Did you know that Jane Austen’s ideas of romance were radical at the time? Yet today, we see her influence everywhere. She has almost defined our ideals of romance, even for people who have scarcely heard her name. Have you spotted her at a coffee shop or a movie theater near you?
This last Christmas, I was happily bundled up with my family– working on an “adult” coloring book, if you must know (because I am artistically challenged, so someone needs to draw the lines for me). While my mom, my daughter and I played with our colored pencils, we put on an old favorite movie: White Christmas. It is such a tradition in our house that I was actually fretting that I might not have an opportunity to watch it for 2017, but fortunately, no such calamity befell our household.
It was early on in the movie, during the scene when Wallis visits Davis in the military hospital to thank him for saving his life, that I began to realize there was something fishy going on. I saw those two gents and realized that they were almost carbon copies of Fitzwilliam Darcy and Charles Bingley! We have the world-wise and established Wallis befriending the almost puppy-doggish Davis (sort of by duress, but what’s a little blackmail between friends?). Wallis is later pressured to find a wife (by Davis again, rather than the ton of Darcy’s day) and he finds every woman Davis sends his way unsuitable. Shades of Caroline Bingley, anyone?
And, of course, we know what happened. They meet just the right girls for both of them; Wallis finds the sharp-witted, somewhat cynical Betty Haynes has over-taxed his powers of resistance, and Davis gets tripped up in his own noose by the cheerful, sweet-looking Judy (who rivals him in the arts of manipulation). And they all sang happily ever after. I, for one, will never be able to watch that movie again without accidentally referring to them as Darcy and Bingley.
I am curious how many other “Jane Sightings” you have spotted. There are the obvious nods to The Lady, such as You’ve Got Mail and Lost in Austen, but what about the more subtle ones? What about other classic literature that might have been influenced by Miss Austen, such as The North and Souths of the world? What about contemporary entertainment, like Clueless? Even music can provide rich fodder for society’s collective thoughts on romance, such as in songs like I Can’t Make You Love Me by Bonnie Raitt.
So what do you think? How deeply has Jane Austen pervaded our culture? I can’t wait to read your thoughts!
Today’s giveaway is for one of three prizes. They are beautiful makeup compacts with artwork by Janet Taylor, as shown below. Each has a different painting, and will be drawn separately (although I accept bribes if you state your preference when commenting!). The drawing will be held on Thursday January 25, and the winner will be posted both here and on the Facebook page.
Compact #1 “The Kiss”
Compact #2 “Rejected”
Compact #3 “More Agreeably Engaged”
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As soon as yoou mentioned it, I could see the P&P similarities in White Christmas (which is one movie I watch every year). I’m sure there are many others, but unless it is really obvious, I will miss it.
Author
What about An Affair to Remember? It’s a bit of a stretch, but there is a similar theme to Persuasion if you look hard. Circumstances are very different, but film makers learned some of Jane’s tricks.
Affair to Remember was my favorite movie – until P&P. 🙂
Author
Do you like Sleepless in Seattle? 💕
Love it – because of that. And, of course, You’ve Got Mail. Interesting that they have references to my 2 favorite movies and both star Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan.
Author
Wow good point!
Oh no! I’m sure I must have watched White Christmas at some point in my youth but I don’t remember it. And although I have watched many many films in my life I can’t think of one which reminds me of P&P apart from the ones you have mentioned. No doubt I will see other people’s comments and think ‘ oh yes, why didn’t I think of that?’
Does this mean I don’t qualify for the prize? 😭😭. I will keep thinking and let you know if I do come up with one.
They did make a film of Unleashing Mr Darcy but I haven’t seen it as it wasn’t released in the UK.
Author
You commented, you are entered!
Wow. You’re right. I too watch White Christmas every year, but I never thought about the parallel plot lines. I wonder if this was intentional by the writer or if it is now such an ingrained plot concept (thanks to JA) that it is in all our subconsciousnesses.
