{"id":380,"date":"2021-11-23T23:58:06","date_gmt":"2021-11-23T12:58:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/?p=380"},"modified":"2021-12-31T18:34:12","modified_gmt":"2021-12-31T07:34:12","slug":"mansfield-park-episode-1-chapters-1-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/2021\/11\/23\/mansfield-park-episode-1-chapters-1-3\/","title":{"rendered":"<em>Mansfield Park<\/em>: Episode 1, Chapters 1-3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div id=\"buzzsprout-player-9599242\"><\/div><script src=\"https:\/\/www.buzzsprout.com\/829264\/9599242-s03e01-mansfield-park-chapters-1-to-3.js?container_id=buzzsprout-player-9599242&amp;player=small\" type=\"text\/javascript\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<p>In this episode, we read the first three chapters of&nbsp;<em>Mansfield Park<\/em>. We give a brief publishing history, and talk about how the opening chapters really prepare the way for the rest of the book, with all of the characters and relationships being set up, how the three Miss Wards come from a not dissimilar background from <em>Pride and Prejudice&#8217;s<\/em> Miss Gardiners (Mrs Bennet and Mrs Phillips), and how the novel&#8217;s themes of education and principle are introduced. The character we talk about is Mrs Norris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a longer than usual historical segment, Ellen talks about the historical background to Sir Thomas&#8217;s estate in Antigua, and the extent to which all members of the gentry were complicit in slavery. We follow this up with a conversation on how discussions of slavery are now part of the discourse on <em>Mansfield Park<\/em>. Harriet identifies four different approaches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>People who can&#8217;t read the book because of the connection with slavery<\/li><li>People who feel that <em>perhaps <\/em>the estate in Antigua did not use enslaved people<\/li><li>People who feel that the novel is <em>about <\/em>slavery &#8211; and, specifically, that it is an abolitionist novel<\/li><li>People who feel that slavery is part of the context of the novel &#8211; one of the aspects of Janen Austen&#8217;s society that today we find abhorrent &#8211; but it is not a focus of the novel. We need to be open to discussing the novel in a post-colonial light, but that does not mean the novel is about slavery. <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We would like to thank Damianne Scott, who runs the Facebook page <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BGLJ1976\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Black Girl Loves Jane<\/a>, for reviewing the historical segment for us, and providing feedback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To finish the episode, Harriet gives an overview of various popular culture versions of <em>Mansfield Park<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>Things we mention: <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>General and character discussion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Deirdre Le Faye [Editor],\u00a0<em><a data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2155.Jane_Austen_s_Letters\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2155.Jane_Austen_s_Letters\" target=\"_blank\">Jane Austen\u2019s Letters<\/a><\/em>\u00a0(1969)<\/li><li>Mary Brunton,\u00a0<em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/514571.Self_Control\" target=\"_blank\">Self-Control<\/a><\/em>\u00a0(1810) &#8211; this is the book about which Jane Austen criticised the lack of &#8216;natural, possible, every-day things&#8217;<\/li><li>Sheila Kaye-Smith and G.B. Stern,\u00a0<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/1102190.Talking_of_Jane_Austen\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Talking of Jane Austen<\/em><\/a>\u00a0(1943) and\u00a0<em>More Talk of Jane Austen<\/em>\u00a0(1950)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Historical discussion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Catherine_Hall\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Catherine_Hall\" target=\"_blank\">Catherine Hall<\/a>, historian who has researched slavery, and who gave a talk about the use of sugar in British cooking<\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/William_Wilberforce\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/William_Wilberforce\" target=\"_blank\">William Wilberforce<\/a> (1759-1833), leader of the movement to abolish the slave trade<\/li><li>Elizabeth Gaskell, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/1227202.My_Lady_Ludlow\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/1227202.My_Lady_Ludlow\" target=\"_blank\">My Lady Ludlow<\/a><\/em> (1858)<\/li><li>Thomas Clarkson, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/21293091-the-history-of-the-rise-progress-and-accomplishment-of-the-abolition-of\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/21293091-the-history-of-the-rise-progress-and-accomplishment-of-the-abolition-of\" target=\"_blank\">History of the Rise, Progress, and Accomplishment of the Abolition of the African Slave Trade<\/a><\/em> (1836)<\/li><li>Devoney Looser, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/ypi8Bu3W33U\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/ypi8Bu3W33U\" target=\"_blank\">Slavery, Anti-Slavery, and the Austen Family<\/a><\/em> (2021 &#8211; YouTube video)<\/li><li>John Sutherland, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/448282.Is_Heathcliff_a_Murderer_?