Lit 101

[Critical]

The one with Colin Firth, I presume? I see I posted about that three years ago, too. Glad you've read and enjoyed it! That's still one of my favorite books.

That is THE only version of P&P as far as I'm concerned! Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle ARE Darcy and Lizzie. That version of P&P was the first DVD I ever bought. I watch it regularly and still swoon over Darcy every time.

It's one of my favorite books too, Lucy. I can't ever decide on a favorite between it and Persuasion. I also really love Mansfield Park. I'm kind of a Jane fanatic.

[CCL]

I always thought that Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle were too old for the characters they were playing and, yet, they were still somehow perfect.
Pride & Prejudice is my favourite Austen book, followed by Emma. Persuasion is also good and was made into a pretty good movie a few years back.

[Florimel]

It's hard for me to remember what was required reading and what I just read because I wanted to, so I may mix them up a bit.

I do know we were required to read Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, in the original Middle English. I don't know of any other high that required that, but it was both a challenge and a pleasure to listen to the richness of the language.

A few of the others I loved were Pride and Prejudice (can't count the number of times I've reread that), Jane Eyre, Beowulf, The Odyssey, most of Dickens, most of Shakespeare, The Rivals, She Stoops to Conquer, The Good Earth, Babbitt, Ethan Frome, An American Tragey, The Ox-bow Incident, Fahrenheit 451, Les Miserables, Tolkien, 1984, Stranger in a Strange Land.

I did not enjoy Conrad's Heart of Darkness or most of Hemingway.

[Yardgnome]

The one with Colin Firth, I presume? I see I posted about that three years ago, too. Glad you've read and enjoyed it! That's still one of my favorite books.

I have watched part of that one but the one with Keira Knightly. I don't know who plays Mr. Darcy but he is hot.

[Critical]

I have watched part of that one but the one with Keira Knightly. I don't know who plays Mr. Darcy but he is hot.

Well, I can't bring myself to watch that one because I cannot stand Keira Knightly and was horrified when they cast her as Lizzie. It seemed like there was too much lust, even in the commercials for that version. Definitely not okay with the traditional Jane-ites. Of course, they hated Hugh Grant in Sense and Sensibility too, so they're not always right, are they?

I still love ya though, Gnomie! After all, we all need our eye candy!

I love the newer version of Mansfield Park - the one with Francis O'Connor and Jonny Lee Miller (not to mention James Purefoy! ). It's a bit modern and feminist for Jane Austen, but I found it charming anyway...."It all could have turned out differently....but it didn't"

Florimel - that's a great list. I'm amazed that you got to read Tolkien in school! For me, that was what I put behind my textbook to read in class. We also did The Odyssey, Beowulf (still love that one!), lots of mythology and TONS of Shakespeare. I also remember an ill-fated "Pilgrimage" through various English classes, reading Chaucer in Middle English

[Yardgnome]

I will try and catch all of the original one. They have been showing it on the BBC and I keep missing the beginning segments. I need to just DVR it and watch.

I also read Beowulf in school and that is also a great story. I never got to sample Chaucer in Middle English (besides memorizing the beginning) but when I went to England with some friends I made them go to Canterbury and visit the Canterbury Tales museum. I like all the stories told in the book.

[CCL]

I have watched part of that one but the one with Keira Knightly. I don't know who plays Mr. Darcy but he is hot.

Matthew Macfadyen. Definitely hot.

[hepcat]

I only recently read Mansfield Park and really enjoyed it, although it felt a little more juvenile. Still, the social nuances are fascinating in her novels. P&P is my favorite, too.

For you Jane Austen fans, what do you think of the fiction that has been written about her as if it's her private diaries? I got into a series by Stephanie Barron called the Jane Austen mysteries. They are written first person, as if she is solving mysteries around the English countryside. I was totally skeptical about this type of fiction because I hated that sequel to Gone With the Wind. But they're good stories, and the author makes them fit the facts of her life (whereabouts, acquaintances). In fact, my only complaint about them is that there's too many footnotes.

[AJane]

I just watched a movie adaptation of Mansfield Park, and the character of Fanny was awfully feisty compared to Austen's portrayal. A lot more likable than Austen's Fanny, though - she is the one Austen heroine that I dislike. I wanted to slap her for being such a snivelling little prude.

Hep, I'm not familiar with that series, but I say if it's well-written, then it doesn't matter if it's true. A good read is a good read.

[Yardgnome]

Have any of you read Cold Comfort Farm? It kind of makes fun of all the Austin and Bronte type books. It's a good read and highly entertaining. Not really classic lit but still good.