of Emily and Anne
[spoilers for the whole Emily series, and expecting that everyone is familiar with the Anne series]
I just finished up rereading the Emily of New Moon series, with Emily's Quest, which is by far the weakest of the three books and not just because of the deplorable number of dashes and sentence fragments -- though those made it nearly impossible to read in places.
I like Emily but cannot understand her fault since it isn't mine. I'm not a proud Murry and never will be. Thus, since pride -- pride and jealousy -- causes most of the misunderstanding in Quest, it's hard for me to stop just yelling at the book, "Emily, stop it! Stop being such so stupid!"
The Emily books, I recalled, were darker -- and they are, after a manner of speaking. Emily's second sight, and the burning of the book, and the strength of the emotions -- especially jealousy, Dean's and Mrs. Kent's. There's tragedy in the Anne books -- especially in Anne's House of Dreams -- but it's not the twisted bitterness of Emily. Even Leslie gets her happy ending.
I think what really bothers me is Dean... I love Dean. I probably didn't the first time I read the books, but Dean is one of those characters who fits a kink perfectly. He's got the physical deformity, the wit and sarcasm and crippled soul, and his fault, that hideous streak of jealousy, feels so real and rich and wonderful to me. I love Dean and wanted him to win Emily all along.
I didn't understand why she loved Teddy. Didn't even get a really good sense of who Teddy was, not in the last book. I suppose in the second book, I could see him as a sweet young boy; LM dove into his pov once, the night he rescued Emily from the church, and he seemed like a sweet, practical young man who did love Emily an awful lot and was embarrassed by his mother. And he draws, sure, but -- who is Teddy? He seems so terribly empty. We get Ilse's view of him as a somewhat conceited young man whose head is turned more than a little by the flattery of his admirers -- and it's clear he's been jilted and that's too bad -- of course, I'm not sure exactly who Gilbert is, either, though I seem to recall him as more fleshed-out than Teddy is, more than just a one-note character. I know Teddy is an artist, but he doesn't seem like an artist to me, not the way Emily is drawn to be, not even the way Owen Ford was an artist. Drawing seems to be something that Teddy just does for fun, and we don't get to see inside his head at all.
I honestly don't see what Emily sees in him, unless perhaps he's a practical, down-to-earth, entirely good-hearted yet still very intelligent boy/man who balances the weird, queer mystic-nature of Emily's. But why's he an artist, then? I think there's something in Teddy that Emily sees that we never do, which isn't good storytelling.
I'm torn on whether Emily's Quest or Anne of the Island is a better book. Of course it's been awhile since I've read the Anne books, two or three years... I think on the whole Quest is just a poorly crafted book, with huge time-gaps and no neat outline, and of course Island is better on that front. But I can't help feeling that the darkness in the first half of Quest -- the burning of the book, the injury, Dean sitting with her through those long months, her quiet decision to marry him, that strange, eerie, sometimes-happy summer of theirs -- is a phenomenal core. And I love the twisty mystery of it. I do. But those sentence fragments!
I feel such terrible pity for Dean Priest -- I love Emily/Dean -- I have made up my mind I will write Emily/Dean for xgenchallenge, which is due in just a few days (*headdesk* -- at least the kink/cliche fic is written!). It seems to lend itself so well to a five things fic.
But Anne is and always will be my girl. I think she grows a lot more naturally than Emily does -- but then, there is something decidedly unnatural and uncanny about Emily, which is why she is so fascinating. Anne is clever and sweet and scrappy and grows up to still get into scrapes but to be such a good mother... and she's not an artist. I think LMM tries, sometimes, to write Anne-scrapes for Emily, and they just don't work, because Emily's faults and failings and whole psychological make-up are so different from Emily's.
First one to write Emily/Anne fic gets a shiny gold star.
I also think half the descriptions could have been cut from them, particularly the last one, particularly the descriptions of the weather, but then, I've always bored easily with descriptions of pretty places.
I can't decide whether I love Aunt Elizabeth or Marilla more -- or Matthew or Cousin Jimmy -- or even Ilse or Diana. I feel as if I've known the Anne characters all my life, but sometimes the Emily characters feel more vital, more richly drawn or at least conceived... it's because Emily is an artist and Anne is just an imaginative girl who grows up to be a lovely woman.
