His addition certainly seems more modern because it hints at an appreciation of a woman’s mind rather than her looks. Elizabeth “exemplifies Darcy’s ideal of intellectual accomplishment”8 through her conversation during the visit at Netherfield. Further on in the novel, the reader additionally learns that she was “always encouraged to read” and it can be assumed that she did not “cho[o]se to be idle”,9 but it is never explicitly stated whether Elizabeth is an avid reader. Interestingly, this quality is emphasized in the 2005 movie. In the relevant scene, Elizabeth is depicted as reading during the entire conversation about accomplishments; she only stops reading when Darcy 3 Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004 [1813]. 2. 4 Ibid. 5 Castellanos, Gabriel. Laughter, War and Feminism: Elements of Carnival in Three of Jane Austen’s Novels. New York: Peter Lang, 1994. 121. 6 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 29. 7 Ibid. 8 Knox-Shaw, Peter. “Philosophy.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 27–42, 40. 9 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 127.

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mentions this activity as an essential quality of an accomplished lady, which indicates that she fears she might fulfill his expectations in this regard. More recent sequels to the novel, such as P.D. James’s Death Comes to Pemberley (2011) or Amanda Grange’s Mr. Darcy, Vampyre (2009), also emphasize Elizabeth’s intelligence. James, for example, elaborates on the qualities that make Lizzie Mr. Bennet’s favourite, stating that she enjoys “Pemberley’s splendid library”10 by reading “more widely and with great[…] enjoyment and comprehension”.11 Interestingly, James mentions that “it had been a revelation to Elizabeth that there were men who valued intelligence in a woman”,12 which is certainly something to be hoped for in modern stories of romance. In Mr. Darcy, Vampyre, it is not only chance but also her intelligence that ultimately help her figure out Darcy’s strange behaviour. Thus, intelligence as a character trait, strongly hinted at in the original novel and made more explicit in modern adaptations, is an essential aspect of Elizabeth’s nature as a heroine suitable for modern times. It thus seems that the ability to be a heroine who is appealing to modern audiences due to her intelligence is already present in the 1813 text but nevertheless needs to be enhanced in recent adaptations. While it is debatable whether Lizzie can actually be seen as an accomplished woman, there can be no doubt that she is not portrayed as a traditional beauty because she is described as “not half so handsome as Jane”13 and her lack of beauty is further emphasized by Darcy’s comments, in which he famously describes her as “tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt”14 him. This is a quality which she shares with one of her modern incarnations, Bridget Jones. Both are “considered not attractive enough to capture the interest of a man”15 according to the ideals of beauty in their respective period. The modern Bridget Jones’s Diary with its preoccupation with weight and other body image issues proves that the inability to “fulfill normative beauty standards”,16 evidently a problem in Jane Austen’s novel, is still relevant today. Elizabeth’s transformation into Darcy’s love interest, then, represents wish-fulfillment for both Regency and modern readers by showing that she can overcome her innate difficulties and find a suitable husband despite her ‘average’ looks. In spite of the statement that Elizabeth’s attractiveness is in some way deficient, there is actually “very little in the way of description as far as the appearance […] is concerned”,17 but looks are 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

James, P.D. Death Comes to Pemberley. London: Faber and Faber, 2011. 15. Ibid. 16. Ibid. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2. Ibid. 7. Gymnich and Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance.” 28. Ibid. Ibid. 31.

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nonetheless important as a “ ‘ currency’ on the marriage market”.18 The ‘marriage market’ is perhaps not that essential in modern society, but the struggle with body image issues on the ‘dating market’ is still as taxing today as it was in Austen’s days. Thus, Elizabeth with her ‘tolerable’ looks presents a counterpoint to a culture that still focuses very much on women’s appearance. She can be seen as a role model to show that looks are not the most important feature of a woman, which is still an important message to be conveyed today, and thus she can indeed be a modern heroine. In this context, it is also significant that the transformation is not caused by some effort on the part of Elizabeth to change her appearance but rather by Darcy’s growing appreciation for Elizabeth’s particular charms. It is Elizabeth’s “pair of fine eyes”19 which first attracts Mr. Darcy’s admiration. Even more importantly, “the beautiful expression of her dark eyes” renders her face “uncommonly intelligent”20 from Darcy’s point of view. Of course, Elizabeth’s visual qualities are emphasized in the two most recent audiovisual adaptations, the BBC mini-series with Jennifer Ehle and the 2005 movie with Keira Knightley. Both movies offer different interpretations of the female protagonist, which represent modern takes on Elizabeth and might indicate changes necessary for Elizabeth to remain relevant. In the BBC miniseries, she is played by Jennifer Ehle, who is attractive but not “a stunning beauty”,21 while the 2005 movie “features [an] ‘acknowledged beauty’, Keira Knightley”.22 Apparently, it was deemed necessary in the more recent version to portray Elizabeth as very attractive in contrast to her rather moderate description in the novel. Nevertheless, the 1995 version is just as popular as the 2005 movie, which shows that Elizabeth’s character is still relevant. There is also an emphasis on the importance of mutual respect between husband and wife in the novel, illustrated by the negative example of Mr. Bennet and his wife and the positive example of Darcy and Elizabeth. Mr. Bennet’s character differs remarkably from Mrs. Bennet’s, as the reader learns in the very first chapter. He is an “odd mixture of quick parts, sarcastic humour, reserve and caprice”,23 while his wife is “a woman of mean understanding, little information, and uncertain temper”,24 who utterly fails to understand her husband. Their personalities are so far apart that they cannot even complement each other and thus lead a rather unsatisfying marriage. The difference in character between the

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

Ibid. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 19. Ibid. 16. Gymnich and Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance.” 31. Ibid. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 3. Ibid.

