Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell
Just finished Wives and Daughters for a book group I'm part of.
My thoughts:
If you like Jane Austen at all, this is a must read. It hits home in discussing female sensibilities, attaches us to the main character (Molly), and uses vivid description to paint a beautiful (if perhaps impossible) world.
I'd never read Gaskell before a few days ago. What really impresses me about her is the way she addresses the changing issues of the day--marriage for love rather than rank, changing social classes, what commitment means, new urges in science, and the preconceived notions we have of people. She makes endless commentary, but manages to do so in a way that does not try to force a particular didactic message.
What makes Molly an engaging character is that while she has certain defining characteristics (extreme loyalty, somewhat outspoken, and generally self-sacrificing) she is in many ways an "everywoman." She is like each of us--trying to find her way, and not quite sure what she's doing.
It's not the fastest read because of the density of description--for example, much of the first 100 pages introduces characters who we don't realize will be extremely important later in the novel--but it's well worth the effort.
The only lamentable part about this book is that Gaskell died before writing the last chapter. It's rather annoying to read an editor's 3 page summary of the notes Gaskell had made for the last chapter instead of getting to experience it in Gaskell's rich language.
Writing lessons:
It really does pay off to take the time to develop your characters. I feel like I know each of the people in her book, and that's what really makes this story matter to me. In regards to this book, character trumps plot and is the determining factor.
While Gaskell's omniscient narrator largely focuses on Molly, a beautiful complexity is created by our realization as readers between the difference of what the narrator knows, understands and thinks and what Molly realizes. We trust the narrator because of her interest in Molly, and her foreknowledge of what is going to happen to Molly which leads her to focus on particular details. However, making a difference between their knowledge engages us on a deeper level--we must interpret Molly and her understanding.
It's okay to incriminate your reader. For example, at the beginning of the book we love Osbourne... then we begin to hate him. By the end of the book we feel bad that we ever hated him, just as his father does. We are incriminated in our feelings towards a character, which makes us go through the same experiences of discovery as the other characters. Similar things happen in regards to our feelings towards Cynthia, and with my changing understanding of Lady Harriot.
My thoughts:
If you like Jane Austen at all, this is a must read. It hits home in discussing female sensibilities, attaches us to the main character (Molly), and uses vivid description to paint a beautiful (if perhaps impossible) world.
I'd never read Gaskell before a few days ago. What really impresses me about her is the way she addresses the changing issues of the day--marriage for love rather than rank, changing social classes, what commitment means, new urges in science, and the preconceived notions we have of people. She makes endless commentary, but manages to do so in a way that does not try to force a particular didactic message.
What makes Molly an engaging character is that while she has certain defining characteristics (extreme loyalty, somewhat outspoken, and generally self-sacrificing) she is in many ways an "everywoman." She is like each of us--trying to find her way, and not quite sure what she's doing.
It's not the fastest read because of the density of description--for example, much of the first 100 pages introduces characters who we don't realize will be extremely important later in the novel--but it's well worth the effort.
The only lamentable part about this book is that Gaskell died before writing the last chapter. It's rather annoying to read an editor's 3 page summary of the notes Gaskell had made for the last chapter instead of getting to experience it in Gaskell's rich language.
Writing lessons:
It really does pay off to take the time to develop your characters. I feel like I know each of the people in her book, and that's what really makes this story matter to me. In regards to this book, character trumps plot and is the determining factor.
While Gaskell's omniscient narrator largely focuses on Molly, a beautiful complexity is created by our realization as readers between the difference of what the narrator knows, understands and thinks and what Molly realizes. We trust the narrator because of her interest in Molly, and her foreknowledge of what is going to happen to Molly which leads her to focus on particular details. However, making a difference between their knowledge engages us on a deeper level--we must interpret Molly and her understanding.
It's okay to incriminate your reader. For example, at the beginning of the book we love Osbourne... then we begin to hate him. By the end of the book we feel bad that we ever hated him, just as his father does. We are incriminated in our feelings towards a character, which makes us go through the same experiences of discovery as the other characters. Similar things happen in regards to our feelings towards Cynthia, and with my changing understanding of Lady Harriot.