Jane Austen Throwdown: Happy Father's Day, Mr. Bennet

Gentle Readers: Today is Father's Day. What better way to honor the Bennet pater familias than to recall some of Mr. Bennet's caustic remarks? Vote for your favorite quote, Jane fans! If you have a better one to share from Pride and Prejudice, please leave it in your comment section.


Quote One: Mr. Bennet respects Mrs. Bennet's nerves

"Mr Bennet how can you abuse your own children in such a way? You take delight in vexing me. You have no compassion on my poor nerves!

You mistake me, my dear. I have a high respect for your nerves. They are my old friends. I have heard you mention them with consideration these twenty years at least.

Quote Two: Lizzie must make a choice after Mr. Collins' proposal

An unhappy alternative is before you, Elizabeth. From this day you must be a stranger to one of your parents. Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins, and I will never see you again if you do." (Ch. 20)

Quote Three: Wickham and Lydia say goodbye to the Bennets after their post-marriage visit to Longbourn

"Mr Wickham's adieus were much more affectionate than his wife's. He smiled looked handsome and said many pretty things.

"He is as fine a fellow," said Mr Bennet as soon as they were out of the house, "as ever I saw. He simpers and smirks, and makes love to us all. I am prodigiously proud of him. I defy even Sir William Lucas himself to produce a more valuable son in law!

Jane Austen Movie Throwdown

Today is Father's Day and so I should like to honor one of our favorite Jane Austen characters: Mr. Bennet. Which actor depicted him best in recent P&P adaptations? Donald Sutherland, Benjamin Whitlow, or Hugh Bonneville? You decide and let us know who is your

Favorite Mr. Bennet

Benjamin Whitrow, 1995 Pride and Prejudice

Ironic, gentle, but deadly, Mr. Whitrow spoke practically every line that Mr. Bennet uttered in Pride and Prejudice, and stole nearly every scene in which he appeared in this classic 6-hour production. A handsome older gent with a mild, self-depecrating demeanor, I never tire of watching him.

Some of Mr. Whitrow's memorable lines include: I am heartily ashamed of myself, Lizzy. But don't despair; it'll pass, and no doubt more quickly than it should," and "Til you or your sister Jane return, I shall not hear two words of sense spoken together."

Donald Sutherland, 2005 Pride and Prejudice

With his performance as an earthier Mr. Bennet who, while he might aim verbal barbs at his silly wife, still lusts after her body, Donald Sutherland finally erased my image of him as MASH's Hawkeye Pierce. A Canadian who felt quite at ease playing an English gentleman, Donald's been one busy actor since the mid-1960s.

Some of Donald's memorable lines include: "Well, if Jane does die, it will be a comfort to know she was in pursuit of Mr. Bingley," and "Your mother will never see you again if you do not marry Mr. Collins... And I will never see you again if you do."

Hugh Bonneville, Lost in Austen, 2007

Three Mr. Bennets, you say? Well, yes, for Hugh Bonneville's Mr. Bennet remained true to Jane Austen's character. This spoof on time travel and Pride and Prejudice provided a satiric romp through Regency England, and Hugh's performance as a more befuddled Mr. Bennet contributed hugely to the fun. I might also add that of the three Mr. Bennets, Hugh was probably closer in age to the character than Mr. Sutherland, who was in his 70's and old enough to be the girls' grandfather, or Mr. Whitlow, who, on reflection, also seemed a tad long in the tooth when he portrayed Mr. Bennet.

Some of Hugh's more memorable and completely made up quotes include: "Happy? That my kindest, prettiest daughter has embarked upon an adulthood of suffication to such a preening Caliban? Happy, Madam - that she should live in subjugation to such an enormity? I would rather sleep in a drain than consent to be happy!," and " [after Lady Catherine and Mr. Collins leave] Tonight Mrs. Bennet, with your permission, I think I shall sleep in our bedroom."

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Favorite Mr. Bennet

Benjamin Whitlow Donald Sutherland Hugh Bonneville

Jane Austen Character Throwdown: Favorite Library

Miss Jane Fairfax's superior singing and talent at the pianoforte won the throwdown for her against Mary Crawford and her harp. We wonder what the outcome would have been had we pitted Jane against Georgianna Darcy? The next Jane Austen Character Throwdown compares a Jane Austen fictional character for the first time to an actual person. This week we ask: Whose library do you prefer? Mr. Bennet's inner sanctum, which helped to develop Lizzy's fine mind, or Rev. Austen's influential library, which inspired Jane Austen's creativity?