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two Bennets has “put an end to all real affection”,25 which contributes to the novel’s criticism of “unequal marriage[s]”.26 Mr. Bennet also warns Elizabeth at the end of the novel not to marry a man she is “unable to respect”,27 which further enforces the idea that the two partners in marriage should be equals. Elizabeth and Darcy, on the other hand, are presented as having a successful and balanced marriage. Elizabeth retains her “lively, sportive, manner of talking”28 to Darcy, and both benefit from each other. After Lydia’s wedding, Elizabeth’s reflections on Darcy foreshadow the complementary but equal nature of their marriage, as she claims that the “union must have been to the advantage of both”29 because they could improve each other. Clearly, Austen supports “the precious and difficult principle of equality”30 and has her heroine enter a marriage based on the “civilized conversation between the sexes”.31 Ultimately, then, the relationship between Darcy and Elizabeth is relatively modern in its structure. The equal status of Darcy and Elizabeth is also prominently shown in modern adaptations. The most recent direct adaptation, the 2005 movie, even portrays the marriage between Mr. and Mrs. Bennet in far more favourable terms and shows them in an intimate conversation as equals after Bingley’s proposal to Jane. The marriage of equals between Darcy and Elizabeth also hints at another feature which makes Elizabeth a modern heroine, namely her agency. The question of agency is “of vital interest to feminists”32 since women are often denied agency and are forced into the role of an object in men’s actions and gazes. Thus, the question of whether Elizabeth possesses agency is essential for determining whether she might have the potential to be both a modern and a feminist heroine. At first, women’s agency in Pride and Prejudice seems very limited. In the first chapter, one of the central problems is that “it will be impossible for [the Bennet women] to visit”33 Bingley if Mr. Bennet does not go to call on him first. In Regency England and, thus, in the world of the novel, “women cannot initiate social relationships”.34 They do not have the same agency as men. Elizabeth seems to conform to this social norm and does not 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34

Ibid. 180. Ibid. 288. Ibid. 289. Ibid. 297. Ibid. 237. Clery, E.J. “Gender.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 159–76, 173. Ibid. Clegg, Sue. “The Problem of Agency in Feminism: A Critical Realist Approach.” In: Gender and Education 18,3 (2006): 309–24, 312. Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 2. Castellanos. Laughter, War and Feminism. 120.

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initiate contact at any point in the novel. She reacts rather than starting an action, but the way she responds to her environment subverts this apparent lack of agency. Elizabeth may not initiate actions but she “give[s] her opinion very decidedly for so young a person”35 and does not hesitate to “frankly and openly”36 tell Darcy what she thinks about him, be it positive or negative. She also uses her playfulness as a “license to dominate”,37 to order Darcy to “say something now”38 because it is his turn. By doing so, she openly “refuse[s] the silence and subordination marked out for women”39 and is thus modern in her behaviour. Furthermore, she is not only the object of the male gaze but also assumes a position of agency by gazing at male bodies herself. She “claims the right to judge potential marriage partners on the basis of their looks, […] appropriating [men’s] behaviour”40 by assessing Bingley as “handsome […] which a young man ought to be”.41 The various adaptations also retain this reversal of the male gaze by means of camera angles. For example, “Darcy is repeatedly shown through Elizabeth’s perspective”42 throughout the BBC version, which reinforces Elizabeth’s position as the focalizer and, thus, as a character with agency. The 2005 movie also focuses on the female gaze and has Elizabeth assume the “right to look, to overhear and to perplex”,43 which is traditionally only a male privilege. However, hints of this behaviour are already found in the novel when Elizabeth “overhear[s] a conversation between him and Mr. Bingley”44 and tells the story of her slight “with great spirit”,45 thus subverting the judgment made about her. As can be seen through a close analysis of the novel itself and a comparison to the various adaptations, Pride and Prejudice already attributes several qualities to Elizabeth that justify the continued interest in her character and make her a truly modern heroine. She is shown to be very intelligent and, rather than being a minor addition to her other feminine qualities, her intelligence is her main defining feature. Furthermore, the fact that she is clever and witty also decidedly influences Darcy’s growing appreciation of her. He is first attracted to her be35 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 128. 36 Ibid. 281. 37 Kaplan, Deborah. Jane Austen among Women. Baltimore/London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992. 186. 38 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 69. 39 Kaplan. Jane Austen among Women. 186. 40 Gymnich and Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance.” 32. 41 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 9. 42 Gymnich and Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance.” 37. 43 Todd, Janet. “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–62, 151. 44 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 7. 45 Ibid. 8.

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cause her eyes make her seem intelligent, and he admires her because of “the liveliness of [her] mind”.46 Thus a woman’s mind is deemed more important than her looks. Furthermore, while Elizabeth’s looks do play a role in Pride and Prejudice, they merely serve to underline that a woman’s appearance is not her most important feature because Elizabeth looks merely tolerable and yet manages to find true love. Not only does this preference for mind over beauty identify Elizabeth as a modern heroine, but it also resonates strongly with today’s readers since the pressure to look attractive is still prevalent in our society. The focus on equality in marriage and Elizabeth’s agency are also distinctly modern features. Although the novel is 200 years old, its protagonist is still as current today as she was in Austen’s time, and she promotes values which are still relevant. Despite – or perhaps even because of ? – the traditional romance plot, Elizabeth Bennet remains an important icon of popular culture and a truly modern heroine in her own way.

References Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004 [1813]. Carrol, Laura and John Wiltshire. “Film and Television.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 162–73. Castellanos, Gabriel. Laughter, War and Feminism: Elements of Carnival in Three of Jane Austen’s Novels. New York: Peter Lang, 1994. Clegg, Sue. “The Problem of Agency in Feminism: A Critical Realist Approach.” In: Gender and Education 18,3 (2006): 309–24. Clery, E.J. “Gender.” In: Edward Copeland and Juliet McMaster (eds.). The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011. 159–76. Fielding, Helen. Bridget Jones’s Diary. A Novel. London: Picador, 2001 [1996]. Grange, Amanda. Mr. Darcy, Vampyre. Naperville, Ill.: Sourcebooks Landmark, 2009. Gymnich, Marion and Kathrin Ruhl. “Revisiting the Classical Romance: Pride and Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Bride and Prejudice.” In: Marion Gymnich, Kathrin Ruhl and Klaus Scheunemann (eds.). Gendered (Re)Visions: Constructions of Gender in Audiovisual Media. Göttingen/Bonn: V& R Unipress/Bonn University Press, 2010. 23–44. James, P.D. Death Comes to Pemberley. London: Faber and Faber, 2011. Kaplan, Deborah. Jane Austen among Women. Baltimore/London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992. Knox-Shaw, Peter. “Philosophy.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 27–42. Pride and Prejudice. Simon Langton (director). BBC, 1995. 46 Ibid. 291.

