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lecture 4
Any novel of Jane Austin has a sense of humor.
Sense of humor is used to make readers laugh. We expect to have some fun, to be amused, to get entertainment.
The humor of Jane Austin is not to make us laugh aloud but just to smile and be amused. It is a very mild type of humor. It is not strong humor.
Critics think that Jane Austin as like sprinkling over the whole novel[ like adding pepper to food]. There is just a touch- a sprinkle of humor. It is a very mild sort of humor.
The humor of Jane Austin equal two things:
Satire. She is satirizing the foolishness of Mrs. Bennet.
Compassion= tolerance= understanding human nature.
Jane Austin is never insulting people when satirizing them. She never hurts her character- or she is never angry to them. She has satire but she can understand the. She knows that they are human, that they have their point of weakness; she knows that there is no body perfect. She can have sympathy, compassion or tolerance to people. She knows that she has to accept the presence of some foolish people among a group.
She is having this satire plus the compassion, understanding, tolerance, the knowing of all the weaknesses of the human nature. These elements together form the humor in the novel.
Satire+ compassion= humor
We do not feel that Jane Austin is a writer who is angry at people or who wants to change people, or who wants to have every body being perfect. She is a writer who accepts people as they are. She knows that whenever there is a group of people, some of them are going to be foolish, some have points of weaknesses, and this is human nature. She never tries to change this. She knows that it is something impossible to change people. God created people this way. We should accept them as they are.
She accepts people as they are and she never tries to change them.
The humor of Jane Austin is of the mild sort. It is of the type that makes us smile, not to laugh out loud. Some novelists have a very loud source of humor but not Jane Austin. Her homer is a touch that we can find throughout all the pages- from the beginning to the end. It is only a touch of humor. Humor is the sum of two things; satire and compassion.
Humor in Jane Austin is always directed to the individuals- not to the society.
We have two characters in the novel that are satirized- Mrs. Bennet who us foolish and Mr. Collins who is absurd, foolish, comic character. These are the two characters that are the source of humor in the novel.
Jane Austin is directing the humor to individuals, not against the society as a whole. She does not want to change the individuals. She does not care about changing the whole society. She accepts society and accepts people. She is making fun of Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Collins to make the readers smile. We do not feel that she wants them to become different.
Her humor is directed to certain characteristics in these individuals. It is directed against the follies= the foolish mistakes- of these individuals.
It is directed also against the oddness - absurditiesسخف- incongruities تنافر- - inconsistencies تضاربof the characters.
Summary:
Jane Austin always has this sense of humor in all her novels. We can find it through out the whole text from the beginning till the end, but it is of the mild type. It is a touch of humor that makes us smile not laughing aloud. This humor is a combination of satire and compassion and acceptance of human nature.
Jane Austin is a very compassionate person. She does not get angry at people. She accepts people as they are. She knows that every body has his point of weaknesses and we can never change this. We can not expect people to be perfect. She takes these things as they are.
She directs the humor against the individual characters not against the whole group or insinuations. The two main characters that we have this humor against are Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Collins. The humor is directed against the follies and the absurdities in the characters of these people.
The character of Mr. Collins has two congruities inside it. it has two contrasting things[ for example- someone to be wise and foolish] Mr. Collins is also described as a mixture of two opposite things servility and self-importance. The same man has the quality of servility and the quality of self importance because he has these two contrasting things.
Mr. Collins is a family relative of Mr. Bennet. He is his cousin- but he is much younger- there was a sort of family quarrel- disagreement between the father of Mr. Collins and Mr. Bennet. They were not of good terms. They did not see each other for many years. Now, Mr. Collins' father is dead. Collins writes a letter telling Mr. Bennet that he is willing to come to visit them to put an end to this quarrel. He has self- importance. He is a clergy man- preaches people in the church on Sundays- that he is a very important man. He has an important friend- Lady Catherine de Bourgh – she is the one who commends him. All the time, he is boasting- showing off. At the same time he is very servile. He talks about Lady Catherine as if he is a slave or a servant to her. he can never do anything unless he asks her permission- even before coming to stay for a week with the Bennets, he asked for her permission- he can be very servile and self important at the same time. He says that she gave him permission اذنto get married. She has this condition that he must choose a suitable wife. He does not object to this, this is why we call him servile. He is very servile among the aristocratic people. He is either time complementing people all the time or apologizing for them.
