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Wednesday 25 December 2013

Parody of later works

Reading "Northanger Abbey", I find it impossible to read volume 2 chapter 6 without thinking of "Wuthering heights", and volume 2 chapter 8, "Jane Eyre". 
Like the way "M. Butterfly" (David Henry Hwang) makes a twist on "Madame Butterfly" (Giacomo Puccini), "Wide Sargasso sea" (Jean Rhys) attempts to change the readers' perception of "Jane Eyre", "The French lieutenant's woman" (John Fowles) responds to the Victorian novel, this novel by Jane Austen is a parody of Gothic fiction and accidentally makes fun of "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering heights". Funnily enough, "Northanger Abbey" was 1st sold in 1803, revised many times and published in 1817, while "Jane Eyre" and "Wuthering heights" came out in 1847, and in fact Charlotte and Emily were born in 1816 and 1818 respectively.
Isn't that something?
[While I don't know anything about Emily but her only book and some poems and a few things others have said about her, I reckon Charlotte didn't read "Northanger Abbey", only "Pride and prejudice" and "Emma". It must be quite interesting to imagine what she would have thought if she had, especially when one has seen how she reacted to "The tenant of Wildfell hall", an anti-Gothic novel, or at least, a novel meant to deconstruct the Byronic hero (such as Rochester).] 





Update at 3.49pm: 
While checking that today's indeed Bogey's 114th birthday, I realised that I'd totally missed Jane Austen's 238th birthday- 16/12/1775- 16/12/2013, and at the same time, that I'd changed my view on her works 1 day before that. 
I should have written a few words on her talent and significance and influence, but perhaps it was enough. 
 

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