Georgette Heyer Fans discussion
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Black Sheep Jan 2023 NON Spoilers thread
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Susan in Perthshire wrote: "The economic situation which fed the unrest was really bad in 1819 so it would have been hard for GH to totally ignore it. Safer to end her writings in 1818..."She was good at ignoring ... for example, I have watched out for a single hint to the 'Year without Summer' (1816, mainly caused by a volcanic winter) and its dire consequences, and found none.
sabagrey wrote: "Susan in Perthshire wrote: "The economic situation which fed the unrest was really bad in 1819 so it would have been hard for GH to totally ignore it. Safer to end her writings in 1818..."She was..."
I think, to be fair, that unless you were an academic - not many people would know in pre-internet days. I didn’t know about it until it came up whilst I was doing my degree. So I suspect, it was less that she ‘ignored’ it and more that she simply didn’t know.
Susan in Perthshire wrote: "So I suspect, it was less that she ‘ignored’ it and more that she simply didn’t know.."She did extensive research on the period, she knew more than most academics of the time. People of the period noticed the extremely bad weather (e.g. Mary Shelley) - without knowing the cause, admittedly.
I hold it was a conscious choice. Bad weather, famines and riots did not sit well with 'her' fantasy Regency era.
sabagrey wrote: "She was good at ignoring ... for example, I have watched out for a single hint to the 'Year without Summer' (1816, mainly caused by a volcanic winter) and its dire consequences, and found none.."I think it was hinted at in Sophy? In one of the books we read recently, it rained a lot and was cold for the season.
Talking about the weather was a non-event for many people. I read one account of the Great New England Hurricane of 1815 "It was windy." That's the understatement of a century. You can see the water marks on the side of the market building in Providence, RI. The hurricane flattened the town and was devastating economically. No mention of 1800 and froze to death in that diary either because he wasn't a farmer and it didn't affect him directly. I'd love to read some comparable diaries from England and see how much people cared about discussing the weather. "It was cold." "Cold again today." "Thermometer registered x degrees." Maybe a mention of the frost fair on the Thames?
I have always thought it was because (this may be a bit spoilerish for other GH Regencies) (view spoiler)
QNPoohBear wrote: "I'd love to read some comparable diaries from England and see how much people cared about discussing the weather. "It was cold." "Cold again today." "Thermometer registered x degrees."."LOL ... 'a tad cool for the season' would be the English way of saying it.
I once was on holidays in Cornwall, bent on trekking. The weather was awful, with rain and storm all the time. ... but people kept telling us joyously, day after day, 'it's clearing up!' (even in the face of a hurricane warning)
sabagrey, as sort of a joke? or group denial? what do you think it means?
Jackie wrote: "sabagrey, as sort of a joke? or group denial? what do you think it means?"I admit I don't understand what you mean with these questions. please can you explain a bit more?
do you think the people being joyous about the weather whatever it's doing are just joking or really think it's great is what I was wondering.
Jackie wrote: "do you think the people being joyous about the weather whatever it's doing are just joking or really think it's great is what I was wondering."ah! thank you for clarifying.
in a place and a time (now gone) where daily rains were the norm, my impression was that people were trained from early on to be collectively optimistic about the weather ... what else can you do to avoid depression?
These are the same people who bathe in the sea (when the rain stops for once) while visitors from other climates stand on the beach watching them, wrapped in sweaters, caps and jackets.
Mod
No, no - we don't have to wait till it stops raining to bathe in the sea! What's the point? You're planning to get wet anyway!
Jenny wrote: "No, no - we don't have to wait till it stops raining to bathe in the sea! What's the point? You're planning to get wet anyway!":-) :-) :-) you are, of course, right. Please accept my apologies for my Continental ignorance.
sabagrey wrote: "Jenny wrote: "No, no - we don't have to wait till it stops raining to bathe in the sea! What's the point? You're planning to get wet anyway!":-) :-) :-) you are, of course, right. Please accept m..."
To be fair - you’ll rarely see hordes of people swimming in the sea - in the rain. I think Jenny was teasing you!
Susan in Perthshire wrote: "To be fair - you’ll rarely see hordes of people swimming in the sea - in the rain. I think Jenny was teasing you!"I'm fully aware of it ;-)
as GH fans, we appreciate a bit of humour in our dialogues, don't we?
Jackie wrote: "do you think the people being joyous about the weather whatever it's doing are just joking or really think it's great is what I was wondering."I often say/and have said to me something like "Lovely weather today!" in the teeth of a howling gale, torrential rain, blizzard or anything nasty the weather can throw at us. Just the English sense of humour. And since our weather is so changeable and unreliable it would be daft to let it stop us from doing anything we want to do including a 10 mile hike across the moors or a swim in the sea.
We Canadians don't really make fun of our weather but everyone else does ;) Just look up 'Meanwhile in Canada'.(view spoiler)
Actually in the PNW where I live, it's so changeable as well and some people say, "There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad gear."
So looking back at my old reading list (not on Goodreads but on my library page), Black Sheep is the first GH book I ever read! In 2011. I didn't rate it at the time or write any comments. So I feel like I'm going in to it for the first time again.
Read this book back in 2014 .. gave it a 4 star review .. doubt I have time to read it this month but will enjoy reading all the comments :)
Looking forward to retirement for more reading time ….
This was my first reading Black Sheep - I loved it. Abigail is so much fun - I want her as my BFF. The dialogue is rich and witty and I have adopted the term 'loose fish" and will scatter it widely each time someone annoys me from now on.
Craftyhj wrote: "This was my first reading Black Sheep - I loved it. Abigail is so much fun - I want her as my BFF. The dialogue is rich and witty and I have adopted the term 'loose fish" and will scatter it widely..."Hahahahaha!
Craftyhj wrote: "This was my first reading Black Sheep - I loved it. Abigail is so much fun - I want her as my BFF. The dialogue is rich and witty and I have adopted the term 'loose fish" and will scatter it widely..."LOL! I also want to hang out with Abby and Miles. I love their dialogue too. Glad you enjoyed your first reading!
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a lot of the books are set in the period 1816 - ..."
I think exactly that. The Regency period ended in January 1820 when the Prince Regent became George IV.
Although the Peterloo Massace didn’t happen until August 1819, I suspect she didn’t want to go anywhere near that event. The economic situation which fed the unrest was really bad in 1819 so it would have been hard for GH to totally ignore it. Safer to end her writings in 1818.