He is a very strange mixture of these two things. Because he has all these congruities in his character, because he has the absurditiesسخافات and the folliesحماقات that we will find many examples of, this is why he is one of the main sources of humor in the novel.
Jane Austin is directing her humor against Mr. Collins. She is making a joke about him.
Elizabeth is criticizing people and analyzing the way they are thinking. Like Jane Austin, she likes to make Jokes at people. She likes to joke about the follies of people. She is the mouth speak of Jane Austin. She is doing the things that Jane Austin likes doing. This is part of the character of Elizabeth. She is behaving in the manner of Jane Austin. She does not insult people, she is not angry at people, but she is very compassionate and tolerable, but she likes to make joke or to have fun at people who are foolish.
Jane Austin does not want to changes these people but she is telling us that there are people who are like this. We have to accept them.
We have the two eldest Bennet sisters- Jane and Elizabeth – at the house of Mr. Bingley. Jane was having cold. The people at the house, Mr. Bingley, MR. Darcy, the two Bingley sisters, Mr. Hurst the husband of Bingley's sister and Elizabeth and Jane.
Sometimes in the evening they sit together. Darcy starts to admire Elizabeth.
In our novel, the mine line of plot is Elizabeth- Darcy relationship. It is the main- principal story line. Understanding and admiration starts to develop between them.
Miss Bingley is jealous about Darcy. She wants to attract Darcy. All the time she is trying to attract him. He does not respond to her. She starts making jokes in order to prevent him from thinking to marry Elizabeth. She tries to stop Darcy from thinking of Elizabeth because of her family.
Elizabeth is like Jane Austin. She is a good observer of life. She has a sense of humor. Both can make jokes about the foolish people. Elizabeth can notice and feel how Miss. Bingley is talking.
They are at the Bingley's house. Darcy asks Elizabeth twice if she likes to dance. She does not answer him.
Oh,” said she, “I heard you before; but I could not immediately determine what to say in reply. You wanted me, I know, to say ‘Yes,’ that you might have the pleasure of despising my taste; but I always delight in overthrowing those kind of schemes, and cheating a person of their premeditated contempt. I have therefore made up my mind to tell you that I do not want to dance a reel at all; and now despise me if you dare.”
She heard him but she does not want to answer him. She thinks that he has the pleasure of despising her taste and making fun of her. She does not want to allow him to do this.
He will admire her.
Indeed, I do not dare.”
Elizabeth, having rather expected to affront him, was amazed at his gallantry; but there was a mixture of sweetness and archness in her manner which made it difficult for her to affront anybody, and Darcy had never been so bewitched by any woman as he was by her. He really believed that, were it not for the inferiority of her connections, he should be in some danger.
He apologizes in a very polite manner. She knows that he is a very nice and gentleman. Darcy has become bewitched by her- he has never been bewitched by any woman as he was by her.
She has a mixture of archness = intelligence and sweetness.
She was amazed at his gallantry= gentility.
If she does not have such a vulgar family, and such inferior mothers and sisters, he would be in great danger of falling in love with her and in great danger of marrying her.
He comes to the stage of thinking about love. the only obstacle is her family. As a young lady, he can see her bewitching and extraordinary, exceptional.
This is part of the development of their relation.
In this conversation, we see about their characters, we know about their relations.
Darcy speaks about his point of weakness, that no body is perfect- that he has certain mistakes in his personality.
They are still in the drawing room. They are complementing Darcy.
Miss Bingley,” said he, “has given me credit for more than can be. The wisest and best of men—nay, the wisest and best of their actions—may be rendered ridiculous by a person whose first object in life is a joke.”
He says that even if a person is perfect, some other one would make jokes about him. he understands that Elizabeth likes to make jokes about people.
“Certainly,” replied Elizabeth—“there are such people, but I hope I am not one of them; I hope I never ridicule what is wise or good. Follies and nonsense, whims and inconsistencies, do divert me, I own, and I laugh at them whenever I can. But these, I suppose, are precisely what you are without.”
Elizabeth is speaking as if she is Jane Austin herself. She admits that she likes to make jokes against the follies of people but she can never make a joke about someone who is good. Jane Austin herself has the same attitude. She could never make a joke against wise or good people. But she is ready to make jokes against foolish people. She can not make jokes about him as he is without- does not have follies
Perhaps that is not possible for anyone. But it has been the study of my life to avoid those weaknesses which often expose a strong understanding to ridicule.”
