Category: common misconceptions
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On bombs, Austen, AI – and erotica
By Alice McVeigh #MariannebyMcVeigh #historicalfictionnovel My first experience of being bombed was on holiday in Israel, when very young, when the Six-Day War broke out, and the hotel just across the road from us got bombed. (My family flew out the next day.) My second bomb was in Belfast, in the 90s, during the “Troubles”…
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Valentine’s Day in Regency England
Valentine’s Day, associated with love since the late Middle Ages, became popular during the Regency era as a time for expressing romantic interest within societal norms. Common practices included exchanging handwritten Valentine cards with poems, small tokens, and light-hearted customs. It provided a unique opportunity for flirtation amidst strict social codes, despite some skepticism from…
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Just What Does That Mean?
Wonder about some British slang and what it means? Try to figure out what these ones are.
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Cleanliness is Next to Modern-ness
Good morrow, dear readers. Many of my American readers are likely awakening from their turkey comas; my family is struggling with our lasagne coma. (Yes, we have lasagne for Thanksgiving dinner.) However, I hope every one of my dear readers enjoyed Netherfield Ball Day (otherwise known as November 26th to the non-Austen-enlightened world)! Balls in Georgian England must have been very different from…
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Rules of the Road for Regency Language
Writers of Austen-based or broader Regency fiction regularly discuss the use of language by a modern writer for that period. I, too, reflect on my approach—which I considered for quite a while in my historical fiction based on Jane Austen’s life. For general language, I take the actor’s approach when preparing to play an historical…
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Stitches in Time
Good morrow, dear readers! How are you this fine September morn? This week, we shall address what I learned of clothing during our time with the Amish and how that pertains to life in the Regency period. One of my biggest pet peeves with the 1995 Pride and Prejudice adaptation is their choice to deem…
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Wickham Didn’t Target Lydia for Revenge
Common Pride & Prejudice Misconceptions, Part 4 I know what you’re thinking, “This is a common misconception???” Let me tell you, about once a month someone comes up with this theory and posts about it online. The response is usually mixed, but I shall present evidence here that should make the answer an unequivocal “no”…
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Darcy Didn’t Pay Wickham £10,000 to Marry Lydia
Common Pride & Prejudice Misconceptions, Part 3 I blame this common belief on Pride & Prejudice‘s various adaptations. For example, in the 2005 movie, Mr. Bennet speculates about the amount and then nothing else is explained. However, it is untrue. When Mr. Bennet declared that: “Wickham’s a fool if he takes her with a farthing…
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Jane Bennet isn’t an Old Maid
Common Pride & Prejudice Misconceptions, Part 2 “Jane will be quite an old maid soon, I declare. She is almost three-and-twenty! Lord! how ashamed I should be of not being married before three-and-twenty!” -Lydia Bennet, Pride & Prejudice There is a common perception that women married very young in the past, but this is not…
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Lady Catherine Can’t Fire Mr. Collins
Common Pride & Prejudice Misconceptions, Part 1 Something I see online and in Jane Austen fan fiction from time to time is the idea that Mr. Collins is so devoted to Lady Catherine because she could revoke his living and position as rector. This is absolutely false. So why is Mr. Collins such a suck-up?…