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Pride and Prejudice. Joe Wright (director). Focus Films, 2005. Todd, Janet. “The Romantic Hero.” In: Janet Todd (ed.). The Cambridge Companion to Pride and Prejudice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013. 150–62.

Denise Burkhard and Simone Fleischer

Have a Fan-tastic 200th Birthday, Lizzy! – Elizabeth Bennet in Recent Fan Fiction

How relevant is Jane Austen’s female protagonist from Pride and Prejudice today? A Google search generates almost 400,000 hits for “Elizabeth Bennet fan fiction”. But why is fan fiction a good touchstone in this case? In times of the internet, TV and other new media, fan fiction, which is a main expression of fandom, plays an increasingly significant role for enthusiastic readers and viewers – or in short: fans. A fandom that is lively and thriving is an indicator of the topicality of a text. In fact, Jane Austen fan societies, which produce fan fiction, have been around since the 1920s.1 Given the fact that the internet is the most dynamic and interactive medium today, we decided to use recent fan fiction found online in order to answer the question of whether Lizzy Bennet is a heroine of our times. First of all, we will give a short introduction to fandom and its different forms in contemporary media and define the term ‘fanon’ in contrast to ‘canon’. This will enable us to distinguish between the representation of Lizzy in the fantexts and that of Elizabeth in Austen’s novel. To provide an insight into contemporary fans’ writings, we have selected five recent texts, which will be examined more closely. The aim is to analyse which attributes and characteristics have been borrowed from the original by contemporary fan authors and which ones have been added to the original features given by Jane Austen. We hope to conclude that revisited elements contribute to illuminating fans’ perceptions of a modern Lizzy Bennet. According to Cheryl Harris, the term ‘fandom’ encompasses “fans and their social and cultural environment”.2 These environments include television series, 1 “Laura Hale dates the origin of literary fan fiction to Jane Austen and Sherlock Holmes fan societies in the 1920s, and the origin of media fandom to Star Trek fans in 1967.” Derecho, Abigail. “Archontic Literature: A Definition, a History, and Several Theories of Fan Fiction.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 61–79, 62. 2 Harris, Cheryl and Alison Alexander (eds.). Theorizing Fandom: Fans, Subculture and Identity. Cresskill: Hampton Press, 1998. 3f.

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films, sports, novels, bands or celebrities. Consequently, fandom can be defined as a subculture of fans sharing a common interest, and interacting with the text(s), each other and/or of course each other’s fantexts. Following the advent of the internet, fandom has gained many new formats in addition to the traditional fan fiction published in printed fanzines. These formats include mailing lists, discussion forums, reposted and sometimes even edited visual and audiovisual material, songs and fan-made art inspired by texts – to name but a few examples. In this paper, we will discuss exclusively fan material published on the internet. Furthermore, we will restrict our analysis to Pride and Prejudice-themed fan fiction, which belongs to the subcategory of fantext. Hellekson and Busse state that “[the] fantext, the entirety of stories and critical commentary written in a fandom (or even in a pairing or genre), offers an ever-growing, ever-expanding version of the characters.”3 As we will see, characters’ attributes either stay the same or are enhanced or sometimes even entirely transformed in fantexts. In this context, we will try to describe the ‘fannish’ conception of Elizabeth Bennet, or to be more precise: Fanon!Lizzy. Here we need to explain the term ‘fanon’ as opposed to ‘canon’. In the study of fandom the canon is defined as “the agreed framework through which writers’/ readers’ experiences are translated for other members of the community”4. This makes Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice our canon material. Its opposite is the fanon, which is “a false image of canon, a wish-fulfilment fantasy […]. Fanon is not an inferior interpretation of canon in this light, but a fantasy based on the needs of individual writers rather than the reality established by shared source text.”5 In short, the fanon results from fan-created imaginings, which do not necessarily correspond with the canon. In the following, some recent fanon images of Lizzy Bennet are drawn upon to emphasise the topicality of this famous literary figure. The first text to be examined is a rewriting of Lizzy first meeting Mr Darcy, entitled A Change of Situation.6 After introducing the characters, the author describes an alternative first meeting between two members of the Bennet family and the Darcy family. In this fantext, many of the characteristics which Jane Austen stressed to make her heroine unique are apparent as well. In both texts Elizabeth is characterised as intelligent and witty, fond of entertaining children 3 Busse, Kristina and Karen Hellekson. “Introduction: Work in Progress.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 5–32, 7. 4 Driscoll, Catherine. “One True Pairing: The Romance of Pornography and the Pornography of Romance.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 79–96, 88. 5 Ibid. 6 Althea Snape. A Change of Situation. 2013. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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and quite strongly connected with nature, especially enjoying the freedom she experiences while roaming the parks. Elizabeth is introduced to the reader as having a strong bond with her father ; both of them are very fond of each other and share a sarcastic sense of humour. This is especially prominent in the scene in which father and daughter take a stroll together, commenting on the passersby they see; they both act as observers of human nature and exchange assumptions about their fellow human beings. Elizabeth expresses a keen interest in gossip, but also an aptitude for interpreting people’s appearances, gestures and facial expressions. When they finally reach the park, both of them become aware of a young woman who appears to be on her own: Georgiana Darcy, who joins them by coincidence. In her interaction with Georgiana, it becomes apparent that Lizzy actively seeks to socialise with others, which is shown by Lizzy introducing herself to Georgiana without being prompted to do so. Having noticed Georgiana’s youth and shyness, Lizzy aims to put her at ease by having an amicable conversation about literature. Here, the emphasis is placed on Elizabeth’s interest in literature, just as in Austen’s novel.7 When Mr Darcy arrives, he neither introduces himself nor engages in polite small talk; instead, he ignores Lizzy and her father completely. Once he becomes aware of their presence, he behaves rudely and immediately leaves with Georgiana. This appears to express his pride, which is strongly criticised by Lizzy in the fantext and is of course evident in Austen’s novel as well.8 Another trait that is introduced in the first few paragraphs is Lizzy’s strong bond with nature: after her father revealed that both of them would be having a picnic in a nearby park, Lizzy is “simply happy that she would be outside again.”9 This interest in nature is further enhanced by her refusal to take the carriage to get to the park and her insistence on taking a walk there and enjoying the stroll. This fondness of walking can also be found in the canon text when Lizzy says: “I do not wish to avoid the walk. The distance is nothing, when one has a motive; only three miles.”10 The emphasis on Lizzy’s preference for being outdoors is 7 Cf. “[Elizabeth] was immediately invited to join them; but suspecting them to be playing high she declined it and […] said she would amuse herself for the short time she could stay below with a book.” Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York: Dover Publications, 1995 [1813]. 24. A little later, Miss Bingley even refers to Elizabeth as being a “great reader”. Cf. ibid. 8 Cf. “ ‘ That is very true’, replied Elizabeth, ‘and I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine.’ ” Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 12. and: “She [Elizabeth] went on. ‘From the very beginning, from the first moment I may almost say, of my acquaintance with you, your manners, impressing me with the fullest belief of your arrogance, your conceit, and your selfish disdain of the feelings of others […].’ ” Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 131. 9 Althea Snape. A Change of Situation. Chapter 2. (accessed 18 November, 2013). 10 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 21.