\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/448282.Is_Heathcliff_a_Murderer_?\" target=\"_blank\">Is Heathcliff a murderer?: Puzzles in 19th-century fiction<\/a><\/em> (1996)<\/li><li>Edward Said, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/22135.Culture_and_Imperialism\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/22135.Culture_and_Imperialism\" target=\"_blank\">Culture and Imperialism<\/a><\/em> (1993)<\/li><li>Helena Kelly,&nbsp;<em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/32441705-jane-austen-the-secret-radical\" target=\"_blank\">Jane Austen, the Secret Radical<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;(2016)<\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/William_Murray,_1st_Earl_of_Mansfield\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/William_Murray,_1st_Earl_of_Mansfield\" target=\"_blank\">William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield<\/a> (1705-1793), judge who held that slavery had no basis in common law <\/li><li>Lona Manning&#8217;s blog posts about slavery and <em>Mansfield Park<\/em> (2021):<ul><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp35-how-daring-was-austen\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp35-how-daring-was-austen\" target=\"_blank\">Was Austen Silenced Over Slavery?<\/a><\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp36-the-dead-silence\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp36-the-dead-silence\" target=\"_blank\">The &#8220;Dead Silence&#8221;<\/a> (we will be talking more about this when we get to the relevant section of the book)<\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp38-amelioration\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp38-amelioration\">Amelioration: What Fanny asked and Sir Thomas answered<\/a> (not something we really touched upon, but useful extra reading)<\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp39-symbolism-in-mansfield-park\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp39-symbolism-in-mansfield-park\" target=\"_blank\">Symbolism in Mansfield Park: Is the Novel Named after Lord Mansfield?<\/a><\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp41-was-slavery-a-taboo-topic-part-1\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp41-was-slavery-a-taboo-topic-part-1\" target=\"_blank\">Was Slavery a Taboo Subject in Austen&#8217;s Time? Part 1: Non-fiction<\/a><\/li><li><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp42-was-slavery-a-taboo-topic-part-2\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"http:\/\/www.lonamanning.ca\/blog\/cmp42-was-slavery-a-taboo-topic-part-2\" target=\"_blank\">Was Slavery a Taboo Topic in Austen&#8217;s Time, Part Two: &#8220;This Vilest Traffic&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Damianne Scott, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BGLJ1976\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BGLJ1976\" target=\"_blank\">Black Girl Loves Jane<\/a> (Facebook page)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Popular culture discussion:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Adaptations:<ul><li>BBC, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0085052\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0085052\/\" target=\"_blank\">Mansfield Park<\/a><\/em>&nbsp;(1983) \u2013 starring Sylvestra Le Touzel and Nicholas Farrell (6 episodes)<\/li><li>Miramax, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0178737\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0178737\/\" target=\"_blank\">Mansfield Park<\/a><\/em> (1999) &#8211; starring Frances O&#8217;Connor and Jonny Lee Miller<\/li><li>ITV, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0847182\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0847182\/\" target=\"_blank\">Mansfield Park<\/a><\/em> (2007) &#8211; starring Billie Piper and Blake Ritson<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Modernisations:<ul><li>Westerly Films, Allagash Films, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0100142\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0100142\/\" target=\"_blank\">Metropolitan<\/a><\/em> (1990) &#8211; starring Carolyn Farina and Edward Clements<\/li><li>YouTube, Foot in the