Patience – Give It A More Fascinating Name, Call It Hope

“That is what I like; that is what a young man ought to be. Whatever be his pursuits, his eagerness in them should know no moderation, and leave him no sense of fatigue.”

Marianne Dashwood

Four books in, the thing I’ve realized is the way Jane Austen writes is what I love, not what she writes about. I always avoided period drama altogether because I assumed it was all boring, or at the very least outside my wheelhouse. But the flourishing way she describes things, the subtle rapier wit, the adroit dismissal of silly characters, its all great! I still like Pride & Prejudice best but this was a very enjoyable read.

That said, I have a few nits to pick with the plot. However, all of my beefs with the text were remedied by Emma Thompson’s Oscar-winning screenplay in the 1995 film version.

In short, those beefs were:

• The book doesn’t do much to develop of the relationship between Edward and Elinor into love. It more has them around each other now and then and thinking the other is nice. Scenes were added in the film to show how they got to know each other and it made the latter half of the movie far more intriguing.
• The film shortens some sequences to great pacing effect (such as the Marianne’s bedrest) and completely cuts unnecessary characters (such as the stolid, lifeless Lady Middleton).
• Lucy ending up with Robert seemed very contrived in the book, but in the film the progression of their affair and how they match is quite clearly laid out.
• Willoughby’s redemption – I didn’t like in the book that he got a chance to defend himself, because it was basically just saying, yeah, I’m an asshole, but forgive me! The film does away with this impassioned soliloquy and replaces it with a wistful gaze from a distant hill. Marianne still learns the backstory and Elinor is spared a very awkward conversation.
• The film just seems to keep the details more organized than the book. This was the first Austen book in the quest where things felt a little jumbled at times, but the film flows perfectly while being true to the source material.

THIS. MOVIE. IS. AMAZING. I broke the streak and found an Austen movie adaptation that I enjoyed more than the book. P&P is still my favorite novel. But S&S is the best film so far by a country mile.

Quest Checklist:

• Northanger Abbey
• Pride & Prejudice
• Persuasion
• Sense & Sensibility
• Mansfield Park
• Emma
• Lady Susan – doesn’t really count, but I did already watch Love & Friendship!