theduckthief’s Comments (group member since Apr 10, 2008)

theduckthief’s comments from the The Classics group.

I agree. Catherine started out as extremely naive and while having discovered certain truths about human nature, mostly Isabella, John and General Tilney, she still seems far less worldly than say Lizzie or Anne.

I can say I'm definitely looking forward to this book. I watched the movie when I was a kid and can't wait to see how the two differ.

Did you like the ending of the book? What about Colin and Mary?

Both are described as horribly rude children. Why are they both so rude and what does this have to do with the adults in the book?

There's an idea of magic in the book and that the garden itself has brought everyone together. Do you believe this?

Oh it's definitely a parody. I think we can take our cues from Henry Tilney's opinions as to how Austen feels.

I think the gothicky chapters are a reflection of her limited world experience. Her parents remark on how she's always reading and I think Radcliffe appealed to her because of the supernatural element. I think her naivety also comes from her age. I see her as maybe around 15, I don't remember if it was mentioned in the book.

Catherine doesn't seem to make wild leaps of her imagination until Part 2. Although it doesn't help that Henry decides to tease her about Northanger and because of her naivety she takes him seriously.

Man this summer is going by so fast! We've got one week left to discuss "Northanger Abbey" so make sure to click here to vote for next month's book.

Her naivety doesn't do her any favours. It creates more problems than it solves. She seems to be the youngest Austen protagonist I've read. It would be interesting to see her and Anne interact I think but I wonder what Anne would think of her.

Austen says at the beginning of the book that Catherine was not born to be a heroine? Throughout the course of the book how true is this statement?

How does she compare to Austen's other female leads?

This book is sometimes classified as a gothic novel, sometimes as a parody of a gothic novel. Exactly how gothic is it?

I'm always intrigued about what characters are reading when I'm reading about them.

I found all but "Clermont", "Mysterious Warnings" and "Horrid Mysteries" as real books so I assume that they're are all real books. It's almost like the butler read "Crusoe" in "The Moonstone".

What do you want to read for July? Click here

She seems to already be at a disadvantage because of her name.

Did "Moll" have any chance to escape the life she was born into? Or was she trapped by a hierachy of society?

He was known for his political writing. Is this book political in any way?

The name itself has conotations but who is she beyond the name?

The voters have spoken and we'll be reading "Moll Flanders" in June. Has anyone read Defoe before? I've read "Robinson Cruesoe" but I expect this book to be very different.

It's interesting to see how Anna's opinion of her husband changes after she meets Vronsky. On that note, Vronsky seems more interested in being loved than himself loving others. As if it's a completely foreign concept to him. I immediately thought his actions akin to a sociopath but that's probably because I watch too much tv.

It's time to choose June's book everyone. But if you want to find out which books the random number generator has chosen you'll have to click here.