Blog Archives

EP06: The Thing About Darcy's Pen

10/3/2021

This week we come to you live from Caroline Bingley's Pen Mending Emporium, where all your pens will be mended with utmost care and attention to detail. At least if your name is Fitzwilliam Darcy, that is. If you ever attempted to flirt over office supplies, this episode is for you. And for the extra observant listener — we had a bit of a technical difficulty, so The Thing About Rushworth's Divorce had to be postponed. Coming soon!

Selected Sources:
Blake, Erin. “Uncut, Unopened, Untrimmed, Uh-Oh.” Blog. The Collation, August 23, 2016. https://collation.folger.edu/2016/08/uncut-unopened-untrimmed-uh-oh/.
Jane Austen Centre. “Cutting a Quill Pen.” Accessed January 28, 2022. https://janeausten.co.uk/blogs/hands-on-crafts/cutting-a-quill-pen.
Hurford, Robert. “Handwriting in the Time of Jane Austen.” Persuasions On-Line 30, no. 1 (2009). https://jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol30no1/hurford.html.

EP05: The Thing About General Tilney's Pamphlets

10/3/2021

This week we're all about the mysterious (or are they stupid?) pamphlets that General Tilney reads late at night. We talk about the political tumult of the 1790s and pamphlets as a form of blogging, and even make a nod to Bridgerton and scandal sheets. If you ever accidentally thought your boyfriend's dad was a murderer, this episode is for you.

Selected episode sources:

Hopkins, Robert. “General Tilney and Affairs of State: The Political Gothic of ‘Northanger Abbey.’” Philological Quarterly 52, no. 2 (1978): 213.
Minma, Shinobu. “General Tilney and Tyranny: Northanger Abbey.” Eighteenth-Century Fiction 8, no. 4 (1996): 503–18. https://doi.org/10.1353/ecf.1996.0068.

EP04: The Thing About Marianne's Dead Leaves

10/3/2021

This episode we're all about the connection between Romanticism and Marianne's passion for dead leaves. We also discuss the ways in which the recent film adaptations have amped up the Romanticism factor. If you were ever a teen with a lot of BIG FEELINGS, this episode is for you. Content warning for this episode: Grief and parental loss are briefly mentioned at a few points throughout the episode.

Selected Episode Resources

Daniels, Stephen. “The Political Iconography of Woodland in Later Georgian England.” In The Iconography of Landscape: Essays on the Symbolic Representation, Design, and Use of Past Environments, edited by Denis E. Cosgrove and Stephen Daniels. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
Fizer, Irene. “A ‘Passion for Dead Leaves’: Animated Landscapes and Static Canvases in ‘Sense and Sensibility.’” South Atlantic Review 76, no. 1 (2011): 53–72.

EP03: The Thing About Regency Scrabble

10/3/2021

We could have just as easily called this episode The Thing About Frank's Blunder, as that is the moment in question. On this episode we provide some context for what we are calling Regency Scrabble before unpacking Frank's blunder with the help of Detective Knightley. Grab your deerstalker hat and join us as we attempt to solve the mystery of why Frank thinks any of this is a good idea.

Selected episode sources:

Jill Shefrin. “‘Make It a Pleasure and Not a Task’: Educational Games for Children in Georgian England.” The Princeton University Library Chronicle 60, no. 2 (1999): 251. https://doi.org/10.25290/prinunivlibrchro.60.2.0251.
R.R. Invited Alphabet, or, Address of A to B : Containing His Friendly Proposal for the Amusement and Instruction of Good Children, 1809. https://dpul.princeton.edu/cotsen/catalog/37720h064.

EP02: The Thing about Captain Wentworth's Umbrella

10/3/2021

This week we talk about the history of umbrellas and why the English were so reluctant to adopt them, and then finally get into the gallantry of everyone's favorite sea captain, Frederick Wentworth. If you've ever pined for someone whilst the rain lightly drips down your face, this episode is for you. Also, please consider this episode our official request to have "Umbrella" by Rihanna on the next Persuasion soundtrack.

Selected episode sources:

Davidson, Hilary. Dress in the Age of Jane Austen: Regency Fashion. New Haven ; London: Yale University Press, 2019.
Hill, Georgiana. A History of English Dress from the Saxon Period to the Present Day, 2017.
William Sangster. Umbrellas and Their History. London: Effingham WIlson, Royal Exchange, 1855.

EP01: The Thing About Mr. Darcy's Portrait

10/3/2021

We're diving deep into the pivotal moment in Pride and Prejudice when Elizabeth gazes upon Darcy's portrait at Pemberley. And what a moment it is. If you've ever spent an evening scrolling through Instagram photos of your crush or had an awkward encounter with an ex, this episode is for you.

Forward>>

Episodes

EP06: The Thing About Darcy's Pen

EP05: The Thing About General Tilney's Pamphlets

EP04: The Thing About Marianne's Dead Leaves

EP03: The Thing About Regency Scrabble

EP02: The Thing about Captain Wentworth's Umbrella

EP01: The Thing About Mr. Darcy's Portrait

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