Caroline Bingley, mean girl
My husband is stretched out on the couch reading Pride and Prejudice.
He just laughed and read a line aloud to me.
I'm a lucky lady. :D
Funnily enough I've been reading P&P fanfic lately. Really liked this fanfic which is from Caroline Bingley's perspective. This will not be surprising to anyone who knows of my love for Pansy from HP, but I have a weakness for mean, selfish girls in fiction. They have to show some kind of hint of human feeling--Pansy's for Draco, Caroline's for Darcy and her sister--no complete monsters please (I have no affection for Umbridge, for example). I do like for them to receive some comeuppance (particularly if it's natural consequences of their actions), but to be redeemed at least in some sense and have their own happiness.
Mean, selfish males frequently get redeemed, especially in fanfiction, so I don't see why mean girls can't get the same chance.
Comment from the couch, with disgust: "Pfff. Reverend Collins just showed up."
I think part of why I like mean girls is that I have a sense that I could easily be one. There is an ambitious, narcissistic little harpy at my core, kept in check through a combination of religion, natural empathy, and life experience.
But sometimes I like to read a story where the little harpy is allowed out, and somehow makes good anyway.
"Sometimes I just want to reach into the pages, grab Reverend Collins by the collar, and throttle him."
"Yes dear."
"Are you typing about me?"
"I won't post without your permission."
"Don't post anything about me! Give me some pretensions to manhood."
"(giggling) But it's so cute!"
"(muttering and going back to the book) I'm going to throw things at you."
Incidentally, I think Caroline Bingley has a touch of natural empathy too. There is something very puzzling to the scene in which she warns Elizabeth off of Wickham, because it's 100% against Caroline's interests. Is she too stupid to see that if Elizabeth attaches herself to Wickham, that will remove her as a rival? I don't think so. I think it was "kindly meant" indeed, in her own contemptuous fashion.
He just laughed and read a line aloud to me.
I'm a lucky lady. :D
Funnily enough I've been reading P&P fanfic lately. Really liked this fanfic which is from Caroline Bingley's perspective. This will not be surprising to anyone who knows of my love for Pansy from HP, but I have a weakness for mean, selfish girls in fiction. They have to show some kind of hint of human feeling--Pansy's for Draco, Caroline's for Darcy and her sister--no complete monsters please (I have no affection for Umbridge, for example). I do like for them to receive some comeuppance (particularly if it's natural consequences of their actions), but to be redeemed at least in some sense and have their own happiness.
Mean, selfish males frequently get redeemed, especially in fanfiction, so I don't see why mean girls can't get the same chance.
Comment from the couch, with disgust: "Pfff. Reverend Collins just showed up."
I think part of why I like mean girls is that I have a sense that I could easily be one. There is an ambitious, narcissistic little harpy at my core, kept in check through a combination of religion, natural empathy, and life experience.
But sometimes I like to read a story where the little harpy is allowed out, and somehow makes good anyway.
"Sometimes I just want to reach into the pages, grab Reverend Collins by the collar, and throttle him."
"Yes dear."
"Are you typing about me?"
"I won't post without your permission."
"Don't post anything about me! Give me some pretensions to manhood."
"(giggling) But it's so cute!"
"(muttering and going back to the book) I'm going to throw things at you."
Incidentally, I think Caroline Bingley has a touch of natural empathy too. There is something very puzzling to the scene in which she warns Elizabeth off of Wickham, because it's 100% against Caroline's interests. Is she too stupid to see that if Elizabeth attaches herself to Wickham, that will remove her as a rival? I don't think so. I think it was "kindly meant" indeed, in her own contemptuous fashion.