The Readers Review: Literature from 1714 to 1910 discussion

(Just posting this early in case I can't get online tomorrow.)

What was Mr. Vanstone's urgent business with Mr. Pendril, and what obligation did Mr. Clare remind Mr. Vanstone of?

Did anything surprise you in Mr. Pendril's account to Miss Garth? How much of it had you already guessed?

What did you think of Miss Garth's reflections on the characters of the two sisters after she spoke to them and they learned their parents' secret? Were the reflections fair?

How does Collins use weather and foreshadowing in this book?

What promise did Magdalen make to her father at his grave?

Why did Magdalen leave, and where do you think she is now?

I have to admit I got so drawn into the book that I kept reading past this point and in several chapters ahead.
I also had a library audiobook borrowed that was long and I was trying to make some progress on that (Becoming- Michelle Obama’s memoir.)
I was really surprised by the revelations! And that awful brother!!!
I know Magdalene is a very strong-willed young lady and the world has changed so much that is difficult to relate to how unusual this is. For anyone to just take off without notice, but especially a woman during this period of time- it’s really hard to imagine the alarm it has raised for her loved ones.

Yes, it was very easy to read and hard to put down!

One thing I forgot to add. My version has a note on how the book was named. Evidently it took Collins awhile to name it, and Dickens suggested several titles that were mostly boring. Collins finally came up with No Name and added two references to it in the book.

I agree - the suspense was killing me - not something I expect in 19th century novels. What was going to go wrong for the father? Would the mother survive? What was in the letter? And what was the big secret the lawyer had?

The sensational nature of the secret reminded me of books by Mary Elizabeth Braddon.

I think the psychology of Magdalene blaming herself for the accident was very realistic. He was on that train because he rescheduled his meeting and that was because of her. Family members often feel responsible in a case like this.

Hey Robin, I clicked on your link and discovered I’d read 2 of Ms Braddon’s books: Lady Audley’s Secret & the Doctor’s Wife. I read so many books that I will need a hint to recall what a certain one is about- that didn’t happen with Lady Audley. I remember the book, but I can’t remember the secret. But she sure didn’t want it revealed!

My apologies to the group for going OT.

🐶 Amy Beagle Mom x2 🐶 wrote: "My apologies to the group for going OT."

That’s fine, it sort of relates. This group read Lady Audley and Wyllard's Weird. I don’t remember any details but the threads are in our archives. “Sensation “ novels were a popular genre ar the time.

I like Braddon a lot too!

I agree, I also would have felt responsible in Magdalen's place.

The contrast between the idyllic existence of the family at the beginning of the book and its complete transformation due to the sudden deaths and revelations is indeed sensational.

However, none of the events described by Collins are beyond the scope of possibilities, a skill which I think Collins mastered far better than some of his contemporary sensationalist writers. He was also one of the few writers at that time to address such subjects as illegitimacy in such a main stream way.

Some critics might argue about the over reliance of coincidence by Collins to set up his story, which really hasn’t started yet, and I still find Mrs. Vanstone’s out of the blue confinement after a 19 year hiatus difficult to accept. Did I miss the fact that she had had other children who had died?

The emotional blows suffered by the two sisters seem to starkly illuminate their differing characters. It seems that they have, at the same time, a very close sisterly bond and a widely differing attitude regarding how to deal with the shock of the revelations. I imagine them both attached by a strong elasticated rope, forever pulling apart and yet also being forced back together.

Magdalene’s disappearance was foreshadowed by her brooding anger as well as sorrow. Her sense of loss and family betrayal was doubled because of the loss of her future.

Magdalene’s natural exuberance was never going to be contained at Miss Garth’s school and, without Frank as a comfort blanket, it seemed only at matter of time before her nature would force her into some sort of action. At 19, though, I think at that time she would still be classed as a minor even though she might have thought that she was adult enough to fight her own battles.

I agree with everyone else that this novel urges the reader on at the end of every chapter and is so difficult to put down. I am a little bit behind everyone else but should catch up soon.

I think the book did mention that the Vanstones had several other children who died and/or stillbirths and/or miscarriages. It's not terribly uncommon for a woman to have a bout of increased fertility shortly before menopause, but it seems like she would have been more likely to miscarry early given her history.

I recall the youngest VanStone child was Andrew and the book says his Mom was never the same after his death. It was from illness, I think. It sounds like she had depression pretty badly. Imagine living on a time when there was nothing to treat it! Well I was born in 1960 and I didn’t know anyone who took antidepressants until 1991 when my stepmother became very ill and was hospitalized with depression. Even being so sick she didn’t want to take the Prozac prescribed for her due to the social stigma. No one in our family felt like that, though. She is very beloved by us & going strong at age 85.
I don’t mean to sound like I’m some old woman in a rocking chair. lol but I remember my grandad passing away in 1974 from a blockage in his heart. No stents or open heart surgeries back then. And I’d course no CT or MRI.
Perhaps the unexpected pregnancy at that age was overwhelming for her.

Robin thanks for the tip: I’m not familiar with the ‘sensation novel’ genre so I’ll check out the discussion for the Braddon books.

Trev, I was actually surprised that Magdalene bolted without notice and so soon. I knew she was determined to marry
Frank, and initially I thought she was leaving to try and get a ticket on the same boat he was sailing to China. But I have been distracted by one of the narrators reading the LibriVox audiobook. A few people took different chapters. Anyhow I think I got a little confused and might have read a chapter ahead by accident.

Lori, I married late in life, and we were trying for a baby. I was having an ultrasound one time and the technician was telling me about unnamed patient of hers that had just given birth to healthy twins at age 49! First children for her and it just occurred naturally. I wasn’t so lucky in that regard. You are so right about the high incidence of miscarriage in your 40’s.

Lori wrote: "I think the book did mention that the Vanstones had several other children who died and/or stillbirths and/or miscarriages. It's not terribly uncommon for a woman to have a bout of increased fertil..."

My brother in law became a brother when he was about 18. His mother, who had been told after 2 children that she couldn’t have any more, thought she was in menopause before discovering she was pregnant in her 40’s.

I have to admit, Collins' generalizations of how women think and act started getting on my nerves around this time. None of the statements were unique compared to other authors, but it was just repeated too often.