Poll Oh Canada Girls!
I just finished up rereading the Emily of New Moon series, with Emily's Quest, which is by far the weakest of the three books and not just because of the deplorable number of dashes and sentence fragments -- though those made it nearly impossible to read in places.
I like Emily but cannot understand her fault since it isn't mine. I'm not a proud Murry and never will be. Thus, since pride -- pride and jealousy -- causes most of the misunderstanding in Quest, it's hard for me to stop just yelling at the book, "Emily, stop it! Stop being such so stupid!"
The Emily books, I recalled, were darker -- and they are, after a manner of speaking. Emily's second sight, and the burning of the book, and the strength of the emotions -- especially jealousy, Dean's and Mrs. Kent's. There's tragedy in the Anne books -- especially in Anne's House of Dreams -- but it's not the twisted bitterness of Emily. Even Leslie gets her happy ending.
I think what really bothers me is Dean... I love Dean. I probably didn't the first time I read the books, but Dean is one of those characters who fits a kink perfectly. He's got the physical deformity, the wit and sarcasm and crippled soul, and his fault, that hideous streak of jealousy, feels so real and rich and wonderful to me. I love Dean and wanted him to win Emily all along.
I didn't understand why she loved Teddy. Didn't even get a really good sense of who Teddy was, not in the last book. I suppose in the second book, I could see him as a sweet young boy; LM dove into his pov once, the night he rescued Emily from the church, and he seemed like a sweet, practical young man who did love Emily an awful lot and was embarrassed by his mother. And he draws, sure, but -- who is Teddy? He seems so terribly empty. We get Ilse's view of him as a somewhat conceited young man whose head is turned more than a little by the flattery of his admirers -- and it's clear he's been jilted and that's too bad -- of course, I'm not sure exactly who Gilbert is, either, though I seem to recall him as more fleshed-out than Teddy is, more than just a one-note character. I know Teddy is an artist, but he doesn't seem like an artist to me, not the way Emily is drawn to be, not even the way Owen Ford was an artist. Drawing seems to be something that Teddy just does for fun, and we don't get to see inside his head at all.
I honestly don't see what Emily sees in him, unless perhaps he's a practical, down-to-earth, entirely good-hearted yet still very intelligent boy/man who balances the weird, queer mystic-nature of Emily's. But why's he an artist, then? I think there's something in Teddy that Emily sees that we never do, which isn't good storytelling.
I'm torn on whether Emily's Quest or Anne of the Island is a better book. Of course it's been awhile since I've read the Anne books, two or three years... I think on the whole Quest is just a poorly crafted book, with huge time-gaps and no neat outline, and of course Island is better on that front. But I can't help feeling that the darkness in the first half of Quest -- the burning of the book, the injury, Dean sitting with her through those long months, her quiet decision to marry him, that strange, eerie, sometimes-happy summer of theirs -- is a phenomenal core. And I love the twisty mystery of it. I do. But those sentence fragments!
I feel such terrible pity for Dean Priest -- I love Emily/Dean -- I have made up my mind I will write Emily/Dean for xgenchallenge, which is due in just a few days (*headdesk* -- at least the kink/cliche fic is written!). It seems to lend itself so well to a five things fic.
But Anne is and always will be my girl. I think she grows a lot more naturally than Emily does -- but then, there is something decidedly unnatural and uncanny about Emily, which is why she is so fascinating. Anne is clever and sweet and scrappy and grows up to still get into scrapes but to be such a good mother... and she's not an artist. I think LMM tries, sometimes, to write Anne-scrapes for Emily, and they just don't work, because Emily's faults and failings and whole psychological make-up are so different from Emily's.
First one to write Emily/Anne fic gets a shiny gold star.
I also think half the descriptions could have been cut from them, particularly the last one, particularly the descriptions of the weather, but then, I've always bored easily with descriptions of pretty places.
I can't decide whether I love Aunt Elizabeth or Marilla more -- or Matthew or Cousin Jimmy -- or even Ilse or Diana. I feel as if I've known the Anne characters all my life, but sometimes the Emily characters feel more vital, more richly drawn or at least conceived... it's because Emily is an artist and Anne is just an imaginative girl who grows up to be a lovely woman.
Poll Oh Canada Girls!