I have written here before about how I am a die-hard Jane Austen fan. I love her books for their caustic characterizations, but also because they are so very familiar to me, like old friends. I posted here about how Pride and Prejudice was one of the first books I read after the earthquake, when I started to come out of my inability to concentrate or read much beyond news reports. A friend commented that that isn't a book, it's a member of the family. That's right - that is how I felt, too.
I've also written about how I keep trying to read people's attempts to imitate or spin off from Jane Austen, and how I'm always disappointed, because somehow it never quite works. And yet I'm very much enjoying The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. If you're a Jane Austen fan like me, I'd love to know what you think of this multimedia adaptation. Lizzie Bennet posts two video blogs (vlogs) a week on YouTube, and her sister Lydia also has a video blog (which I like much less). Some of the characters have Facebook pages and post on Pinterest and Twitter. (I don't do Pinterest or Twitter. There aren't enough hours in the day for me to get involved on yet another online time-sucker. Well, except for LBD, of course.)
My daughter is reading P&P in her English class right now, and also following along with the LBD, and she says she likes the characters much better on LBD. I know, I know, sacrilege, except that I do see that Jane Austen very much writes people off. Of course Lizzie is wrong about Darcy, and about Wickham, and she gets straightened out, but nobody ever rethinks Mary, or Mr. Collins, or Lady Catherine. They are all fairly one-dimensional. And as my daughter points out, Jane Austen really does "tell" a lot, instead of "showing." ("She interrupts scenes to inundate you with adjectives," as my daughter puts it.)
You can get started here, where you'll find links to the YouTube channel.
49 minutes ago
3 comments:
I'm not such a fan, but it's fun to hear you talk about your conversations with your daughter, Ruth. Perhaps Facebook, etc. really are making an impact? We can't go back. I do wonder how the English teachers are faring.
Yep, I much prefer the old-fashioned original version. And even the movies. But thanks for sharing - and I also love the peek into these great conversations with your daughter. Mine comes home for Thanksgiving this evening - likely we'll end up watching P & P while she's here, as we often do!
I would love to hear those literary conversations happening in your home!
And, I think I need to give Jane Austen another try. I've only read P&P and maybe I was a little "off" when I read it, I am going to pick-up another.
Happy Thanksgiving Ruth! I am thankful for you!
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