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kept up until the end of the text when Lizzy expresses her hope of meeting Miss Darcy again in the park as it has already become a favourite place of hers (although it is her first visit to the location). By scheduling the next meeting with Georgiana outside, she avoids invading her privacy and hopes to meet both Darcys again. She has observed that Georgiana is a lovely companion but not old enough to be outside alone; so she will probably have to be accompanied by Mr Darcy again, who, despite his rudeness towards Lizzy and her father during their first encounter, has impressed Lizzy with his stature and by radiating a power which attracts her attention and even fascinates her. In the course of the story the reader encounters another trait already known from Austen’s canon text: Elizabeth’s wit and ‘snark’11, which often shows in the headstrong expression of her opinion: When Lizzy and her father silently return home, they decide to spend time in the library. Lizzy, who is still thinking about Mr Darcy’s inappropriate behaviour when he refused to shake Mr Bennet’s hand and looked upon the two Bennets with disdain, suddenly closes her book, and complains: “Who does he think he is?”12 She exclaims: “Why should that [the love for his sister] allow him to treat us the way he did?”13 While waiting for her father’s answer she tries to cope with the event and judges Mr Darcy and his superior position in society unfavourably. These questions also serve to highlight her one-sided interpretation of the character. Instead of trying to understand Mr Darcy’s behaviour by taking into consideration an older brother’s or in this case almost paternal or guardian’s point of view, she insists on an implied code of manners, which was certainly familiar to Austen’s contemporaries. Yet once her father explains his view and the worries Mr Darcy might have had, Lizzy acknowledges that her father is right and understands that “[l]ove manifests itself differently in different people”.14 Consequently, Lizzy may not be as snarky as Elizabeth in the canon text, but the idea still resonates in the fantext. While A Change of Situation is still very close to the original, the next text to be analysed goes more clearly beyond the plot of Austen’s novel. Entitled Scenes from the Life of Mr and Mrs Darcy,15 this fantext glimpses at situations that happen shortly before and after the wedding of Lizzy and Mr Darcy. The first chapter is the only one that is set before their wedding. Familiar characteristics 11 A blend of ‘snide’ and ‘remark’ according to the online slang dictionary Urban Dictionary, this informal and chiefly North American term describes crotchetiness and sarcasm in tone and content according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as well as “snide and sharply critical” remarks according to the Oxford Dictionaries. 12 Althea Snape. A Change of Situation. Chapter 3. (accessed 18 November, 2013). 13 Ibid. 14 Ibid. 15 ProudScrivener. Scenes from the Life of Mr and Mrs Darcy. 2011. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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such as Lizzy’s ‘lively spirit’, her eagerness to be the one in control and her ‘audacity’ are revisited and emphasised in this fantext. In the following chapters, the central topic is the couple’s growing love. The author presents a passionate love affair with more or less explicit depictions of physical love, ranging from kissing to bedchamber scenes. The physical dimension of the relationship between Lizzy and Darcy can for instance be seen in the following scene: ‘I will miss you,’ she said, unhappily anticipating the lonely days ahead. Georgiana would be a pleasant enough companion, but Elizabeth would still yearn for the meeting of minds that characterized her marriage to Mr. Darcy. ‘And I you,’ he replied, leaning to kiss her. When she responded eagerly to the pressure of his lips, he drew back.16

