Mansfield Park
Mansfield Park is a novel by the English writer Jane Austen , written between February 1811 and the summer of 1813 and published in May 1814 . This novel is possibly the most satirical of Austen's work. Like her other works, this novel was published anonymously.
Vladimir Nabokov dedicated one of his lectures on literature to the novel .
content
The main character is Fanny Price, the second eldest of a poor, large family. She is taken to Mansfield Park to live with a sister of her mother, Lady Bertram, who is married to the wealthy Sir Thomas.
There she grows up with her four cousins: Tom, Edmund, Maria and Julia. While Tom, Maria, and Julia never treat them as equals, Edmund is really nice to her and treats her as his own. It is tolerated in Mansfield Park, but it is not really welcome. Although she is often very unhappy there during her childhood, she grows up with a strong sense of decency and virtue and remains close to her older brother William, who joined the Royal Navy . Over the years, her gratitude for Edmund's kindness and kindness turns more and more to love.
Mrs. Norris, another sister of Fanny's mother, also lives in Mansfield. She interferes in all household affairs in Mansfield Park, indulging the Bertram children, especially Maria, beyond measure, while disdaining Fanny and humiliating her with words. She makes life difficult for her uneducated niece at every opportunity. The righteous Sir Thomas seeks to correct his sister-in-law's pernicious influence on his children. He fails to do this, however, and he is increasingly viewed by his daughters as a strict patriarch , towards whom they hide their true feelings and opinions. In contrast to his wife, who has hardly any other interests than useless needlework and her pug , he is very anxious to bring up the children, but also does not treat them lovingly and because of his reserve he has no access to them. The two superficial daughters Maria and Julia become more and more vain and conceited over the years, are very self-absorbed and measure their own worth only by their beauty and origin, while Tom becomes a reckless and wasteful party animal and player. Edmund is the only one of the four siblings to survive his upbringing with an intact sense of decency.
The real plot of the book begins when Sir Thomas travels to Antigua for two years after facing problems on his plantation there . The emotional entanglements begin with the arrival of siblings, Mr. and Miss Crawford, to visit their sister, Mrs. Grant. She is the wife of the current owner of the parish of Mansfield Park. Miss Crawford and Edmund are attracted to each other, although Edmund is often concerned about their lack of proper manners and disrespectful views, particularly with regard to his ministerial calling. The growing affection between the two troubles Fanny, who not only fears losing Edmund, but also feels that his love for Miss Crawford blinds him to her serious flaws in character. Mr. Crawford, meanwhile, is playing with the affection of both Bertram sisters, despite the fact that Maria is already engaged to the somewhat simple-minded but very rich Mr. Rushworth.
When Sir Thomas returns, he finds the young people in the midst of preparations for a play . This was an extremely unsuitable occupation for young women of noble origin at the time . Only Fanny did not participate. Sir Thomas' arrival results in the game being canceled and Mr. Crawford departs. Maria's marriage to Mr. Rushworth takes place in spite of the jealousy she had aroused by her behavior with Mr. Crawford. The young couple go on their honeymoon with Julia . During this absence, Fanny becomes more meaningful to the family, and her uncle shows more affection for her than before.
When Mr. Crawford returns to Mansfield Park after a period of absence, Fanny becomes the new target of his attempts to flirt . Her kindness and kindness, however, bring his plans to failure, and he falls in love with her. But when he her a marriage proposal makes their knowledge to his previous incorrect behavior towards their cousins they refuse to his request and her great affection for Edmund. This upset her family, and Sir Thomas reprimands them for disobedience and ingratitude. Fanny remains steadfast, knowing full well that she did the right thing. This is all the more difficult for her as she cannot reveal her real reasons for rejection without exposing Maria at the same time, which Fanny definitely does not want.
Sir Thomas sends Fanny back to her family home for a few months to make her understand the supposed need to have a rich husband. After initially enjoying seeing her parents and siblings again, Fanny is shocked by the neglected and unorganized household and the harsh atmosphere in her parents' home. Mr. Crawford comes to see her to show her that he has changed and is now worthy of her feelings. By helping her brother William get a promotion, he uses this strategy to soothe Fanny's negative attitude towards him, although she is still far from accepting him as a husband . However, shortly after he left for London , she heard rumors of a scandal involving him and her married cousin Maria. It is later revealed that after reviving their acquaintance in London, Crawford also resumed his flirtations and petty intrigues , which led to Maria running off with him. Because of this, and because of Tom's illness, which was caused by a previous drinking bout, as well as Julia running away with Mr. Yates, the situation in Mansfield Park is terrible and Fanny is called back to help her aunt and uncle during this time and comfort her. As a result of the scandal, Edmund separates from Miss Crawford. After a while he returns Fanny's affection and the two marry.
main characters
Fanny Price - Fanny Price is the second oldest of a large group of children and is sent to live with her mother's sisters in Mansfield Park. In terms of her disposition, Fanny is extremely shy, tender, fearful and reserved. Nevertheless, she shows remarkable strength of will and gains noticeably in self-confidence in the course of the plot .