“Such as vanity and pride.”
Darcy is very intelligent. He knows that he does not have these things. He tried very hard not to have – to avoid those weaknesses. He knows that he does not have follies. But he admits that he is not perfect- as there is no one who is perfect-
She is making fun of him telling him that vanity and pride are not of these follies.
Yes, vanity is a weakness. But pride—where there is a real superiority of mind—pride will be always under good regulation.”
Vanity is a bad quality. There is no excuse of having vanity. It is a weakness. He says that he does not have vanity. But pride is different. He can be proud and have the reason to be proud. He has every right to be proud- to be wealthy- of a good family- to be intelligent-
He is comparing vanity and pride showing the difference between them. How vanity is bad and can never be excused, and that it is always a weakness, but pride is sometimes accepted if there is a reason.
He admits that he is proud but not vain.
Elizabeth turned away to hide a smile.
He has another point of weakness which is very important that if someone offends him, he will not be able to forgive him.
Wickham, a newly arrived officer, meets Darcy by accident in the street. Their faces turn pale and red. They seem to know each other before. It seems that they do not like each other. Elizabeth takes notice of this. She is a good observer. She guesses that there is a secret, something between them. She tells Jane.
This will have very important consequences in the novel. Darcy is a man who does not forgive someone if he offends him. He is not a man who forgets and forgives.
Mrs. Bennet sent them word that they could not possibly have the carriage before Tuesday; and in her postscript it was added that, if Mr. Bingley and his sister pressed them to stay longer, she could spare them very well. Against staying longer, however, Elizabeth was positively resolved, nor did she much expect it would be asked; and fearful, on the contrary, of being considered as intruding themselves needlessly long, she urged Jane to borrow Mr. Bingley's carriage immediately, and at length it was settled that their original design of leaving Netherfield that morning should be mentioned, and the request made.
Jane and Elizabeth stayed for three or four days in the Bingley's house. But the mother wants them to stay longer. She does not want them to come back. She does not want to send them the carriage. They take the Bingley's carriage. She wants them to stay where they are.
They were not welcomed home very cordially by their mother. Mrs. Bennet wondered at their coming, and thought them very wrong to give so much trouble, and was sure Jane would have caught cold again. But their father, though very laconic in his expressions of pleasure, was really glad to see them; he had felt their importance in the family circle. The evening conversation, when they were all assembled, had lost much of its animation, and almost all its sense, by the absence of Jane and Elizabeth.
This is about the condition of the house when they returned home. They were not welcomed home. The father was glad to see them. He missed them when they were away.
Jane Austin is commenting humorously. She is saying that the father when his two eldest daughters were not there, he thought that there was no sense at all. All the women that were with him are silly and foolish- the mother and the three other daughters
They found Mary, as usual, deep in the study of thorough-bass and human nature; and had some new extracts to admire, and some new observations of threadbare morality to listen to. Catherine and Lydia had information for them of a different sort. Much had been done and much had been said in the regiment since the preceding Wednesday; several of the officers had dined lately with their uncle; a private had been flogged, and it had actually been hinted that Colonel Forster was going to be married.
Mary is the one who is always reading books. They found her the same.
Catherine and Lydia have not seen their daughters for three days. They have too much news about the officers to tell them.
Mr. Collins sends a letter to Mr. Bennet. This letter tells about his character.
“ 'Hunsford, near Westerham, Kent, October 15th.
‘Dear Sir: The disagreement subsisting between yourself and my late honored father always gave me much uneasiness; and since I have had the misfortune to lose him I have frequently wished to heal the breach, but for some time I was kept back by my own doubts, fearing lest it might seem disrespectful to his memory for me to be on good terms with anyone with whom it had always pleased him to be at variance.’—There, Mrs. Bennet.—'My mind, however, is now made up on the subject; for, having received ordination at Easter, I have been so fortunate as to be distinguished by the patronage of the Right Honorable Lady Catherine De Bourgh, widow of Sir Lewis De Bourgh, whose bounty and beneficence has preferred me to the valuable rectory of this parish, where it shall be my earnest endeavor to demean myself with grateful respect toward her ladyship, and be ever ready to perform those rites and ceremonies which are instituted by the Church of England. As a clergyman, moreover, I feel it my duty to promote and establish the blessing of peace in all families within the reach of my influence; and on these grounds I flatter myself that my present overtures of goodwill are highly commendable, and that the circumstance of my being next in the entail of Longbourn estate will be kindly overlooked on your side, and not lead you to reject the offered olive-branch. I cannot be otherwise than concerned at being the means of injuring your amiable daughters, and beg leave to apologize for it, as well as to assure you of my readiness to make them every possible amends, but of this hereafter. If you should have no objection to receive me into your house, I propose myself the satisfaction of waiting on you and your family, Monday, November 18th, by four o'clock, and shall probably trespass on your hospitality till the Saturday sennight following, which I can do without any inconvenience, as Lady Catherine is far from objecting to my occasional absence on a Sunday, provided that some other
Mr. Collins is using a very formal style. He is trying to show off by using these difficult words.