There is one general trend which can be observed in a large portion of Pride and Prejudice fan fiction: the tendency to construct a passionate love affair between Darcy and Elizabeth. Both characters are painted as a loving couple trying to get used to one another and married life in a time when interactions between men and women not related by blood or marriage were rather formal. In this fan text, said formality is signified by the characters’ usage of each other’s names. Instead of calling each other by pet names or by abbreviations of their first names, Elizabeth consistently uses ‘Fitzwilliam’, while her husband uses ‘Elizabeth’, except on one occasion when he abbreviates her name to ‘Lizzy’. By doing this, the author indicates a certain distance and politeness in their interaction. Apart from this, however, Elizabeth and Mr Darcy’s marriage is portrayed in terms of a modern notion of partnership. Due to the rigid gender roles and moral codes of Austen’s time, it would not have been appropriate to describe physical aspects of love in a novel like Pride and Prejudice. Authors today, however, have this freedom and include the rather modern notion of the female right to express sexual desires in their texts. Nevertheless, passion and sexuality are generally described as being equally shared by Elizabeth and Mr Darcy. While, on the one hand, sexuality is described as being shared by both, the gender roles, on the other hand, are not really modern. Mr Darcy wants Lizzy to be obedient and subordinate (in accordance with the traditional gender roles), but she transgresses her role in many ways. Her wish to act independently is suppressed by Mr Darcy, and her opinions are often rejected. All the same, Darcy concludes: “ ‘ You have ever been firm in your opinions […] and never hesitant to express them.’ ” 17 He seems to be fully aware that he married a rather independent woman. This independence shows itself not only in her thoughts, but also in her actions. An example of this can be seen when Mr Darcy tells her about an issue with his tenant, Mr Warren, shortly before he has to leave for Cheshire: 16 Ibid. Chapter 2. (accessed 18 November, 2013). 17 Ibid. Chapter 9. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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Mr Warren is behind with payments and will be evicted if he is unable to pay the money. After Elizabeth met Mr Warren and heard his excuse, she decides to pay the rent for him from the money Mr Darcy left “as a gift to buy a new dress for the upcoming ball”.18 On the one hand, this action highlights Lizzy’s altruistic nature as well as her independent thinking. On the other hand, it implies her mistrust regarding Mr Darcy’s judgement and his reasons for evicting Mr Warren – which later culminates in a heated discussion between husband and wife. This discussion also emphasises Mr Darcy’s desire to have a wife who accepts a subordinate role. Consequently, the characteristics of Lizzy in this particular fantext can be seen as a continuation of Austen’s novel, but also as an expansion of the earlier characterization, as Lizzy here puts into action what she only expressed in words and thoughts in Austen’s novel. Apart from the aforementioned characteristics, two other traits already present in Canon!Elizabeth stand out. The first is Elizabeth’s education, which is referred to in a scene when Mr Darcy asks her if she is “reading the bard’s sonnets yet again?”,19 alluding to William Shakespeare of course. Mr Darcy’s wording indicates that this might be a regular occupation and that Shakespeare might be one of her favourite writers. It stands to reason that she is reading Shakespeare’s famous love sonnets since she replies: “Well apparently I must if I am to enjoy some romantic address at all”.20 This suggests that both Fanon!Lizzy and Canon!Elizabeth yearn for romance in their lives. The second trait that is known from the original text is her eloquence, which is shown in battles of wit with her husband, which range from teasing remarks to sophisticated expressions of her opinion, for which Canon!Darcy loves Canon!Elizabeth. In addition to reinforcing characteristics which are known from the canon text, this fantext focuses on new problems for Lizzy as well. She is not only described as a young, independent, humorous and confident woman, but also as feeling insecure about being the mistress of Pemberley : When Mr Darcy silently enters the bathroom with Lizzy in the bathtub, he makes the chambermaid leave the room and surprises his wife with kisses on the shoulder. Instead of being happy about the return of her husband, Lizzy is worrying about her reputation and possible gossip. Lizzy’s worries about her new social role are an ongoing and recurring topic in many rewritings or expansions of the canon text, as we can see in the next example. Lizzy’s determination and her desire for freedom are again strongly emphasised in our next example of fan fiction, called Sleeping Arrangements.21 18 19 20 21

Ibid. Chapter 2. (accessed 18 November, 2013). Ibid. Chapter 5. (accessed 18 November, 2013). Ibid. Chapter 5. (accessed 18 November, 2013). Katie500. Sleeping Arrangements. 2012. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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Here, the relationship between Lizzy and Darcy is depicted in a way that would not have been approved of by Austen’s contemporaries. The fantext highlights that society regards Lizzy as a most unfortunate match for Mr Darcy because of her inferior birth and lack of fortune. In the fantext, the marriage of Lizzy and Mr Darcy causes a stir in society, although Lizzy is generally regarded as “lovely, […] pretty and charming, though maybe a little too intelligent for some people’s tastes.”22 By being a progressive and modern woman who dislikes being submissive to and dependent on her husband, she does not meet society’s expectations. These expectations are both of a general nature (what should an ideal wife be like?) and more specific (society expects Lizzy to conform to the stereotype of the “meek country mouse with no idea of manners or fashion”).23 Yet Lizzy’s own perspective differs greatly ; she sees herself as perfectly capable of coping with her new role: As for her manners, people who spend too much time in town always tend to exaggerate the country and forget that it is not quite the back of beyond, as they say. But really Elizabeth’s saving grace when faced with the matrons of society was the determination not to be intimidated. Elizabeth was a strong believer in putting on a brave face even if you’re shaking like a leaf inside. If she had shown a shred of fear those women would have eaten her alive. She was determined to prove that she was worthy of her role as Mrs Darcy, mistress of Pemberley.24

It is obvious that Lizzy is still considering her countenance and reputation within society. Therefore, she tries to appear as a confident woman who is standing up against prejudices imposed on her by society, but who nonetheless pursues her own way of life. This is evident in her relationship with Mr Darcy, which resembles a twenty-first century concept of a partnership with both partners being equals in all regards – from expression of opinion to sexuality – as opposed to the traditional nineteenth-century notion of marriage. Interestingly, both positions can be found in the text, which adds a comic layer to the fan fiction and makes the two views clash. When Lizzy’s maid Sophie hurries to her mistress’ room, she finds Mr Darcy and Lizzy sleeping and sharing the same bed. She then tells Mary, another servant: “I’ve walked in to find the master and mistress asleep together!”25 Especially the italicised “together” suggests that sharing the same bed for something beyond a married couple’s conjugal duties is considered unseemly and outrageous by Sophie. While nowadays this situation would be perfectly normal, it causes the housemaids to gossip. This, however, does not seem to disturb Lizzy and Mr Darcy in the 22 23 24 25

Ibid. Chapter 1. (accessed 18 November, 2013). Ibid. Ibid. Ibid. Chapter 1. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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slightest when Mr Darcy informs Lizzy that they were caught by Sophie and “thoroughly shocked” her “by letting her catch [them] in such a state”.26 Instead of being ashamed of what happened, Lizzy concludes that Sophie might be embarrassed and unable to look at her without blushing, which proves true in the end. Although Lizzy is characterised as the second-prettiest of the Bennet sisters, her beauty plays an important part in her canon description when Sir William introduces Elizabeth to Mr Darcy : “Mr. Darcy, you must allow me to present this young lady to you as a very desirable partner. You cannot refuse to dance, I am sure, when so much beauty is before you.”27 This is picked up again in her description in the fan fiction at hand: When Mr Darcy recognises that stroking Lizzy’s face does not “wake his sleeping beauty he tried true love’s kiss, which proved to be more successful.”28 The fairy tale reference to Sleeping Beauty implicitly stresses her graceful and pretty looks. This image is enhanced when Darcy compares her to an angel while Lizzy is asleep, attributing both innocence and beauty to her – which is a twist on the initial description of Elizabeth in the novel when Mr Darcy scornfully concludes: “She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me”.29 Although it is the “liveliness of her mind”30 rather than her physical beauty that attracts him to her, as Mr Darcy admits at the end of the canon description, her beauty becomes a revisited feature in fanon descriptions of Lizzy Bennet, thus arguably casting the female protagonist in a somewhat more conventional role. Rewritings and expansions of Austen’s canonical text are not the only format that fan fiction can take: it also includes crossovers31 with contemporary TV series, novels and films, or more radical transformations of the characters or the plot. There are a number of crossovers and adaptations which plunge the familiar protagonists into new settings or offer a new and exciting twist. One of the most noteworthy examples is a crossover with the American TV crime series Bones (2005-), called Biases and Bones32, in which Elizabeth Bennet is transformed into Seeley Booth, one of the main characters of the TV series, who is a male FBI agent. Against all expectations, Elizabeth is not cast in the female role of Temperance, but in the male one: (S)he is described as a quick26 27 28 29 30 31

