tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4512516523018627966.post784674660272910172..comments2023-06-02T14:56:35.057+01:00Comments on The Book Trunk: The Brontes Went to WoolworthsChristine Hardinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09814026435889782750noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4512516523018627966.post-80372909761532015982012-04-20T09:08:09.561+01:002012-04-20T09:08:09.561+01:00Thank you Elizabeth. The governesses intrigued me ...Thank you Elizabeth. The governesses intrigued me as well, especially Miss Martin, and I like your point about a novel being, by definition, a fantasy. I keep thinking about the theatrical references, and the fact that a court is also a kind of drama, with the judge and lawyers all dressed up and the various people all playing roles, and this seemed to reinforce questions about the nature of reality. It is one of the oddest books I have ever read and, like you, I felt it was not easy to come up with a coherent view. I borrowed it from the library, but want my own copy so I can read it again, not because I love the book, but because I keeping thinking about it and wanting to explore different aspects and characters.Christine Hardinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09814026435889782750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4512516523018627966.post-55584695423532072452012-04-20T06:13:35.478+01:002012-04-20T06:13:35.478+01:00I just finished this book, and I agree with so muc...I just finished this book, and I agree with so much of what you said. I think the book is about layers of what we think is reality but may well be wishful thinking. For instance, after I read how Deirdre described all four women joined together for a quick Can-Can on the landing, I asked myself, "Did that really happen, or is it fantasy?" And then I remembered - it's a novel. By definition, the whole book is a fantasy, created completely in someone's imagination. <br /><br />Along the same lines, I was fascinated by how the 'real' and the 'fantasy' constantly intertwined. Miss Martin seems solidly real with a resentment towards the Carnes' fantasy life. And then it is revealed that she is writing herself love letters from a man whose interest in her is probably just platonic. And the Brontes come to visit HER!! Similarly, the Carnes build up a detailed fantasy about the Toddingtons, meet them in reality, and then the Toddingtons ultimately grow into the Carnes fantasy of them, concluding, brilliantly, with the remark about seeing the Brontes in Woolworths. <br /><br />I am obsessed about the role the governesses play. How they seem to represent the harsh realities of life, how they are excluded by the limits of class from knowing what these strange women are talking about, and how, ultimately the governesses' efforts to bring the family back to 'reality' are foiled by the much more appealing fantasies the family has spun. <br /><br />I haven't expressed myself very well, but I was so excited to read someone else's take on the book, I couldn't wait to compose my thoughts in a cogent form.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07418612871246199865noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4512516523018627966.post-89542461395817220312012-04-12T20:59:23.051+01:002012-04-12T20:59:23.051+01:00Nan,I just love reading and writing... the nice th...Nan,I just love reading and writing... the nice thing about being redundant is that it's given me more time to read, and to think about what I read.ChrisCross53http://chriscross-thebooktrunk.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4512516523018627966.post-17236668477345013602012-04-12T17:12:56.930+01:002012-04-12T17:12:56.930+01:00This is not a book I want to read, but your report...This is not a book I want to read, but your report on it is so wonderful, so in-depth. I think you could publish it in some literary review. It really is special.Nanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15547916206007733970noreply@blogger.com