Author
I am going with the latter, but yes I never know!
I had not seen that one! Which is shocking since it’s not properly Christmas for me until I’ve seen that movie. I have a habit of looking for Pride and Prejudice in everything, including real life. I’ve always been fascinated by the timeless romance of Darcy and Elizabeth, but I wouldn’t want to experience such turbulence in my own life. I’m very happy with my Mr. Bingley.
But since you got me thinking about it, I discovered that another pair of books I fell in love with last year has an unexpected resemblance to Pride and Prejudice. Not sure how I missed it before now, unless it’s the fact that the primary characters in these books have their own unique personalities rather than being vaguely patterned after the original Darcy and Elizabeth. I don’t know if you’ve read them at all since they’re both a completely different genre than we usually discuss here. But Kelly Oram recently wrote a charming duo of books, “V is for Virgin” followed by “A is for Abstinence”. The first one ends with the fiery couple’s equivalent of Hunsford after which he skulks off to lick his wounds for a while. The second book is the delightful conclusion where he finally figures out how to woo the woman of his dreams, despite his previous behavior and reputation. Meanwhile, the Jane/Bingley couple in the background of the main plot (her dearest best friend who married his bandmate/best friend) varied from the original, in that they did not get separated from each other between the two books. In fact, the only real difficulties experienced by this Jane/Bingley couple is the overwhelming, ongoing disagreement between their dearest friends, placing them sometimes in the middle between the fiery duo.
I don’t want to spill too much of the plot in case you haven’t read them yet, but I will say that these two books are some of the few books in my vast personal library which did NOT end up sleeping behind in the storage unit when I downsized to move across the pond a few months ago. Thank you for helping me to see new connections I hadn’t considered before. Always so fun!
Author
Wow, it sounds like my TBR pile just grew! Thanks, Amanda, those sound like a load of fun!
White Christmas is one of my favorite Christmas movies and I too watched it this year. I always text my sister when the “Sisters” song comes on lol. I will also never again watch it without comparing those two to Darcy and Bingley, I definitely did not draw that comparison. Thanks for making White Christmas new for me again!
Author
Personally, I like the “reprise” of “Sisters.” Bing’s face is priceless!
I have a real life sighting for you, Nicole, in that my son and his best friend married a pair of sisters, just like Bingley and Darcy did. That’s about as far as the parallel goes, though. There aren’t five girls in the family, and the personalities don’t necessarily match up either. Still, it’s fun to tease them all about it. 🙂
Author
Awesome! I love hearing this!
Ok, so true story: one of my dearest friends has 11 kids. Yes, you read that right, and no, no multiples or adoptions. Three of her boys are particularly close. You guessed it, they are dating three sisters! The middle couple set up the older and the younger. The oldest couple are already engaged with the middle couple planning to become so soon. The youngest set are still a little too young, but it looks like it might be three for three. Amazing, right?
Wow! That would be amazing! Their kids will all be double cousins. My mom is/has some double cousins – her mother and uncle married another brother and sister pair. Sounds bad, but it isn’t really. Just as well that first cousins don’t marry any more though, if you know what I mean. 😉
A few I always think of are Bridget Jones Diary (there is even a Darcy in it 🙂 ) and From Prada to Nada which harkens back to Sense and Sensibility. And of course I LOVE 10 Thing I Hate About You (Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew), Easy A which is kind of like Scarlett Letter, and even Pretty Woman which is Pygmalion in a sense. I know they are not all Austen but they are all based on classic lit like Austen 🙂 Sometimes it’s hard to see until you really sit and think about them!
Author
Wonderful connections! Spark House is based on Wuthering Heights, but I haven’t had the good fortune to see it yet. There is nothing new under the sun, as a wise man once said 😉. Thanks for sharing, Erika!
Oh White Christmas! I love it. I can definitely see the parallels. I really don’t watch many movies, so I don’t have any to add to this list. However, I read a lot and have been surprised how much Jane pops up in other stories. If not a situation, than an actual Jane Austen book or discussion of one. Always makes me smile.