Ibid. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. 17. Katie500. Sleeping Arrangements. Chapter 1. (accessed 18 November, 2013). Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. 7. Ibid. 256. Cf. the following definition: “Crossover, combining two different sets of character from two media sources into a single story (as in a Buffy the Vampire Slayer/X-Files crossover).” Busse and Hellekson. “Introduction: Work in Progress.” 11. 32 Elizabeth (angjaraine). Biases and Bones. 2009. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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witted young man who is introduced to Fitzwilliam Darcy, a female version of Mr Darcy who takes on the role of the other main character in the TV series, forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. Yet, the outward resemblance to Canon!Elizabeth is at least retained by introducing her/him as a “dark-eyed man”, which draws upon the canonical description of “the beautiful expression of her dark eyes”33 and also fits the appearance of David Boreanaz, the actor playing Seeley Booth, who has dark brown eyes. The character of Darcy retains a number of his familiar characteristics as well, especially his alleged pride: when it is suggested that the FBI and the Jeffersonian Institute cooperate, Darcy’s reaction is rather unamiable and arrogant. Agent Bennet is cast in the intellectually inferior role; in other words, she lacks most of the traits that are characteristic of Elizabeth from the canon text. But it seems likely that the similarity between the two pairs – Elizabeth and Darcy vs. Temperance and Seeley – both of which feature very similar tensions and ‘chemistry’, may have evoked this crossover between Austen’s text and a current TV series. Temperance and Seeley’s prejudices against each other and the slowly growing understanding between the rational anthropologist and the emotional FBI agent are at the centre of the first seasons, giving rise to a character constellation which resembles the main couple’s love plot in Pride and Prejudice. Casting Mr Darcy in the role of the rational Temperance Brennan allows the conclusion that Lizzy plays the part of the emotional character of Seeley Booth. Although Elizabeth may appear to try figuring out things on a rational basis in Austen’s text, her reactions and ways of thinking are certainly affected by emotions. On the other hand, Mr Darcy seems unable to show his emotions and appears as callous as Dr Brennan did in the first seasons of Bones. Taking all of this into account, the parallels between the initial situation of both novel and TV show as well as between the character concepts and plot and character development allow for an interesting and convincing gender switch in this example of fan fiction. Another interesting example is a crossover with J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. In Pride, Prejudice and Wizardry,34 the Bennet sisters (excluding Kitty) are transformed into inhabitants of the magical world of Harry Potter, attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as modern-day young witches. This story borrows elements specifically from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, such as the Triwizard Tournament and the inclusion of fellow European wizarding schools, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. For the most part the characters retain their familiar attitudes and characteristics – for example, Mary is still a rather dull bookworm who lacks understanding of anything considered fun. Lizzy, true to her character in Austen’s novel, is determined and courageous. 33 Austen. Pride and Prejudice. 15. 34 Secretshipper. Pride, Prejudice and Wizardry. 2013. (accessed 18 November, 2013).

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Paralleling Austen’s Elizabeth, who walks several miles to visit her ill sister Jane, the fan author’s Lizzy is not afraid of physically exerting herself: she plays Quidditch for her house, a magical sport involving flying broomsticks and bewitched balls, which can at times be very brutal. This aspect of her personality is emphasised in the context of the upcoming Triwizard tournament, for which Lizzy “desperately want[s] to try out”.35 She is not only presented as being capable of these tasks but also as being intelligent enough to successfully participate in the tournament – even if it means receiving several injuries and subsequently spending time in the hospital wing “covered head to toe in bandages, being drip fed Skelegro Potion”.36 Resembling Harry’s recovery from the rogue Bludger in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the connection between physical strain and Quidditch is highlighted once more: “ ‘ You’re in for a rough night’, she [Madam Pomfrey, the nurse] said, pouring a streaming beakerful [of Skele-Gro] and handing it to him. ‘Regrowing bones is a nasty business.’ ” 37 Fully aware of the hazards, Fanon!Lizzy is willing to risk pain and even the loss of some of her bones in order to compete in the tournament. Although the text focuses on Lizzy’s characteristics in particular, an additional layer of the canon text has found its way into this fan fiction: the tense relationship between Lizzy and her mother. Here, Mrs Bennet boasts about Lizzy’s eight Outstanding OWLs in front of Mrs Lucas while Lizzy intervenes in the embarrassing situation. Her sister Jane is Lizzy’s closest confidant in this crossover and the only character she lets in on her secret wish to participate in the tournament, whereas Mary and Lydia’s awkward and childish demeanour causes Lizzy to remain aloof and keep her secrets from them. As we have seen, both of our exemplary crossover fan works highlight Lizzy’s unladylike behaviour, such as willingly taking the risk of getting herself completely dirty, her headstrongness and her sharp and sometimes cruel tongue, which link Lizzy to Elizabeth. All in all, one can say that the depiction of Fanon!Lizzy is indeed very closely based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Most of the characteristics and attributes given to Elizabeth Bennet can be found in the fantexts as well – such as her connection to nature, the bond with her father and her liveliness. However, the fantexts go beyond the depiction of Canon!Elizabeth in several respects: She challenges Darcy’s comments more directly, provokes him in many ways and has battles of wit with him. Gender roles and attitudes towards sexuality are sometimes (completely) revised to further adapt the figure of Elizabeth to our times. Moreover, it is highlighted that Lizzy is not 35 Ibid. 36 Ibid. 37 Rowling, Joanne K. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. London: Bloomsbury, 1998. 131.

