Contemporary Symbolic Form

        I'm going to go out on a limb and say that an iPad, or a tablet of any kind for that matter, is a symbolic form. The literal, physical object is the form or external appearance of the what it symbolizes. It's a simple, flat piece of technology that's limits are somewhat endless. I'm not saying it could help you survive - it can't feed you, give you oxygen or water - but I think it definitely symbolizes information and knowledge from many spheres and people in the world you otherwise wouldn't be exposed to. An all-inclusive technology like a tablet is one that is promising the user an array of options in which they can discover and connect to different things in the world. This ability to use the iPad or tablet creates ample opportunities for the user and allows them to go outside their current social sphere and peek in or merge with others.
        People invest a lot in their tablets and use them for so much. My 2-year old cousin uses the same tablet to paint and play games on as his mother who uses it to do some online banking and have business correspondence among many other things. I think it's a vastly universal object, the tablet, and it represents different things to different people even though it is so broad and multifaceted. Tying it into the idea of a nation-state, being that a state is something within a nation, I think the tablet or iPad would represent the 'nation' aspect and the way in which people use it would be the 'state' aspect of the theory. It's a global phenomenon, but not so much that we can't grasp it and use it in our own worlds or our day-to-day lives. It's a way to get a handle on what other parts of the world are like, or can help you get a better understanding of where you are and what your surroundings are. It's used as a learning tool and the shape or 'form' of this technological world would look like an open-ended one, or one that has many ways to enter/exit and allows for different outlets of information.

Persuasion Rewrites: Overview

Each rewrite shows a scene from a different perspective than those given to us by the narrator. I believe that each rewrite takes us a little bit deeper into each character, helping us with our own judgment's of them. The scene where Louisa falls and gets hurt, we are given the view from a few different people: Henrietta, Mary and Captain Benwick. Reading each of these rewrites, I immediately opened up in Persuasion to the original scene and loved the differences. Each rewrite takes a different character through the same scene and we as readers are shown all these different emotions that make these characters more like-able, relate-able, or in Mary's case, more judgmental of. I think this exercise was important because we were given the chance to show how we think the characters might be feeling and thinking and compare it to others.

The narrator introduces Sir Walter Elliot and briefly gives a description of his life history and quickly realized that all but one of Sir Walter’s daughters are meaningless to him.

Original Passage: Chapter One, Page 7

“…Be it known then, that Sir Walter, like a good father, (having met with one or two private disappointments in very unreasonable applications) prided himself on remaining single for his dear daughter’s sake. For one daughter, his eldest, he would really have given up any thing, which he had not been very much tempted to do. Elizabeth had succeeded, at sixteen, to all that was possible, of her mother’s rights and consequence; and being very handsome, and very like himself, her influence had always been great, and they had gone on together most happily. His two other children were of very inferior value. Mary had acquired a little artificial importance, by becoming Mrs. Charles Musgrove; but Anne, with an elegance of mind and sweetness of character, which must have placed her high with any people of real understanding, was nobody with either father or sister: her world had no weight; her convenience was always to give away; – she was only Anne. “

Rewrite in Anne Elliot’s perspective:

             Sir Walter Elliot was a good father, as good as fathers can be. I liked to think he never re-married for the sake of my sisters and myself, but I’ve always had a hard time believing that. You see, my father played favorites with my two sisters, and I, worse than a small child favoring a certain color for every object they possess. He was never subtle about the fact that Elizabeth, my oldest sister, was his absolute favorite. He would do just about anything for her. I bet if she wanted his Baronet title, he would seriously consider giving it to her somehow. Perhaps he treated her like he did my late-mother because she was the eldest and thought to be the care-taker of Mary, my other sister, and me. I personally think it's because they're similar in character and Elizabeth is the most appealing physically out of the three of us.

Mary, my younger sister, and I didn’t matter much to my father. I suppose we didn’t have the appeal that Elizabeth did. Mary was married to Charles Musgrove, but Charles and my father were like night and day. I’m not sure what both my sisters have that I don’t. I regard myself to be clever, as said by other people outside of familial ties, but this isn’t important to my father. To him, I’ve always been the invisible middle child, the one to be given away someday, the one that's just 'there'; my being didn’t matter to him.

