Six Very Important Questions: Readers Respond!
Last week, I posted six very important (very silly) questions — and shared eleven of the Austen Variation authors’ responses. This week, it’s your turn!
Here are the answers seventeen of you gave! (I’m not including identifying information, but feel free to claim your answer in the comments.) If you didn’t have a chance to answer, share your thoughts in the comments below!
Attribution: Pexels
Question #1: If an alien came to Earth and said, “Give me one and ONLY one novel to describe humanity,” which Austen novel would you choose?
- The most chosen response for this question… Pride and Prejudice with eight votes! While I didn’t choose this answer myself, I understand your thinking, dear readers: how can any alien come to Earth and not “meet” Elizabeth and Darcy? 🙂
- Persuasion came in second, with five votes. (The letter! The letter!)
- Mansfield Park represented a distant third with two votes. (Note, this novel was the top choice of our authors for this question.)
- Emma and Sense and Sensibility both received one vote each. (Our authors also gave only one vote to S&S, but Emma was the second most chosen book by our authors.)
- And once again…poor NorthangerAbbey received zero votes. (I still love you, Catherine Morland…and I’m grateful for your last name!)
Lady Bertram’s pug: living in grand style since 1814… (Attribution: Pexels)
Question #2: You have been magically transported to an Austen book and have become one of the characters in that novel. Which novel/character would you become? (Sorry — you can’t choose beyond these options; the magic is finicky that way!)
- Six of you chose Lady Bertram’s pug from Mansfield Park. (Like Melanie Rachel and Abigail Reynolds, you understand just how pampered your life would be…that, or you’re dog lovers!)
- Four of you must really want to experience Pride and Prejudice firsthand, because you’d opt to be Mrs. Hill, even though that means dealing with Mrs. Bennet’s nerves day in and day out!
- Another four of you chose Mr. Woodhouse from Emma. Did you also feel that you’d put up with any amount of thin gruel if it meant watching Emma and Mr. Knightley banter next to a cozy fire?
- And three of you chose Mr. Palmer from Sense and Sensibility. Tell us why in the comments!
- Once again, no one chose to be Mrs. Thorpe from Northanger Abbey. No one chose to be little Charles Musgrove either. My guess: you don’t want to be the parent or child of such unlikeable characters as the Thorpe children and Mary Musgrove! I’m glad to know we Austen Variation types are not a masochist bunch!
Hugh Thomson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Question #3: In one sentence, who is your favorite Bennet sister (excluding Elizabeth) — and why?
Nine out of seventeen chose Jane! Here are your reasons…
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…she is so good and optimistic in spite of having a crazy family (aside from Elizabeth).
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…she is so kind and is Elizabeth’s best friend.
- …she’s optimistic.
- …she is too good!
- …she is kind and beautiful and gentle and my favourite.
- …her character.
- …she is all goodness.
- …she has more spirit than she shows.
All good reasons!
Five of you chose Mary because…
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she’s like me with her nose always in a book and oblivious to what’s going on around her.
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she is complicated, and faithful to her beliefs.
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she is the sister I would most like to befriend. Not quite the same thing, maybe? (Author’s Note: that’s definitely a good reason to choose her!)
- she has such potential for character growth.
- From a literary perspective my next favorite is Mary because she’s still a character in development (unlike Jane, who’s probably the sister is want most as a friend), and is in an interesting position as the middle, ignored, least pretty sister.
I love how many of the Mary supporters see her dynamic possibilities!
One of your chose Kitty because… “she is kind of a blank slate, lots of room to grow. ”
And one of you couldn’t decide between Mary and Kitty because you saw “so much untapped potential in both.”
Again, I love how you see these younger sisters as characters with room to grow!
No one chose Lydia (surprise, surprise!), and two of you opted for no one at all! You wrote:
- None of then. I have no sympathies for any of them
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No one! Jane gets on my nerves with her perfection, Mary is too moralizing and truly embodies vanity of knowledge, Kitty is too whiny and Lydia is too selfish.
Take that, Bennet sisters!
Attribution: Pexels
Question #4: You’re going to have a tea party. Which invitation list do you choose? (Sorry, you’re stuck again with my choices…)
- As with the authors, the most popular answer by far was Mr. Woodhouse, Mr. Bennet, and Mrs. Jennings! (Thirteen out of seventeen chose this option!) The only issue I see with that trio: I’d get hiccups from laughing so much during the tea party!
- Two of you decided to have tea with the three Marys (Mary Crawford, Mary Musgrove, and Mary Bennet). Why, oh why?
- Like Diana Birchall, one of you must see great comic potential in a tea party with Lady Catherine, Miss Bates, and Sir John Middleton — that, or you figure you’d have plenty of time to eat because you’d have absolutely no chance at speaking!