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willing to conform to society’s expectations, unless they happen to coincide with her own self-image: She is, in a sense, depicted as a rebel within her own society, and any setting she is placed into. Even fantexts going beyond a mere rewriting or continuation of Austen’s romance, in which the characters are transferred into “alternate universes”,38 often offer obvious intertextual references or equip other characters with Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s very distinct features. By borrowing elements from Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and possibly other source texts, fan authors transfer the characters to diverse environments, thus creating hybrid forms of canon/fanon texts. As evidenced, the character of Lizzy is still very lively and dynamic in contemporary fan fiction. This is due to the characteristics she displays in the original text which correspond very much to modern ideals of femininity, such as intelligence, confidence, strength of will, and congeniality. These are very appealing to a contemporary readership and make Elizabeth easy to identify with. This encourages fans to shift, project and adapt her personality to a different time, or an alternate universe. Canon!Elizabeth’s ongoing popularity in both fandom and pop culture and her countless rebirths as Fanon!Lizzy prove that she still very much occupies the minds and fantasies of today’s fandom, making her indeed a modern heroine.

References Althea Snape. A Change of Situation. 2013. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8997227/1/AChange-of-Situation (accessed 18 November, 2013). Anon. “Snarky : Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary.” 2014. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/snarky (accessed 29 July, 2014). Anon. “Snarky : Definition of snarky in Oxford Dictionary (British & World English).” 2014. http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/snarky (accessed 29 July, 2014). Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York: Dover Publications, 1995 [1813]. Busse, Kristina and Karen Hellekson. “Introduction: Work in Progress.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 5–32. Derecho, Abigail. “Archontic Literature: A Definition, a History, and Several Theories of Fan Fiction.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 61–78. Driscoll, Catherine. “One True Pairing: The Romance of Pornography and the Por38 “AU, or alternate universe, where familiar characters are dropped into a new setting (which, depending on the media source, may or may not be canonical, because many of the source texts have fantastical components and not a few have played with multiverses).” Busse and Hellekson. “Introduction: Work in Progress.” 11.

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nography of Romance.” In: Karen Hellekson and Kristina Busse (eds.). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. Jefferson: McFarland, 2006. 79–97. Elizabeth (angjaraine). Biases and Bones. 2009. http://archiveofourown.org/works/ 134207 (accessed 18 November, 2013). Harris, Cheryl and Alison Alexander (eds.). Theorizing Fandom: Fans, Subculture and Identity. Cresskill: Hampton Press, 1998. Katie500. Sleeping Arrangements. 2012. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8507567/1/Sleep ing-Arrangements (accessed 18 November, 2013). ProudScrivener. Scenes from the Life of Mr and Mrs Darcy. 2011. https://www.fanfic tion.net/s/7438566/1/Scenes-from-the-Life-of-Mr-and-Mrs-Darcy (accessed 18 November, 2013). Rowling, Joanne K. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. London: Bloomsbury, 1998. Secretshipper. Pride, Prejudice and Wizardry. 2013. http://archiveofourown.org/works/ 711527 (accessed 18 November, 2013). Tootybug47. “Urban Dictionary : snark.” 2004. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define. php?term=snark (accessed 24 July, 2014).

Contributors

Elena Baeva studied English, American and German Literature at the University of Bonn and is currently completing her PhD thesis on “Metafictional Elements in Contemporary Literary Texts and Audiovisual Media”. Her research interests include contemporary literature, audiovisual media, metafiction and Gothic fiction. Uwe Baumann is Full Professor (Chair) of English Literatures and Cultures at the University of Bonn. His research interests include literary and cultural theories, English Humanism, the theatre of Shakespeare and his contemporaries, the Victorian novel, the historical novel (esp. 20th century), the crime novel, translation history as history of reception, modern popular literature and culture (esp. football, comics). His publications (11 monographs, 12 edited essay collections, 11 exhibition catalogues and translated books, 175 essays and articles in scholarly journals and essay collections) include Die Antike in den Epigrammen und Briefen Sir Thomas Mores (1984), Thomas Morus, Humanistische Schriften (1986), Heinrich VIII. mit Selbstzeugnissen und Bilddokumenten (1991), Vorausdeutung und Tod im englischen Römerdrama der Renaissance (1564–1642) (1996), Shakespeare und seine Zeit (1998), Kleopatra (2003). Recent publications: Warren Tufts, Lance: Ein Western-Epos, 5 vols., (Bonn: Bocola, 2011–2013) and Autobiographie: Eine interdisziplinäre Gattung zwischen klassischer Tradition und (post-)moderner Variation (Göttingen: Bonn University Press, 2013). Hanne Birk studied English and German Literatures and Cultures as well as Philosophy in Freiburg and at Brock University, Ontario, Canada. 2003–2005: research assistant in the Collaborative Research Centre ‘Memory Cultures’ (University of Giessen); 2008: PhD thesis (AlterNative Memories: Kulturspezifische Inszenierungen von Erinnerung in zeitgenössischen Romanen indigener Autor/inn/en Australiens, Kanadas und Aotearoas/Neuseelands, Trier : WVT); 2007–2009: research and work stay in London, UK and Heraklion, Crete; since

