Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

What, precisely, is Jane Austen's schtick?  Is she a chronicler of her age, a satirist or just a teller of romantic tales?  Or is she all of the above?

Sense and Sensibility is an odd novel.  On face value, it is a tale of two sisters looking for love.  They find it; they lose it; and when it comes calling again, love turns out not to be so straightforward.  So far, so good.

On the other hand, the novel is studded with more than its fair share of unattractive and insensitive characters.   A social calculus, based on each individual's social standing, appearance, personal fortune or likelihood of inheritance, is always at play.  The prospects of the characters are bloodlessly assessed on this basis.  John Dashwood, contemplating the negative effects that illness has had on the looks of his half-sister, says: "I question whether Marianne now will marry a man worth more than five or six hundred a year, at the utmost ..."  A callous observation, indeed, and one that draws no protest from Marianne's sister Elinor.  John's wife Fanny, a worthy successor to Lear's Goneril and Regan, is equally unattractive.  Over-zealous in protecting her own son's patrimony, Fanny effectively disinherits the widow and daughters of her father-in-law, and her husband meekly acquiesces to her views on the matter. And we haven't even got to the dubious suitors.

Are we to assume that this is how Austen's contemporaries actually thought, spoke and acted, or is she satirising their fears and vanities?  Is Sense and Sensibility itself a satire on the genre of the sentimental novel?

Elinor and Marianne Dashwood embody, respectively, the attitudes sense and sensibility alluded to in the novel's title.  Where Elinor is pragmatic, thoughtful and guarded, playing her cards close to her chest, Marianne is ruled by her passions and wears her heart on her sleeve.  Both experience heartbreak, and each deals with it according to their own nature, almost disastrously in Marianne's case.

Comparisons are odious, as Dr Johnson said, and this novel will not fare well when compared to a work like Pride and Prejudice.  Its relative lack of restraint in terms of emotion and analysis, perhaps, mars rather than elevates it.  Having said this, I did enjoy this book despite its flaws, mainly because Austen gave me good reason to care for the gentle characters in the book.  I became genuinely anxious for their welfare and happiness, and that is something I cherish in a novel.

I read the Signet Classics 200th Anniversary Edition.  It contains an introduction by Margaret Drabble and an afterword by Mary Balogh.  In some respects, these two treatments of the novel are diametrically opposed to each other, which in itself is thought-provoking.  Worth the money.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) Marvel Studios

Guardians of the Galaxy is a very enjoyable movie - not deep, but enjoyable. 

Peter Quill, a free-lance adventurer and thief, acquires an artifact he intends to sell on the black market. He doesn't know what it is, and he is blissfully unaware that a lot of creatures in the galaxy, including some very powerful and evil individuals, want to take possession of it. Quill's bliss is short-lived, and he is soon beset on all sides by numerous foes who all want what he has got and are prepared to take it by any means, including murder. Quill quickly finds himself entering into very uneasy alliances with four other creatures, including a walking tree and a talking, tech-savvy raccoon, and they go off together to regain the artifact. Little do they realise what kind of powers they are up against or the vast schemes in which they will become entangled. 

Chris Pratt puts in a very creditable performance as the swaggering womaniser Quill. Zoe Saldana and Dave Bautista provide equally creditable performances as the aliens Gamora and Drax. The show, however, is stolen by the CGI characters Rocket and Groot (the raccoon and tree I mentioned earlier). It could be argued that the CGI rendering of both theses characters and of the various backdrops of the film far outstrip the quality of the plot and the script. Alas, as happens too often in Marvel films, the action frequently descends into chases and shoot-outs that add nothing to plot or character development. 

So, if you enjoy a rollicking adventure in the spirit of Indiana Jones, and if you like a good space opera, then Guardians of the Galaxy is the film for you. If that isn't your cup of tea, you can always enjoy the scenery and admire how far the art of CGI has come. Most definitely keep an eye on the tree and the raccoon.