Favorite Library

Mr.Bennet's Library, Pride and Prejudice
When we think of Mr. Bennet we think of him reading or answering his mail in his ground floor library, surrounded by a quantity of serious books. He stayed there most of the day regardless of time, coming out only for dinner or appointments. Mr. Bennet liked to have the library to himself, though Lizzy and Jane were always welcome. He was also willing to conduct business within his sanctum, especially in regard to seeing his daughters settled, and spoke most willingly to Mr. Bingley and with some surprise to Mr. Darcy. Mr. Collins, however, was another matter: "Mr. Collins was to attend them, at the request of Mr. Bennet, who was most anxious to get rid of him, and have his library to himself; for thither Mr. Collins had followed him after breakfast; and there he would continue, nominally engaged with one of the largest folios in the collection, but really talking to Mr. Bennet, with little cessation, of his house and garden at Hunsford. Such doings discomposed Mr. Bennet exceedingly. In his library he had been always sure of leisure and tranquility; and though prepared, as he told Elizabeth, to meet with folly and conceit in every other room of the house, he was used to be free from them there"

Rev. Austen’s Library, Steventon Parsonage
Jane Austen grew up in a bookish family. Rev. Austen was a great reader (and writer of sermons) and he read aloud to his children.When her family moved to Bath, Jane's father sold or gave away over 500 books from his vast library, which must have crammed the parsonage in Steventon. Under her father's direction, Jane read English, classical and foreign literature by such authors as Samuel Johnson, Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, Alexander Pope, George Crabbe, William Cowper, and William Shakespeare. Jane was also encouraged to buy subscriptions to the popular novels written by Frances Burney, Sarah Harriet Burney, Maria Edgeworth and Ann Radcliffe. Rev. Austen's library at Steventon provided inspiration for the short satirical sketches Jane wrote as a girl and with which she entertained the family. To entertain each other, the close knit Austen family would also read to each other, play games, and produce plays. One imagines that Rev. Austen's library played an important part in devising these amusements.

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Jane Austen Character Throwdown: Favorite Library

Mr. Bennet's Rev. George Austen's

During the Georgian era, serious private libraries were expected to showcase a variety of rare volumes, classics, topics, and great authors in a number of languages, including Latin, Greek, and French. Thomas Jefferson's library is representative of the great libraries of the world. His extensive collection formed the basis for The Library of Congress in the United States. View a list of his books at this link. One imagines that Rev. Austen and Mr. Bennet collected many of the books listed by Mr. Jefferson.

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World

Jane Austen Character Throwdown

Old age and fearfulness do not a bad daddy make, as a resounding 85% of you have voted. Mr. Woodhouse, while weak and child-like, can hold no candle to Sir Thomas Bertram, for whom so few of you showed respect as a father. We will reserve Sir Thomas' next bout for another worthier opponent while we trot out two new worst father candidates for this week's Jane Austen Character Throwdown. Remember, the idea is to vote for the father who best fits the worst category, not for your favorite or least favorite character.

Worst Father

General Tilney of Northanger Abbey:
Harsh, ruthless, opportunistic, and lacking any of the softer skills that might have drawn him closer to his motherless children, this ambitious father will let nothing stand in the way of his goals. He rather lacks social graces as well, bragging about his possessions to Catherine Morland, a mere chit of a girl, and then turning her - his guest - out of the house without a chaperone or money simply because John Thorpe was wrong about the size of her fortune. Any time this father is near his children, they feel constrained to remain silent, and they tip toe around him for fear of drawing his ire. Despite his despotic demeanor, his two younger children made sensible choices in choosing a mate. For his oldest son, one suspects, there is very little hope of building good character.

Mr. Bennett of Longbourn:
What? You ask yourself. Why is this hugely popular character, known for his wit and sardonic comments, included in this category? Entertaining he may be, but he has also retreated from his responsibilities towards his three youngest daughters, openly preferring the eldest two. No wonder Lydia made such a poor choice for a husband, for had he required her to act with restraint and prudence, she would not have had the poor sense to run away with Wickham. He also belittles, or should I more accurately say, makes fun of his wife in front of his children, using his rapier wit and sarcasting remarks as weapons. The more I read Pride and Prejudice, the more I realize that Mr. Bennet chose to abrogate almost all his parental responsibilities despite the knowledge that his wife is too silly to be capable of sensible parenting.

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Worst Father

General Tilney Mr. Bennet

Posted by Vic, Jane Austen's World