Monday, November 19, 2007

Q 10

10. Notice that the transition to Bath is made by a mental comparison. What do you think that implies about this novel (147)?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I feel that this mental comparison shows who Anne rather be around. Her stay at her sister's she found very enjoyable, Uppercross was "precious" (147) to her. By having the day she leaves for Bath dark and gloomy, it is representing Anne's feelings towards going back to Bath, a place where she stated earlier she did not like. I think this implies that the novel takes focus around the characters and how they present themselves, Uppercross was filled with the friendlier characters that Anne enjoys to be around, making it a happier state of mind. Her state of mind changes when she heads to Bath because the families (mainly her own) are unwelcoming and aren't people she likes to be in company with.

Erin Trapp said...

good-- are there other "transitions" or "movements" in the novel that take place, like this, in anne's head?

The Emmer said...

I have another example of where this happens, I am pretty sure it's on 239, but I don't have my book on me to check. Anyways, it is when Anne finds about Mr. Elliots character and a day passes and then she is promised to spend the day with the families in town. She is in a bad mood and doesn't want to go and it is reflected again by the weather, it is again a gloomy rainy day in Bath.

Erin Trapp said...

nice. this example is more like a pathetic fallacy. both seem to suggest that the life of the mind is active in relation to the external, social world?

Elena said...

I agree with Emily that Anne's state of mind is closely related to the dismal description of Bath. I think that it is because Anne feels out of place and unwanted in Bath. Her time at Uppercross was marked by her sister Mary's insistence that she be there. She was welcome in Uppercross, and her company enjoyed and sought after. In Bath, she is the ugly, quiet sister, valued neither by her father nor her sister Elizabeth. Bath is a city, a place more concerned with appearance, wealth, and social standing, all things which Anne cannot be said to excel at. She is being pulled out of her element and put in a place she hates, framing her state of mind.