tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post8746739940598034564..comments2024-02-03T13:09:38.313+00:00Comments on Mirabilis - Year of Wonders: Up against the wallLeo Hartashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14417174942647091006noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post-39742103177550350442010-06-23T21:06:12.282+01:002010-06-23T21:06:12.282+01:00And remember - despite what she felt about her con...And remember - despite what she felt about her confrontation, Lizzy was strong-minded enough NOT to say anything to her mother when she enquired about Lady Catherine's visit - "I suppose she had nothing particular to say to you, Lizzy?" - a wonderful moment, rather surprisingly left out of the 1995 adaptation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post-43031624796071875852010-06-22T11:26:45.387+01:002010-06-22T11:26:45.387+01:00In modern rom-coms, the de rigeur big finish is us...In modern rom-coms, the de rigeur big finish is usually that old cliche "the chase to the airport". Look at any Richard Curtis movie and you'll see that it usually culminates into a bunch of wacky friends cramming themselves into a small car and driving recklessly to stop somebody (usually the heroine) from catching a plane or getting hitched.<br /><br />Why are these finales unsatisfying? Because they are only visual spectacle. They take it as read that the hero has finally realized he wants the heroine, and the only threat is that she might go away or otherwise take some irrevocable step before he can declare his undying. And, of course, cellphones just won't do in a case like that - "Oh no, I can't get a signal," types the lazy writer.<br /><br />But as you say, Sandy, that's what makes this scene by Miss Austen so satisfying. Because it has an extra ingredient that most 11th-hour threats do not. It shows us Lizzie's *character*. The reason she deserves Darcy is not because she's willing to climb in a pony trap and drive at speeds of up to 15 mph to stop him from joining the Dragoons, it's that love and her own determination give her the invincible strength to see off the boss at the end of the level, the dragon of this story, namely Lady Catherine who embodies all of the tiny-minded prejudice of "Society" that Lizzie and Darcy will be leaving behind.<br /><br />And that's why it's a work of genius, and why sticking zombies in it is mere boneheaded vandalism!Dave Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14468228790874490693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post-6147501052094001562010-06-22T06:59:28.852+01:002010-06-22T06:59:28.852+01:00She holds her cool throughout, though, which is wh...She holds her cool throughout, though, which is what makes her so amazing. My favourite line:<br /><br />"You can now have nothing further to say," she resentfully answered. "You have insulted me in every possible method. I must beg to return to the house."<br /><br />In other words, I have put up with enough of your crap, you old windbag - I'm off!<br /><br />But of course the best part is that Lizzie's courage in the face of that onslaught - her refusal to cave in to Lady Catherine, even though it would have been perfectly understandable (if only to get rid of the old bat) - was what ultimately proved to Darcy that he still had a chance with her. Lady Catherine's actions, born out of selfishness and cruelty, led to exactly the result she most dreaded. Such a satisfying conclusion!<br /><br />Brilliant storytelling. One of the best scenes from one of my most beloved books.Sandyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00599376696122828129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post-82591696664908872212010-06-20T00:02:23.322+01:002010-06-20T00:02:23.322+01:00You know, Peter, I sometimes think that, in the mi...You know, Peter, I sometimes think that, in the minds of the people like that, Britain hasn't changed in two centuries. If power corrupts, so too does wealth and privilege in any form. The Emperor Augustus was wise enough to sleep on a simple camp bed in a small room off his study, knowing that he ever gave in to the lure of his position he would become one of the dreadful trumpeting upper-class monsters he had always deplored as a youth.<br /><br />What I particularly like about the scene is that in modern terms you're expecting Lizzie to just say, "Sod this," and sock her in the kisser, but in the society of the time, standing up to the old broad like that would amount to pretty much the same thing.Dave Morrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14468228790874490693noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7321339472666778123.post-56797010286654517012010-06-19T21:22:34.974+01:002010-06-19T21:22:34.974+01:00Victorian novels are full of this hideous sort of ...Victorian novels are full of this hideous sort of superiority be virtue of station. What's even more alarming is that it was also assumed to be sanctified: <br /><br />"The rich man in his castle, <br />The poor man at his gate,<br />God made them high or lowly,<br />And ordered their estate.<br /><br />All things bright and beautiful ..."<br /><br />Divine right it seemed spread on down from kings to the nobility and the upper classes.<br /><br />If you were poor it was because you deserved no better.<br /><br />Hideous really Dave, I think we've come a ways since then but it's still an uphill struggle against the undeserving privileged.Peter Richardsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15566601617123798061noreply@blogger.com