Author
She is everywhere, isn’t she? She makes romance classy and passionate at the same time. 😊
Now that you have me thinking about this, I think of the modern Christmas movie, The Holiday…one of my favourites along with Love Actually. Both have sprinklings of Jane Austen woven in them. Love Actually even has Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman to name a few.
My mother and her sister married two brothers. My aunt was a war bride and came over to America with her husband, my uncle. My mom was sponsored by her Aunt (or so the story goes) and my father met her when she was visiting her sister.
Oh, I am a fan of Compact #1 or #3. Thank you for a chance at the giveaway!
Author
What a neat family heritage! You should write the story someday!
Hi Nicole,
I must admit to loving a series called ‘As Time Goes By’, starring Judi Dench and Geoffrey Palmer and written by the humorous and talented wordsmith Bob
Larbey.
Based on a second chance romance,Judi plays the part of Jean to Geoffrey’s Lionel,a nurse and soldier, both very young and very much in love,who lose touch.
Meeting again after some thirty years,both believe the other failed to write that oh,so important first letter and feign disinterest!!
Needless to say,Fate intervenes and they eventually get their HEA only for Jean to turn into a mirror of Mrs Bennet in her endeavours to match her daughter and receptionist with suitable partners!
It’s beautifully written,sprinkled with gentle humour and is one of my guilty pleasures! I see shades of P&P and Persuasion in it and highly recommend it!
Thank you for such a lovely post! 😌
I love that series! Never thought of it as being Austenesque, I guess I’ll have to watch it again!
Author
I would imagine that many of the connections are incidental, but I am of the opinion that it only proves Jane’s influence is wider than anyone realises.
I admit, I had never thought of the similarities between White Christmas and P&P. Very interesting!
The compacts are gorgeous…but I do love the one where Darcy and Elizabeth are sharing a kiss. ❤️
Thanks for the chance to win one!
Author
Good luck Pam!
My favorite is Compact #3 as Colin Firth is one of my biggest celebrity crushes! I love “White Christmas,” but never realized the similarities to “Pride & Prejudice.” But you’re right! No wonder I love both of them.
All three are great. I just can’t pick one. Surprise me.
I am taking your idea to my JASNA group for a lovely discussion.
Author
Oh what fun! Pop back in and let us know what you come up with!
Fun movie called “The Importance of Being Earnest” with the always fabulous Colin Firth with of all people Reese Witherspoon. So many wonderful romances based on P&P.
Greetings to everyone! Really enjoyed all the “days” of Christmas surprises. Thank you wonderful authors!
Author
I need to watch this! Thanks for the recommendation 😊
I love “White Christmas” and see a strong influence in many modern works from Austen. Amazing to think a women from over 200 years ago had such an understanding of human nature and still influences us and our entertainment today.
Thanks for the chance to win.. I’d love compact #2!
Author
I believe she just said what we all wished for. Good luck and thanks for stopping by!
I have not heard of White Christmas before but from your description, it sounds like a movie that I would enjoy watching. I believe Jane Austen was the author who inspired romance genre where boy meets girl, boy falls in love with her, girl rejects boy, they made up and live HEA. I have nothing new to add besides the obvious which is mentioned in the comments.
Thank you for the giveaway, Nicole. If I win, I would like the kiss scene.
Author
You can check it out here. http://m.imdb.com/title/tt0047673/ It’s silly and sweet 😊. Good luck in the drawing!
Author
I just drew the names! The winners of the compacts are as follows:
1: Stephanie L
2: Lynn Bischoff
3: Linda Hoppe
Ladies, please email me your addresses so I can send you your prizes!
Author
Nclarkston35@gmail.com
Thank you so much! I love all three compacts! So thrilled and thank you and wonderful artist!
Author
Hi, Linda, congratulations! Send me your address and I will have it in the mail to you 😊