There was a disagreement between Mr. Collins' father and Mr. Bennet. He wants to come to make amends between the two families. He wants to come to visit them. All the time he is servile and self important.
This letter is like a study of the character of Mr. Collins.
Mr. Collins is having dinner with the Bennets. All the time, he is talking about Lady Catherine.
She had been graciously pleased to approve of both the discourses which he had already had the honor of preaching before her. She had also asked him twice to dine at Rosings, and had sent for him only the Saturday before, to make up her pool of quadrille in the evening. Lady Catherine was reckoned proud by many people, he knew, but he had never seen anything but affability in her.
This is another narrative technique.
Jane Austin is giving in an indirect technique the speech of Collins. It is a reported speech.
It is a great honor to invite him to dine at Rosings.
of quadrille= like a game of cards .
Lady Catherine was playing this game of cards. They were missing someone. She sent for Mr. Collins to play with them. He is boasting about attending dinner and playing games with Lady Catherine.
He is showing off.
He says that Lady Catherine is proud with all people but she is friendly with him.
She had always spoken to him as she would to any other gentleman; she made not the smallest objection to his joining in the society of the neighborhood, nor to his leaving the parish occasionally for a week or two to visit his relations. She had even condescended to advise him to marry as soon as he could, provided he chose with discretion; and had once paid him a visit in his humble parsonage, where she had perfectly approved all the alterations he had been making, and had even vouchsafed to suggest some herself—some shelves in the closet upstairs.
She speaks to him in equal bases as a gentleman. She always speaks to him in a very nice way. He asks her permission. He does not object to take her permission. He is very servile in her relation to her.
She told him that he can marry but he has to choose with wisdom. She is going to see the lady whom he is going to marry.
Elizabeth is a good observer of characters and of human nature. She always explains to the reader why these characters have some contradictions.
MR. COLLINS WAS NOT a sensible man, and the deficiency of nature had been but little assisted by education or society, the greatest part of his life having been spent under the guidance of an illiterate and miserly father; and though he belonged to one of the universities, he had merely kept the necessary terms without forming at it any useful acquaintance.
She is giving an authorial commentary.
Mr. Collins has some deficiency of nature. He has certain weaknesses by nature. These weaknesses were made stronger , more apparent by his social environment in which he was brought up.
He is 25 years old. Most of his life had been spent under the guidance of his father who had very bad qualities. He is illiterate- he does not know how to read and write- he is ignorant. He is miserly. This affected the son.
He went to university. He is an educated man, not like his father, but he did not benefit from university. Going to University did not change his personality, did not pure the problem of his personality.
The subjection in which his father had brought him up had given him originally great humility of manner; but it was now a good deal counteracted by the self-conceit of a weak head, living in retirement, and the consequential feelings of early and unexpected prosperity. A fortunate chance had recommended him to Lady Catherine De Bourgh when the living of Hunsford was vacant; and the respect which he felt for her high rank and his veneration for her as his patroness, mingling with a very good opinion of himself, of his authority as a clergyman, and his right as a rector, made him altogether a mixture of pride and obsequiousness, self-importance and humility.
We have here the explanation of incongruity. His father brought him up in subjection. His father told him that he is very inferior, that he must respect any one who is better to him. When he graduated at the university, when he was lucky when he met Lady Catherine , when he is going to inherit Mr. Bennet, this makes him self-conceit. This mixture of self importance, self conceit, of the subjection, humility, servility came to him by nature and by up bringing through his father, through his circumstances, through his education, through his inheritance by nature.
Finished
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