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2012: postdoc researcher at the Department of English, American, and Celtic Studies, University of Bonn. Her research and publications focus on Indigenous literatures and cultures, postcolonial theories, Pacific literatures, narratologies and memory studies. Bettina Burger studied English Literatures, Linguistics and Cultures as well as History at the Ruprecht-Karls-University, Heidelberg, where she wrote her B.A. thesis on Tolkien in 2012. She then completed the M.Sc. programme “Literature and Society : Enlightenment, Romanticism and Victorian Literature” with a thesis on Morality in Children’s Literature at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, in 2013. She is currently participating in the MA programmes “English Literatures and Cultures” as well as “History” at the University of Bonn. Since 2014, she has been reviewing young adult literature on alliteratus.com. Denise Burkhard studied English Studies, History and Educational Sciences at the University of Bonn and completed her B.A. thesis on Tolkien in 2014. She is currently participating in the MA programme “English Literatures and Cultures” in Bonn. Since 2010, she has been regularly reviewing children’s books and young adult literature on alliteratus.com. Stella Butter studied English, German and History in Mannheim and at Stirling University, Scotland. She worked for several years at the University of Giessen (2003–2008), first in the capacity of teaching assistant at the English Department and later as the manager of the International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture and as a programme coordinator for its International PhD Programme (IPP) ‘Literary and Cultural Studies’. 2007: PhD thesis (Literatur als Medium kultureller Selbstreflexion); 2012: Habilitation (post-doctoral degree; Kontingenz und Literatur im Prozess der Modernisierung: Diagnosen und Umgangsstrategien im britischen Roman des 19.–21. Jahrhunderts). Since 2008: Assistant Professor at the English Department of Mannheim University ; winter term 2014: Acting Professor at the English Department, Kiel University. In her research and publications she explores how literature and film respond to and shape processes of modernisation. Simone Fleischer is currently completing her B.A. in “English Studies” at the University of Bonn. Marion Gymnich is Professor of English Literature and Culture at the University of Bonn. She studied English, German and Slavic Studies at the University of Cologne; she holds a PhD in English Literary Studies from the University of Cologne and did postdoctoral research at the University of Giessen, where she

Contributors

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was coordinator of the International PhD Program ‘Literary and Cultural Studies’ (funded by the DAAD). She was visiting lecturer at the University of Łodz and visiting professor at the University of Graz. She has published widely on British literature from the nineteenth century to the present, postcolonial literature, genre theory, narrative theory, gender studies, audiovisual media and memory studies. Her publications include Entwürfe weiblicher Identität im englischen Frauenroman des 20. Jahrhunderts (Trier : WVT, 2000), Metasprachliche Reflexionen und sprachliche Gestaltungsmittel im englischsprachigen postkolonialen und interkulturellen Roman (Trier : WVT, 2007), Charlotte BrontÚ: Jane Eyre; Emily BrontÚ: Wuthering Heights (Stuttgart/Weimar : Klett, 2007). Marie-Josefine Joisten studied English Literature, Law and Philosophy at the University of Bonn, and the University of Sheffield, UK. Since 2013 she has worked as a research assistant at the University of Cologne. She is currently writing her PhD thesis on Passion, Pain and Shame – Single Motherhood and its Reflexion in British Literature from Victorian to Contemporary Times at the University of Bonn. Uwe Küchler has been Juniorprofessor for the Teaching of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) at the University of Bonn since 2013. He studied at Berlin’s Humboldt-University, the University of London’s Goldsmiths’ College (UK) and at Georgetown University in Washington DC. Küchler was a member of a Postgraduate College at the University of Dortmund. He has worked as Assistant Professor at the Unversity of Halle-Wittenberg and, avocationally, taught English at a Secondary School (German Gymnasium). His research interests include skills / multiple literacies as well as the teaching of literature, film and media in EFL. In his PhD thesis he pursued questions of intercultural learning and teaching in the context of higher education (Interkulturelle Hochschullehre, 2007). Currently, he is working on a book project that explores ecological issues in TEFL teaching. Imke Lichterfeld studied English Literature, Linguistics, and History at the University of Bonn and in Aberdeen. In 2009 she completed her PhD thesis on “‘When the bad bleeds’ – Mantic Elements and their Function in English Renaissance Revenge Tragedy”. Her research predominantly focuses on Early Modern English drama but she has worked and taught on various subjects at Bonn University and Linn¦universitet, Växjö (Sweden). Currently, she holds a position as Studies Coordinator at the Department of English, American and Celtic Studies at the University of Bonn.

326

Contributors

Silke Meyer studied English Studies and Political Sciences at Heinrich-HeineUniversity (HHU) Düsseldorf. After her Magistra Artium (MA) in 1997 she became Graduate Assistant at the Department of English Studies, HHU Düsseldorf. In 2000 she changed places and became Research Assistant at the Department of English Studies, Bonn University. From 2000 to 2003 she furthermore was an elected member of the board of the German Shakespeare Society. After completing her PhD in 2006 (with a thesis on “Checkpoint Shakespeare – Shakespeare-Rezeption in Deutschland als deutsche Nationsgeschichte 1945–1990”) she became lecturer (Akademische Rätin) and since 2013 she has been Senior Lecturer (Akademische Oberrätin) at Bonn University. Her teaching and research focus on British and American pop culture, Modern and Postmodern literature, New English Literatures and Postcolonial Studies, women’s literature, gender studies and identity studies. Gislind Rohwer-Happe studied English Literatures and Cultures, Political Sciences as well as Sociology at the University of Bonn and in Toulouse, France. 2001–2012: research assistant at the Department of English, American, and Celtic Studies, University of Bonn. 2011: completion of PhD thesis (Unreliable Narration im dramatischen Monolog des Viktorianismus. Formen und Konzepte). Since 2012: lecturer at the Department of English, American, and Celtic Studies, Bonn. Her research and publications focus on Victorian poetry, Edwardian literature, girlhood fiction and narratology. Nadezˇda (Nadja) Rumjanceva studied English and American Studies and Art History at the Universities of Bonn and Edinburgh. After an extensive research stay at the University of Tel Aviv, she completed her doctoral thesis Roots in the Air : Construction of Identity in Anglophone Israeli Literature in 2014. She has taught English Literature at the Universities of Bonn and Tel Aviv and her research interests include Transculturalism, nineteenth-century literature and sports literature. In addition, she has founded the Refugee Running Club at the Tel Aviv African Refugee Development Center and has published a number of poems and opinion pieces. Ulrike Zimmermann works at the English Department and the Collaborative Research Center 948 (“Heroes – Heroizations – Heroisms”) at the University of Freiburg. She holds a PhD in English Literature and is the author of Comic Elements in Women’s Novels of Development from the 1960s to the 1980s. She has published on medial strategies of heroization, on the comic historiographies of the Duke of Wellington, and on Gothic affinities in metaphysical poetry. Her research interests include intersections of literature and science, the literary

Contributors

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supernatural, and contemporary British fiction. She is currently working on a study of popularizations of the eighteenth century.