Door Theatre, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCOz41y0VXokzWpyClimh6xQ\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCOz41y0VXokzWpyClimh6xQ\" target=\"_blank\">From Mansfield With Love<\/a><\/em> (2014-2015)<\/li><li>D.E. Stevenson, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2426652.Celia_s_House\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2426652.Celia_s_House\" target=\"_blank\">Celia&#8217;s House<\/a><\/em> (1943)<\/li><li>Claire LeZebnik, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/14813841-the-trouble-with-flirting\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/14813841-the-trouble-with-flirting\" target=\"_blank\">The Trouble with Flirting<\/a><\/em> (2013)<\/li><li>Kate Watson, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/32713479-seeking-mansfield\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/32713479-seeking-mansfield\" target=\"_blank\">Seeking Mansfield<\/a><\/em> (2017)<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Continuations:<ul><li>Joan Aiken, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/267714.Mansfield_Revisited\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/267714.Mansfield_Revisited\" target=\"_blank\">Mansfield Revisited<\/a><\/em> (1985)<\/li><\/ul><\/li><li>Variations:<ul><li>Amanda Grange, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2889082-edmund-bertram-s-diary\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/2889082-edmund-bertram-s-diary\" target=\"_blank\">Edward Bertram&#8217;s Diary<\/a><\/em> (2007)<\/li><li>Lona Manning, <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/37937314-a-contrary-wind\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/37937314-a-contrary-wind\" target=\"_blank\">A Contrary Wind<\/a> <\/em>(2017), <em><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/40694066-a-marriage-of-attachment\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/40694066-a-marriage-of-attachment\" target=\"_blank\">A Marriage of Attachment<\/a><\/em> (2018) and <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/50930330-a-different-kind-of-woman\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/50930330-a-different-kind-of-woman\" target=\"_blank\"><em>A Different Kind of Woman<\/em><\/a> (2020)<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2> Creative commons music used: <\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Extract from&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Mozart_-_Piano_Sonata_No._12_in_F_Major,_K.332_-_II._Adagio.ogg\" target=\"_blank\">Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata No. 12 in F Major, ii. Adagio<\/a>.<\/li><li>Extract from&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Haydn_sonata_hob._XVI_23_mvt_1.oga\" target=\"_blank\">Joseph Haydn, Piano Sonata No. 38. Performance by Ivan Ili\u0107, recorded in Manchester in December, 2006<\/a>. File originally from IMSLP.<\/li><li>Extract from&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart_-_sonata_no._13_in_b_flat_major,_k.333_-_iii._allegretto_grazioso.ogg\" target=\"_blank\">Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata No. 13 in B-Flat Major, iii. Allegretto Grazioso<\/a>. File originally from Musopen.<\/li><li>Extract from&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:George_Frideric_Handel_-_suite_i,_no._2_in_f_major,_hwv_427_-_ii._allegro.ogg\" target=\"_blank\">George Frideric Handel, Suite I, No. 2 in F Major, ii. Allegro<\/a>. File originally from Musopen. <\/li><li>Extract from&nbsp;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Beethoven_-_Piano_Sonata_No._28_in_A_Major,_Op._101_-_I._Etwas_lebhaft,_und_mit_der_innigsten_Empfindung.ogg\" target=\"_blank\">Ludwig van Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 28 in A major<\/a>. File originally from Musopen.  <\/li><\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this episode, we read the first three chapters of&nbsp;Mansfield Park. We give a brief publishing history, and talk about how the opening chapters really prepare the way for the rest of the book, with all of the characters and relationships being set up, how the three Miss Wards come from a not dissimilar background &#8230; <a title=\"Mansfield Park: Episode 1, Chapters 1-3\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/2021\/11\/23\/mansfield-park-episode-1-chapters-1-3\/\">Read more <span class=\"screen-reader-text\"><em>Mansfield Park<\/em>: Episode 1, Chapters 1-3<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=380"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":411,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/380\/revisions\/411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=380"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=380"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readingjaneausten.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}