- And one of you went where our authors would not dare: you opted to have tea with Sir Walter Elliot, Lucy Steele, and Mr. Collins. Brave soul!
- Once again, no one in our readership is masochistic enough to subject themselves to the mean trio: Mrs. Norris, General Tilney, and Mrs. Elton. (Actually, when I typed those three names out, I realized that, for the first time ever, I feel some pity for Mrs. Elton. Seriously, she might get eaten alive at that tea party!) (Well, not literally. Hopefully not literally!)
How dare you hug me! (Elizabeth only, please.)
Question #5: You have the chance to give one, and only one, Austen character a hug. Whom would you choose and why?
Several of you chose…Mr. Darcy!
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- Mr Darcy— he’s dreamy.
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Mr. Darcy because he’s my book boyfriend.
- Darcy, why not?
Why not indeed? 🙂
Many others of you chose a different character in P&P:
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Mrs. Hill – For her patience with that lot.
- I’d give Elizabeth Bennet a hug because she’s my favorite!
- Georgiana. I agree with Anngela: G needs a mom hug.
- Mary Bennet, because she is always overlooked and ignored.
- Mary Bennet – she needs some love and appreciation in her life.
- Mary Bennet, because she is under-appreciated and needs a little encouragement.
- Mary in P&P, because she is so lonely.
- Kitty Bennet, because she sorely needs attention.
(A lot of Mary love here!)
And here are the other choices:
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I would hug Elinor Dashwood because she suffered in silence for so long. I would want to hug her during that period.
- Elinor, because she always has to be strong for others.
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Colonel Brandon, because he deserves it.
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Anne Elliot. Her family is a collection of idiots.
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Mrs. Smith.
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Fanny Price, because the poor girl needs an actual friend.
Fanny definitely needs a friend, and I love the originality of Mrs. Smith as a choice! Also, a good deal of love for Elinor, which I second! (Same with Brandon and Anne Elliot!) It’s clear that Austen Variation readers are a compassionate bunch!
Courtesy of Sony Picture Classics
Question #6: Who is your favorite pairing (excluding Elizabeth and Darcy) and why?
Like the authors, most of you are big fans of Anne and Wentworth:
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Anne and Capt. Wentworth – Just because they fit.
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Anne and Capt. Wentworth because their love prevailed.
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Anne and Captain Wentworth. Because they are normal people.
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Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth, love at last.
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Definitely and unarguably Wentworth and Anne Elliot.
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Anne and Wentworth.
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Anne and Captain Wentworth, because they took their 2nd chance for happiness.
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Anne and Captain Wentworth. They had to earn their HEA through fearless commitment.
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Anne Elliot and Captain Fredrick Wentworth with close second Admiral and Mrs Croft.
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Anne Elliott and Frederick Wentworth. Because they have gone through so much to earn their happy ending. Because they truly appreciate each other in a mature way.
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Anne and Wentworth! As much as I love P&P, Persuasion is my favorite book. I love watching Wentworth grow to truly understand Anne’s character and value.
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Anne Elliot & Frederick Wentworth, because they finally need their happily ever after.
Such romantics, you lot!
Emma and Mr. Knightley came in second…
- I would say Emma and Mr. Knightley because they’ve been friends for a long time but they fall deeply in love. Also, Mr. Knightley is the best Austen man aside from Mr. Darcy IMHO.
- Emma and Knightley, I like how their relationship from friendship to love evolves.
- Emma & Mr. Knightley, as it’s great when your lover is also your best friend.
Yay for friends to lovers! (And yes: what a gift when your lover is also your best friend!)
And here are two other pairings:
- Henry Tilney and Catherine Morland.
- Jane and Charles because they are just so awkwardly trying to find each other.
Thanks to everyone who responded. It was so much fun to find out your thoughts on these very important questions!
Again, if you didn’t get to take the poll, tell us in the comments: what answers would you have chosen? And if you did respond, feel free to explain or elaborate on your answers below.
Thanks, all! Have a great rest of August!
(And wish me luck: I’m now reading dystopia after dystopia in preparation for an elective English class I’ll be teaching on — you guessed it — dystopian fiction! I’m much more of a romantic comedy girl myself, so yeah. Let’s hope I can make it to December without feeling too depressed!)
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I think Jane’s personality is often underrated.
In my opinion, there has to be more to her than being a perfect girl with a perfect face.
Otherwise, Elizabeth wouldn’t love her so much.
I imagine she is usually sweet and tries to see the best in other people, but I can well imagine that she would fiercely protect her loved ones, if necessary.
And I think she is also intelligent, only much more of an introvert than Elizabeth.
I imagine it’s not easy for her that men are often only interested in her looks.
Actually I think she’s a lot like Darcy: He wears his haughty mask to disguise his feelings and she her practised smiles.
