Jane Austen Week~ Days Three and Four

Bonjour, my fellow Jane-Austen readers=) I was unable to post yesterday... we were getting ready for our annual trip to the beach. I'm actually writing from our room overlooking the ocean right now.  Jane Austen Week is supposed to be over. But I started late, and I plan to finish it up, of course=)

And so, to continue with Jane Austen Week.

Who are your top three favorite Jane Austen Heroines and why?

These'll pretty much reflect on what I've said below on my three top favorite novels.

Miss Elizabeth Bennet

I love Elizabeth because she's fairly relatable. I normally end up as her in those which-Jane-Austen-character are you? quizzes (not sure if I already mentioned that). She was actually my introduction to Jane Austen, when my Marmee surprised Alexandrea and I with the BBC version of Pride &Prejudice  several years ago. She and I were (oh, the horror!) rather unimpressed... until we watched it. We've both been hooked ever since=)

Elizabeth has her faults... such as having a tendency to judge before she realizes what she's actually looking at. However, she recognizes that mistake, and agreeably confesses to it... highly commendable.

Elinor and Marianne Dashwood

"Marianne... please try! I cannot do without you!" -Elinor Dashwood

I'm going to have to cheat on this one;) I love both Elinor and Marianne from Sense and Sensibility. Some of my sentiments are purely out of the fun I get when I look at the character. Marianne's bubbly character are her highlight; and Elinor's sweet and sentimental nature are lovely. And, I might add, whenever I take the which character are you from Sense and Sensibility? quiz, I always end up as Elinor. Both sisters are forgiving, and willing to pull together. Though Marianne can be thoughtless, Elinor will always do her best to pull her out of it. Elinor has the tendency to go through much without saying anything. But Marianne can always sense when something's wrong.

Catherine Morland

She's elegant, she's naive, and she's innocent. Love her. Whenever I re-take the which-Jane-Austen-character are you? quiz (because of those questions which have dual answers! Don't tell me you've never done this before...?), I always end up as her. “No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be a heroine. Her situation in life, the character of her father and mother, her own person and disposition, were all equally against her," says blogger Virgina Claire over at Austen at Large. Catherine is delightful. And the way Jane Austen literally twists "her nomalicy" and makes her into a hero. Reminds me of Esther from the Bible. And David from the Bible.

It's just what G-d does with us. I love that theme.

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Who are your top three favorite Jane Austen Heroes and why?

Mr. Darcy

" You must allow me to express how ardently I admire and love you..." -Mr. Darcy

Wouldn't you love to hear that from a man who'd snubbed you, and then rescued your little sister (and in all actuality your family!)  from a life of gossip and impropriety? If you haven't read or watched Pride and Prejudice yet, allow me to tell you you will almost always dislike Mr. Darcy in the beginning, and maybe well into the middle. I did. He was proud, and I must say extremely bad-tempered. But that was only because he had problems expressing himself with words. Give him an opportunity to write you a letter, and you'll be blown away with his ways. I can relate to him so well that way. When one writes, one has time to think about what is going into their time. Elizabeth bewitched him, not with her wealth, not with her beauty, but with her personality. I love that.

Mr. Knightly

To have a mentor that always seems to be picking on you would drive a girl nuts. The only problem is the mentor, Mr. Knightly, is not picking on Emma. He's showing her her fautlts. But--- she won't listen. Mr. Knightly has patience and fortitude when it comes to her. His patience does seem to get exhausted- sometimes. But he always comes back. Yes. Like our precious Savior does. And eventually, Emma falls in love with him. Or rather he falls in love with her. One can hardly tell which happens first;)

Colonel Brandon

His love was steadfast. He was true. He never left or said, "fine, take care of yourself and your own interests!" He was patient, kind, and very natural. When Marianne left him, he didn't complain, but held his sorrow inside. And in the end, she realized he was the very best choice. In my book, he's Marianne's hero=) And her prince charming;)

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Thoughts? Who are your top three heroes and heroines, Jane Austen-originated or not?

This was supposed to be published yesterday. Day 5 is coming out later today.

love,

sierra