Thursday, November 26, 2009
Why just the one?
Why do you think only one letter (the first one, from Isabel) is written by someone other than Laura? I mean, for a novel in letters, one would expect multiple letter writers! Was this supposed to be a commentary on Laura's self-centeredness? It's all about me! Or just an admission that her silly letters admitted of no reply?
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Yes, I had wondered that too, kc! I took it as more of the self-centeredness angle, which leaves us wondering about the truth of such a one-sided account. I would have loved a letter from Augusta, maybe, or even Marianne back to Laura ... what is she like as a character?
ReplyDeleteYeah, I took it as evidence of Laura's long-windedness in talking about herself. It would have been interesting to hear Marianne's reactions. I'm also picturing a letter from Isabel to Marianne giving her own take on Laura's many misfortunes.
ReplyDelete(Just as an aside, "Pamela" is all letters from Pamela to her parents. Hearing only one side of things certainly affects the story.)
Now that you mention it, Erin, I do remember how one-sided Pamela was. Maybe that's why I couldn't take it seriously!
ReplyDeleteSo let me get this straight. "Pamela" is an epistolary novel written by a man and ALL the letters in it are by his female creation? Oh brother. I'm sure there is no greater expert on the innner life of women than some 18th century British dude.
ReplyDeleteOh hon, you have no idea. The whole book is about her "virtue."
ReplyDeleteAck! I'm so delighted I slipped by with an English degree without being subjected to 1,000-plus pages of that! Few things nauseate me more than the equation of female virtue with the presence of a hymen.
ReplyDeleteIck.