She’s also one of my favorite secondary characters, because she makes Elizabeth often realize feelings E. doesn’t want to admit even to herself – much like Colonel Fitzwilliam does for Darcy.
Author
Sabrina, what a great analysis of Jane! I especially appreciate your point that Elizabeth’s admiration of Jane tells us there’s something more there than a pretty face with a sweet demeanor. You’re right: Elizabeth would expect more (she’s all for intricate characters, after all) — and we know she doesn’t necessarily like people just because they’re related to her! 🙂 Also, great point about how Jane helps Elizabeth realize her true feelings. Thanks for sharing these thoughts!
There are always dystopian romantic comedies. I haven’t read/seen it myself, but “Warm Bodies” sounds like a fit.
Author
Hah! I’ll have to check out Warm Bodies. (My husband is a big fan of zombie films; I’m not! But that sounds like the perfect mix for the two of us!)
Thanks, Anna!
Thanks Christina for putting this poll, I didn’t have time to answer the questions myself because I’m spending some days at the beach but, in general, I would choose Jane as character, the trio of Mrs Jennings (I love this lady LOL) and would hug Fanny Price and Mary. Speaking of favourites couples I would choose Morland-Tilney because they have a really good potential together and there are no enough stories with them: besides, these two are friendly and high-spirited 😀
As for the dystopian books…I don’t like this genre but couldn’t you make some trick choosing “Pride, Prejudice and zombies? I haven’t read it but at least it’s about Austen characters!!
Happy August, Christina!
Author
Teresa, hope you’re enjoying your time at the beach! Thanks for sharing your thoughts (I, too, love Mrs. Jennings, and I also really like Henry Tilney and Catherine Morland. By the way, have you read Sophia Rose’s story in Christina Boyd’s Rational Creatures anthology?)
Thanks also for the Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies suggestion! Unfortunately, I don’t have room in my syllabus at this point, but I can use that as a “further reading” suggestion for students who want to check out other options! Thank you!
Thanks Christina for telling me about Sophia Rose’s story, I haven’t read it so I’ll have it in mind 😀
And I’m glad you find helpful the “Pride, Prejudice and zombies” suggestion for some students: the roads to Jane Austen are so unexpected 😉
Why I chose Mr. Palmer? Because even though he’s married to a woman who annoys him greatly–and probably just did so only for the money–he shows he actually has a great deal of sense and compassion when Marianne and Elinor need it. He may not want people to know he’s secretly not a curmudgeon, but his genuine goodness comes out when Marianne takes ill. I suspect he’s an INTJ and his wife an ESFP. They couldn’t be more opposite. Which leads me to my question–Myers Briggs types, both of the Jane Austen characters, and us as fan fic readers. Do we sympathize more with the characters who are most like us? This article breaks down the characters into the types, but I don’t always agree with their assessments–for example, I do not believe Elizabeth is an introvert. https://www.psychologyjunkie.com/heres-the-jane-austen-character-youd-be-based-on-your-myers-briggs-personality-type/
Author
Kelley, yours is a thoughtful defense and explanation of Mr. Palmer’s character, and you’re right: he does end up treating Elinor and Marianne kindly when they come to Cleveland. In fact, Austen points out that he’s much kinder to everyone, even his wife and mother-in-law (though still occasionally rude, but only occasionally). He reminds me a little of Mr. Bennet, who is sarcastic and occasionally rude, perhaps because (as you point out) he’s disappointed in his marriage.
Great question about those characters we sympathize with and our own personality traits! I think there’s something in that, though I also wonder if I sympathize more with characters who have traits I wish I had — and sometimes hold grudges against characters who have traits I wish I didn’t have (but know that I do)! I’m quite aware I have some Mr. Collins-like tendencies — and dislike him all the more for those shared traits! 🙂
I took a quick look at the article (very interesting!) – -and yes, I’m with you. Elizabeth is not an introvert, in my opinion. I don’t know much about Myers Briggs, but she seems more like an ENTP (kind of like Henry Tilney, perhaps?).
Thanks for this thought-provoking response!
I read first time of the questions today. It’s Mary in my opion who has the most sympathy. We wish she isn’t pedantic and ugly ( in her and Lydias estimation clearly ) and shows more openess for her surrounding people. I know as a middle child it’s not easy if your older and younger siblings always more dear to your parents. You feel it and you’re hurt. I don’t know why
some parents have favorites. Mr. Bennet ignores her and Mrs. Bennet is much more petty and not a friendly and loveable mother
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The same is with Anne, she is a nice person and her older sister and father are horrible.
Elizabeth said in one novel if she don’t laugh she would cry. I don’t like Mr. Bennet he does nothing for his daughters.
I would like to have tea with Lady C. Just to be astounded about her high opinion of herself und to be sitting haughty looking and eating my cake. What fun.