Reading Jane

I just finished Pride and Prejudice. I took off for lunch at 1:30ish today, and told my boss that I was just going to stay home for the rest of the afternoon, because a.) there was nothing to do and b.) I felt like a big useless piece of boooooooring due to the fact that I'm still trying to fight off this ferocious cold or sinus infection or whatever it is. So needless to say, in the fog of dayquil and chicken noodle soup, I continued reading the book I'd started not long after the new year.

I made a choice last year that I was going to start reading all these books that have long been spoken of as incredible, must-reads, or "classic" literature. I think the first one I read like that was Catcher in the Rye, and it was right after Eric and I broke up - holy cow, you thought a break-up was depressing??? Read that book! You'll never want to get out of bed again! Back to the point, in the decision to read classic novels and authors, I decided I very much wanted to be acquainted with Jane Austen. So many of my female friends and family have read her, and they all spoke volumes of her stories... I decided to start out with Emma back in September. I didn't want to jump to Pride and Prejudice just yet.

I thought Emma was a really sweet story, and her characters turned out to be multi-dimensional even though her portrayal of 19th century society seemed never to go below the surface of expected manners and courtesies. Emma had fantastic flaws and showed herself to be a.)human, and b.)wholly female. I admired that though she was thought of as a wonderful friend and giving soul, those who truly read her (Mr. Knightley?) knew that she was also capable of making dire mistakes, taking credit where credit was not due, and putting herself in a position to lose respect of those around her without realizing it. I think Jane Austen was definitely making the most commentary about the women in that one-dimensional society expressing ridiculous amounts of conceit where it was most unwelcome.

I finally watched "Emma" with Gwyneth Paltrow last week. I can't say I was impressed by it, but I thought that Mr. Knightley and a few supporting characters were well cast. I've seen Toni Collette and Gwyneth both in much better roles.

Pride and Prejudice will be my next movie/mini-series watching escapade. I LOVED that book. Girlfriends have told me several times, OH MY GOD you're going to love it, especially the part where yada, yada, yada... etc. And they were right. I did, and do love it. I think Elizabeth Bennett is one of the most intelligent female characters of all literature, and I found an emotional connection building throughout the story. That's something that has unfortunately been lacking for me lately in the books I've read - I have to be emotionally bound to it in some way to really enjoy a book. I can't wait to watch the movies.

Anyway, if you've never read Pride and Prejudice, for the love of all things feminist and fabulous, DO IT!