A Reintroduction

Greetings gentle readers!

The Ever Awkward Mr. Collin's Wave

I've been a terrible blogger and exhibited Willoughby like behavior by vanishing from your presence. The past two years have been extremely eventful, including student teaching, graduation from college, the grown-up job of teaching, and now working toward my master's degree.

I'm in need of a project again, and my Jane Austen/period costume drama love can no longer be contained; you can't discuss Pride and Prejudice with pre teens very well can you? (Trust me, I've tried.)

Consider this a reintroduction to the blog and to me, we will be tackling all sorts of Jane Austen topics, and branching into new avenues as well, especially more period costume drama.

First on my mind, due to its recent start in the US this past Sunday, and will probably be the topic of more than a few blog posts, is the second season of PBS's Masterpiece program, Victoria.

I knew I was a goner when I first saw this promo picture for the first season, I mean how could anybody not want to watch a show where that dress and crown make an appearance? Look for my overall impression of the first season, and then my take on the start of the second in a post coming next week.

What shows/movies have you been watching, particularly of the Jane Austen/period costume drama variety?

Comments

The Comic Relief

Probably my favorite movie quote ever. What is a Jane Austen novel without the secondary characters who say the most outrageous things and keep us laughing constantly? I have many favorite secondary characters in Jane Austen; in my opinion, they are often the ones who steal the show with their odd ways and awkward situations. Two men in particular have a special place in my heart for their nonsensical ways. The first is dear Mr. Woodhouse, Emma's father in Emma . He is such a kind and caring soul; he only wants what is best for his two beloved girls. However, that does mean that he goes over the top in trying to protect them from the world. He is also a hypochondriac and very irrational about health in general. My favorite Mr. Woodhouse quotes: "His own stomach could bear nothing rich, and he could never believe other people to be different from himself. What was unwholesome to him, he regarded as unfit for any body; and he had, therefore, earnestly tried to di

Austen Illustrations

One of my favorite nerdy Janeite things to do is to find illustrations of Jane Austen's novels, particularly ones from the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. There is something so intriguing about seeing how someone else many years ago viewed a particular scene or character, yet we both read the same words on the page. I particularly love the illustrations by C.E. Brock and H.M. Brock, which were done during the 1890s and early 1900s. They were brothers who created most of the classic and beautiful illustrations. Seriously, look at the picture above. The colors and drawings are exquisite. If you want to learn more about the pair, check out this site . Hugh Thomson is another artist who did classic Jane Austen illustrations at the time as well. This one just cracks me up. C.E. Brock totally captured Mr. Collins and his horrific proposal in this drawing. He's so tall, awkward, and pompous. Elizabeth is slanted away from him and desperately doing any

My Latest Fix: Podcasts

After trying to fill the hole in my life that I wrote about in my last blog post, I stumbled upon a new form of entertainment that I had never explored before. Podcasts. I had never been interested in the idea of podcasts, but I've recently had to spend much more time in the car, and since that unfortunately precludes Netflix watching, podcasts were next on my list. I had heard about the show The History Chicks and decided that they would be a good first step into podcast listening. And what a great first step it has been! The two hosts are funny, entertaining, and do a wonderful job profiling important women in history. Granted, I am only 4 episodes in, but I would say that is enough time for me tell the research quality and passion of the two ladies creating this show. They've picked varying and interesting topics so far, ranging from Marie Antoinette to Laura Ingalls Wilder, Cinderella, and Abigail Adams. The only downfall that I can see right now is the sound

Simply Austen

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