Mansfield Park (book; spoilers) > Likes and Comments

A place to discuss Mansfield Park the novel, our group read this year, with spoilers – for rereaders or those who have got to the end

This is my third time reading this book. I first read it in 2008 and hated it. It was so different from Austen's other books, and I didn't understand it. I listened to it as a full cast audiobook back in 2018 when it was the group read for Jane Austen July. While I didn't love it, I could respect it's complexity. I went from hating Fanny Price to adoring her. Indexes at dawn to anyone who thinks she's a self-righteous stick ih the mud as 2008 me called her. I can't wait to see what I make of it this time.
Three chapters in and finding it has a lot more humor in it than I remember. The humor in this one is of a darker and more biting sort than what you find in her earlier books.

I read it years ago, when I was in high school actually, so far back it wasn’t even on my Goodreads because that was before Goodreads lol. I won’t say I hated it- but it’s always been my least favorite of Jane Austen’s novels and I think this might actually be my first time rereading it since! So I’m really looking forward to it. I will say that the first time I read it I just thought it was too long and it didn’t grip me like her other books. But this time I am actually a little more put off by not just the Bertrams reception of poor little Fanny- but specifically of the dynamic between Fanny and Edmund in the beginning. It didn’t weird me out as a hormonal teenager lol. But as a grown woman, a 16 year old boy and a ten year old impressionable little girl is kind of a cringy start.

Second time reading. I’m liking it better this time. I felt similarly, Rebecca. I didn’t and don’t still really care for Fanny as a character. She just seems to have no backbone, is scared of everyone, and is wishy washy, and self righteous. She hates Mansfield Park and then misses it when she’s not there. I’m at the part where Henry Crawford comes to see her with her family of origin and it feels like the same thing- she can be easily persuaded. I am enjoying the book more this time though and glad to be not hating it. Beautiful descriptions of nature. Interesting characters. But like the last time I read it I’m not sure what Austen is trying to tell us. Is Fanny supposed to be the moral authority? Does she reflect how Austen felt about other people’s poor behaviors?

Fanny is a child shaped by at best neglect and at worst abuse who has chronic illness learning to get a backbone. She comes across as self righteous at times because we don't always understand just how scandalous stuff like Lover's Vows would have been in that era. She's also been almost entirely shaped by Edmond, so seeing her hero and crush behave contrary to what he appeared to her has got to be a shock to her. I find the book a very accurate look at one way such dynamics psychologically shaped a child and young adult. But she does have a Spine of Steel when it really counts.

It's kind of why I hate the ending. Much like with Phantom of the Opera, I am team leading lady leaves all of you horrid people, moves to another country, and marries a good man who actually cares about you as a person to fully showcase the lead moving past all the trauma, or joining a monastery works too.

I think Fanny has a backbone. She is stuck in a house where everyone treats her like she is nothing, yet she knows this is the best she could hope for. Fanny is one of my favorite Jane Austen characters.

I should add, Fanny is now one of my favorite Jane Austen characters, easily in my top five.

I appreciate your different perspectives. I think what bothers me is that I don’t see the growth or change in her character. There just seems to be a switch from poor little Fanny to Fanny who is all of a sudden very pretty, desirable to men and is the moral authority. Maybe I’m missing it but I don’t see the change. I just finished today and reading the last chapter where Austen as the narrator calls her “my Fanny” is making me give her another look. Obviously a character she wants us to love and appreciate.

Meghan wrote: "I appreciate your different perspectives. I think what bothers me is that I don’t see the growth or change in her character. There just seems to be a switch from poor little Fanny to Fanny who is a..."

Hey, we are all different. Who is some of your favorite characters in any of Austen's books?

@Meghan: on phone so can't respond directly. This book is as my one friend put it The Star Wars Prequels of Austen where we see her at both her best and her worst. What were some aspects you found engaging about the books. And seconding Theresa on who are some of your favorite Jane Austen characters?

Fanny is dull and overly moral. It's not her job to police her cousins' behavior. YET I was a lot like that when I was younger, repeating my parents' morals and trying to "help" and "protect" my friends. Lizzie is more relatable and fun because she speaks her mind. I can relate to Anne Elliot because my father is Sir Walter and my younger sister is Mary Musgrove. (She's better now the kids are older). Captain Wentworth's sister, Sophie Croft, is pretty awesome.

None of the characters in Mansfield Park are likable, except Fanny's brother William.

QNPoohBear wrote: "Fanny is dull and overly moral. It's not her job to police her cousins' behavior. YET I was a lot like that when I was younger, repeating my parents' morals and trying to "help" and "protect" my fr..."

I will agree with you on Sophie Croft, she is awesome.

The amount of parentification both Edmund and Fanny show because of how negligent or abusive the adults are in these households makes me want to scream, and I don't even like Edmund. But he now finds himself running everything and having to fend off Mrs. Norris because his mother just cares about her pug.

Edmund is old enough to be expected to act as man of the house when his dad is away, but even when younger he seems to be more paternal than teenager in how he interacts with others. And his mother has only ever wanted to sit on a couch and play with her pug. She hasn't ensured the moral upbringing of her children, only the fashionable upbringing. The way both parents drop the ball with the other brother and then punish Edmund in a way rather than make the brother face actual consequences says a lot about their styles. It may not be Fanny's place to try and maintain order in the house, but seeing as everyone else has abdicated their duties, and she is used to doing just that with all of her younger siblings at a young age, it makes sense and makes me feel compassion for her. And now I feel a tinge of compassion toward Edmund and his sisters.

Katie posted a brilliant video today about Mansfield Park and Lovers' Vows: why it was so scandalous for the time and how the various characters in the play relate to the characters in the novel. Lots of spoilers, but a fantastic analysis. Well done, Katie!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a21ja...

My first time reading Mansfield Park… While I like this book slightly better than Persuasion, that is not high praise. With some of the most despicable characters Austen created (Mrs Norris!!) it was a difficult book to get through and finish. As always, Austen wraps up the plot with a speedy haste I can’t ever get behind. Additionally, what is seen as shocking today (marrying a first cousin) is clearly the norm in the 18th century. And don’t get me started on taking in the poor relations 🤣Suffice it to say, I won’t be completing a reread of this book any time soon!