Lady Bertram - Lady Bertram is the sister of Fanny's mother and married to the wealthy Sir Thomas Bertram. It is characterized by extreme laziness and inertia , and is interested in almost nothing, except for their mops and their handicrafts. She leaves the upbringing of her daughters to the governess and her sister Mrs. Norris.
Mrs. Norris - Mrs. Norris is the widowed sister of Lady Bertram and Fanny's mother, Frances, who lives near Mansfield Park. Her late husband was the former pastor of Mansfield. It is her great ambition to make herself indispensable in her sister's house, as long as it does not incur any expenses for herself. At the beginning of the novel, Sir Thomas has great confidence in her ability to make judgments, since, unlike Lady Bertram, she is a capable and hands-on woman. This is justifiably dwindling until he finally has to admit, after the scandal surrounding Maria and Mr. Crawford, that he was seriously mistaken about her.
Mrs. Price - Fanny's mother is the sister of Lady Bertram and Mrs. Norris. She defied her family's expectations of marrying a wealthy man by entering into a marriage of pure love. However, it turned out that her husband was an alcoholic and she had to put up with the fact that her life was far less comfortable and pleasant than that of the rest of the family. Mrs. Price is overwhelmed with her numerous children and is therefore happy that her eldest daughter can grow up with her sister's family in Mansfield Park.
Sir Thomas Bertram - Fanny's Aunt Maria's husband, Lady Bertram, owns the Mansfield Park estate and a large plantation in Antigua. Today it is assumed that Jane Austen wanted to allude to the slavery that was legal in the British colonies with the "problems" on Sir Thomas' plantations , even if this is not explicitly portrayed in the novel. However, Fanny would like to talk to her uncle about the slave trade in an evening, after which the family fell horrified. What is striking is the strong affection for the family and, in particular, his newly awakening appreciation for Fanny after his stay in Antigua. Nevertheless, he appears distant and sometimes strict, which is why - with the exception of Fanny and Edmund - hardly any sympathy is shown to him. His own daughters find his presence rather depressing and Tom also sees him only as his constant critic
Tom Bertram - Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram's eldest son is primarily interested in carousing parties in London society and enjoys the joys of the theater with his friend Mr. Yates. Although he has good principles (for example, he sees the wrong thing about a theater performance during his father's perhaps life-threatening trip), he prefers to act for his own pleasure. Due to his dissolute lifestyle and his inclination to play, he accumulates large debts, which Sir Thomas is forced to pay - with the money that Edmund, Tom's younger brother, would have been entitled to. For this reason, he has to rent the benefice intended for Edmund to Mr. Grant. Tom returns home from one of his drinking bouts sick with a fever.
Edmund Bertram - Edmund is the younger son of Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram. He aspires to become a clergyman . Edmund and his cousin Fanny found much in common in their youth; Edmund becomes Fanny's teacher, role model, and closest ally against the rest of the family, who are slow to see their true worth. As an adult, Edmund initially felt strongly attracted to Miss Crawford - in character the exact opposite of Fanny and himself. At the same time, his infatuation increasingly disguises the weaknesses he cannot tolerate, which he sees halfway clearly at the beginning. Finally he realizes his love for Fanny.
Maria Bertram - Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram's older daughter becomes engaged to the wealthy Mr. Rushworth, but becomes involved in a romantic relationship with Mr. Crawford. Without love, in spite of a certain aversion, she marries Mr. Rushworth simply because of his fortune and reputation, although she loves someone else. In doing so, she is doing exactly the opposite of Fanny, who firmly opposes Crawford's proposal of marriage, because her heart already belongs to Edmund and because she knows how little she could appreciate Crawford's character. Maria, who is bored in her marriage, eventually runs off with Henry Crawford and with this scandal excludes herself from society.
Julia Bertram - Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram's younger daughter also develops strong feelings for Mr. Crawford, but realizes early that he prefers her sister Maria. She then begins a flirtation with Mr. Yates, with whom she runs away after the Maria scandal. Like Maria, the frequent praise for her beauty, character and abilities has risen to her head at times, which is why both consider themselves infallible. In doing so, they are very selfish.
