CLASSIC - UNFINISHED
Sanditon, by Jane Austen
Sanditon is an unfinished novel written by the famous author Jane Austen. Despite not being finished, it brings to life very interesting characters.
Review:
I am a great fan of Jane Austen’s work but somehow Sanditon stayed out of my radar until the release of the new PBS Masterpiece Series with the same name.
I have not watched the series yet, but I intend to do so, and I am even more curious now, as I have realized that Ms. Austen outlined only the very beginning of the story leaving a big part of the canvas blank to be colored as anyone pleases. The versatility of Ms. Austen’s work when adapted to the screen can be proved by the magnificent Pride and Prejudice BBC series, the lovely Bride and Prejudice, the thrilling Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, or the contemporary and fun Bridget Jones Diary just to name a few. I have high expectations of this series.
Putting the BBC adaptation aside for now, here are my musings on the original unfinished novel.
It is always a delight to read anything written by Ms. Austen. Once again I was immediately taken to another place and time and dragged into the life of some amazingly complex characters who, in spite of having only existed in the author’s imagination more than two hundred years ago, share some treats with people I am currently acquainted with. Her characters are full of energy, of life, and it is impossible not to relate to them. Sanditon begins with a carriage accident that brings The Parkers into the house of The Heywoods. These two families are very different and probably would never have become acquainted if said accident had not taken place. But generosity mixed with closed proximity for a few days built a solid bridge between the pragmatic Heywoods and the idealistic Parkers, and a kind of friendship was established between them. The Parkers are affluent, and through some real estate speculation, ended up having a vested interest in the expansion and progress of the little sea town of Sanditon. Mr. Parker thinks and talks of almost nothing else: “Sanditon was a second wife and four children to him, hardly less dear, and certainly more engrossing. He could talk of it forever. It had indeed the highest claims; not only those of birthplace, property, and home; it was his mine, his lottery, his speculation, and his hobby horse; his occupation, his hope, and his futurity.” And because he loves the place so much, Mr. Parker keeps trying to convince Mr. Heywood to go there with his family for a seaside vacation. The Heywoods are adorable. They married early, had too many children, and were happy in living according to their means and staying put enjoying their close circle of friends. They had no interest in going to Sanditon, but they did not oppose it when the Parkers invited their daughter Charlotte to go there with them. They are like most of us parents, making ends meet, and doing all they could to give the best to their children. I could identify with them immediately, as I am also the kind that would pay to remain home with a coffee mug and a book instead of going out. Ms. Austen summarizes it so well in the following passage: “What prudence had at first enjoined was now rendered pleasant by habit. They never left home and they had gratification in saying so. But very far from wishing their children to do the same, they were glad to promote their getting out into the world as much as possible.” And that is how Charlotte Heywood, the older daughter of the family, ends up traveling to Sanditon with the Parkers. Charlotte is as pragmatic as her parents, but with remarkable intelligence and a sweet, but resolute disposition. I could feel a touch of Elizabeth Bennet in her, and maybe a little of Elinor’s resilience: “No, she was a very sober-minded young lady, sufficiently well-read in novels to supply her imagination with amusement, but not at all unreasonably influenced by them;” Sanditon is less grand or in demand than Mr. Parker wants to believe and the local matron, Lady Denham, who is also an investor in Mr. Parker’s venture, is less than satisfied with the way business was evolving in the little town. She lives with a poor relation, Clara Brereton, and has two other relatives from her deceased husband’s side, Sir Edward and Miss Esther Denham. In the few chapters that were written, we learn that there is something between Mr. Edward Denham and Miss Clara Brereton and that his intentions are not noble. His aunt, in spite of clearly liking Clara, expects Edward to marry an heiress, as he got her husband’s title but no money to go with it. In his quest to attract people to Sanditon, Mr. Parker engages the help of Diana, his hypochondriac spinster sister, whose web of contacts and string of letters led to the arrival in town of Mrs. Griffiths, the proprietress of a ladies’ seminary, and three of her charges: the Misses Beaufort, and Miss Lambe. Miss Lambe is an heiress from the West Indies, a woman of color, about seventeen years old, and of high consequence. Lady Denham immediately is interested in presenting her to Sir Edward, but such an introduction does not take place in the chapters that were written. She is a wonderful character and I wish Ms. Austen had had the opportunity to write more about her. The reader only meets the hero Sidney Parker towards the very end of the manuscript when he arrives at Sanditon and is introduced to the heroine Charlotte in a very anticlimactic way: “Mr. Sidney Parker, driving his servant in a very neat carriage, was soon opposite to them, and they all stopped for a few minutes. The manners of the Parkers were always pleasant among themselves; and it was a very friendly meeting between Sidney and his sister-in-law, who was most kindly taking it for granted that he was on his way to Trafalgar House. This he declined, however. He was "just come from Eastbourne proposing to spend two or three days, as it might happen, at Sanditon" but the hotel must be his quarters. He was expecting to be joined there by a friend or two. The rest was common enquiries and remarks, with kind notice of little Mary, and a very well-bred bow and proper address to Miss Heywood on her being named to him. And they parted to meet again within a few hours. Sidney Parker was about seven or eight and twenty, very good-looking, with a decided air of ease and fashion and a lively countenance.” There is not even one dialogue between Charlotte and Sidney. All we know about him is what his brother, Mr. Parker, tells Charlotte in one of their conversations: “He pretends to laugh at my improvements. Sidney says anything, you know. He has always said what he chose, of and to us all. […] In ours, it is Sidney, who is a very clever young man and with great powers of pleasing. He lives too much in the world to be settled; that is his only fault. He is here and there and everywhere. I wish we may get him to Sanditon. I should like to have you acquainted with him. And it would be a fine thing for the place! Such a young man as Sidney, with his neat equipage and fashionable air.” The manuscript finishes way too soon. What a wonderful story, I cannot stop thinking what Ms. Austen would have made out of it. How these wonderful characters would have interacted, what would the conflict between Charlotte and Sidney be, how they would have reached their HEA. So many questions that will never be answered. When I reached the “END OF SANDITON (UNFINISHED)”, my heart was torn apart. It was so sad to realize that she had never had the opportunity to finish her work, that she was dead at the age of 41, so young, taking with her all those stories and characters.
4 Comments
Vera
2/10/2020 02:56:50 pm
I need to read it too. I’m not going to watch the series until I do.
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Lu Reviews Books
2/10/2020 03:03:34 pm
I'm like you. I always prefer to read before watching. Thanks for your comment!
Reply
2/25/2020 10:32:08 am
I finally read the unfinished work. It is so Jane. Her wit comes through the smallest sample of her writing.
Reply
Lu Reviews Books
2/25/2020 05:32:44 pm
So true! Even in a few chapters of an unfinished novel her talent shines bright.
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