In 6th grade I tried to read Pride and
Prejudice. I’m ashamed I did not get very far. I don’t’ believe it was because of the
vocabulary or syntax. It was one simple
reason, at the age of 12 I thought classic literature was always serious. The verbal irony of “It is a truth
universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must
be in want of a wife, “ completely passed me by. So I read the first chapter and didn’t get
it.
Happily I
grew to learn as I became more widely read that humor, like everything else, is
never new. And so upon reading Cranford
by Elizabeth Gaskell, I quickly found that tone was quite different from the
miniseries North and South that introduced me this author. I hope to soon read the book North and South
and find if the social commentary is as prevalent in the book as it is on the
screen.
About two
pages in the narrator discusses how Mrs. Forrester’s tea service is effected by
her poverty. She pretends “not to know what cakes were sent up; though
she knew, and we knew, and she knew that we knew, and we knew that she knew
that we knew…” Is it original? Perhaps not.
Then again, perhaps it is. I’m
reminded of the article I read in college about the high school student who
said they didn’t like Hamlet because it was “full of clichés.”
About one
more page in, I had the delight of discovering a cow in a flannel
waistcoat. It is unfortunate how many
people avoid classic literature because they think it is so austere and its
subject matter so weight. Happily, the
BBC has created a lot of wonderful miniseries to bring to life the humor of
authors like Austen, Dickens, and Gaskell.
But of course, no matter how well done a film version, there is so much
that you lose from the novel.
For those
who struggle with some of the archaic forms of language in novels from the 18th
and 19th century, another wonderful alternative is audiobooks. I have read Austen’s novels more times than I
should probably admit. However, recently
I have begun listening to her books on audiobook as I commute to and from
work. The humor has come to live in a
way it never has before. The language
sparkles. So, if you are intimated by these older works, please visit your local library and explore their audiobook collection.
I am still
only a few pages into Cranford, but I am looking forward to exploring Gaskell's wit and absurdities. If you would like to read along with me, her works are easily found on the internet. Project Gutenberg is always a great place to start.
Next post I will give a little more background information on Gaskell herself and her relationship with Dickens.
Comments
Post a Comment