Mrs. Grant - The wife of the pastor of Mansfield Parish is the sister of Mr. Henry Crawford and Miss Mary Crawford. She shares a certain carelessness with both of them. B. in their participation in the play becomes clear.
Mr. Henry Crawford - The charming and sought-after bachelor is the brother of Mrs. Grant and Mary Crawford and shows an interest in Maria, Julia and, ultimately, Fanny. While he only has the intention of making all three of them fall in love with himself without harboring any more serious intentions, he falls in love with Fanny contrary to expectations, precisely because she is the exact opposite of her cousins. His vanity is shown in the fact that he does not even notice her rejection and simply ignores it. Here he shows a lack of sensitivity. Even so, while courting Fanny, he tries to change his behavior, which improves her opinion of him. How superficial and unsustainable his efforts are is shown by his burning with Maria. With that he finally made a point of winning Fanny's heart.
Miss Mary Crawford - Miss Crawford is the sister of Mr. Crawford and Mrs. Grant and shows a keen interest in Edmund Bertram. Although she often only thinks of herself, her affection for Edmund is apparently genuine, because marrying him would not be too beneficial in her view. After all, he is “only” a second son and therefore not the main heir. In addition, Mary regards the social position of the clergy as too low for herself and - in contrast to Fanny and Edmund - has decidedly anti-clerical views. In her and her brother - especially in contrast to Edmund and Fanny - the v. a. moral contrast between city (London) and country clear.
Mr. Rushworth - Mr. Rushworth is a wealthy but foolish man who becomes engaged to Maria Bertram and eventually marries her.
Mr. Yates - Tom Bertram's best friend hangs out with him in London society and brings their love for the theater to Mansfield Park. He is also interested in Tom's younger sister Julia. He embodies - with Sir Thomas as a secret counterpart - like his friend Tom the conflict of generations.
William Price - Fanny's older brother, a naval officer , is very close to his sister. He recalls Wentworth in persuasion .
Susan Price - Susan is one of Fanny's younger sisters. After Fanny's return to her family, the two develop a close relationship. Susan later accompanies Fanny back to Mansfield Park and after her marriage takes her place as companion of Lady Bertram.
Trivia
In the books in the Harry Potter series, the Hogwarts School caretaker has a cat. This one, hated by all the students, is called Mrs. Norris , like one of the characters in Mansfield Park.
expenditure
- Original editions
- Mansfield Park: a novel. In three volumes. By the author of "Sense and Sensibility" and "Pride and Prejudice". T. Egerton, London 1814 (first edition).
- German translations
- Mansfield Park . Translated from English by Trude Fein, epilogue by Max Wildi. Manesse Library of World Literature , Manesse Verlag, Zurich 1968, 5th edition 1996, ISBN 3-7175-1026-6 .
- Mansfield Park . Translated by Ursula u. Christian Grawe . Nachw. U. Notes from Christian Grawe. Reclam, Stuttgart 2007, ISBN 978-3-15-020008-7 .
- Mansfield Park . Translated from the English by Margit Meyer. Construction Verlag, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-7466-2570-6 .
- Audio book
- Jane Austen: Mansfield Park . Unabridged reading, translated from English by Ursula and Christian Grawe. Director: Vera Teichmann. Read by Eva Mattes. Argon-Verlag, Berlin 2014, ISBN 978-3-8398-1323-2 .
Film and television adaptations
- 1983: Mansfield Park - BBC series directed by David Giles , starring Sylvestra Le Touzel as Fanny Price, Nicholas Farrell as Edmund Bertram, and Anna Massey as Mrs. Norris.
- 1999: Mansfield Park - director and screenwriter was Patricia Rozema , Frances O'Connor played the role of Fanny and Jonny Lee Miller Edmund (who played in the film version of 1983 one of the younger brothers of Fanny). In this film, some key elements of the story have been drastically changed.
- 2007: Mansfield Park - Company Pictures' British television film with Billie Piper as Fanny Price and Blake Ritson as Edmund Bertram.
Web links
- Summary on the website of J.Austen Friends
- Mansfield Park 1983 in the imdb
- Mansfield Park 2007 in the imdb
Individual evidence
- ↑ In German translation: Vladimir Nabokov : Lectures on Western European Literature (Collected Works, Vol. 18). Rowohlt, Reinbek b. Hamburg 2014, ISBN 978-3-498-04656-9 . Pp. 45-141.
- ↑ Mansfield Park, Chapter 21 (Part II, Chapter 3)