An Awkward Arrival, A Rewrite of Anne and Wentworth's First Meeting Alone from Charles' Perspective

For this assignment I have chosen to rewrite Anne and Wentworth’s first meeting alone, found toward the end of Chapter 9, pages 77-79 in my edition, from the perspective of Charles. Obviously this scene is important because it is the first time we get to see how Anne and Wentworth react to each other when they are alone, but I thought it would be amusing to write it from Charles’ perspective. I really loved how awkward this scene was and I also thought it might be important to take a moment to highlight that Anne is not the only one with relationship troubles. I have taken a few of the exact lines of dialogue from the book so as to preserve the facts of the original scene. 

     As Charles Hayter made his way down the drive he could not stop himself from thinking about Henrietta’s sudden change of attitude toward him. He thought back over the last several months, desperately trying to find where he had gone wrong, attempting to ascertain if he could have possibly offended her in some way, but to his dismay he kept coming up blank. If truth be told, Charles had little to feel ashamed about in regard to his own actions, for he really was the most dutiful and genuine suitor that a young girl such as Henrietta could hope to find. These self reflections cemented his conclusion even further that it was indeed the dreadful Captain Wentworth’s arrival that had caused such a change. Perhaps if the two had met under different circumstances, with Henrietta already firmly attached to himself, Charles might actually have liked the Captain, but the facts of the circumstance made him quite resolved to despise him. What further worsened the matter was that the Captain always seemed to be about the sisters. Charles was confident he needed but a moment alone to firmly re-secure Henrietta’s love, but the bothersome Captain was always near. Being such an early hour of the afternoon as it currently was, Charles was quite certain that at last he would find the girls without Wentworth’s company. He really could not bear the thought of greeting the esteemed Captain once more, and he found himself quite set against the prospect. In fact, he thought as he trudged toward the door, if the Captain somehow happened to be inside at this very moment, he was decidedly resolved to act as reserved and austere as possible. 

     A slight wave of guilt washed over him for an instant, after all, was not his soul purpose to defend Henrietta’s happiness? If she had truthfully chosen another man, who was he to stand in the way? Yet, Charles would not give up so easily. Though he may be a member of the clergy, that did not mean that at all times he possessed all virtues and was impervious to faults. At this moment he was rather strongly consumed by jealousy and pride, and had very little aspirations to correct them.

     These musings upon his personal nature evaporated almost at once upon entering the front room.  Upon seeing the Captain’s face, with all of its handsome features that seemed to have only been amplified in their admirability by their time at sea, a great pang of envy such as Charles had never felt before rose up from within him. Just as he was contemplating how best to excuse himself and turn back, Anne’s urgent greeting reached his ear.

     “How do you do? Will you not sit down? The others will be here presently.” 

     Though he noted a strange tone of desperation in her voice he found he must decline; he was in no mood to sit pleasantly within the company of the Captain. However he could not leave with the prospect of seeing his dear Henrietta so near at hand, and therefore he managed a curt reply.
     “No thank you, I’ve been feeling rather restless of late and I am inclined to stand.” 

     He felt his own agitation and hoped that it would signal the others to halt from engaging him in further pleasantries. Most alarmingly to Charles, the Captain seemed to take this statement as an invitation to cross the room and attempt to engage him in conversation. The audacity of such an action almost proved too strong for Charles’ resolve, and it was only through sheer power of will that he managed to keep his passions in check. 

     “Ah look, today’s paper! Perhaps I will sit down and read it while I wait, but over here at the table so that I am nearer the light of the window.” He quickly sat down and thrust his nose into it so as to avoid any further forced politeness. 

     The silence that ensued could have been sliced with a knife. The atmosphere of the little room became thick with it as if it were a dense fog.  Charles did his best to exude fascination with the news, but he could sense that something painful had transpired between the two preceding his arrival upon the scene. Just as he was thinking that perhaps he ought to say something, after all it was not very gentlemanly of him to allow Anne to sit in such palpable discomfort, the tense atmosphere was shattered with the entrance of the youngest Musgrove. What the little rascal lacked for in age, he certainly made up for in noise, Charles thought to himself, as the boy promptly made a spectacle out of his aunt. 

     “Walter,” she said, “get down this moment. You are extremely troublesome. I am very angry with you.”

     Charles now felt it was his duty to exert order upon the situation. “Walter,” cried Charles, “why do you not do as you are bid? Do you not hear your aunt speak? Come to me Walter, come to cousin Charles.” However, his command went unheeded and it was not until the boy’s forceful extraction by the Captain that he settled down. 

     Charles felt his cheeks grow hot at the thought of his inability to think to take such immediate action. Perhaps that is what Henrietta found so appealing in Wentworth. Charles himself, much to his displeasure, found that he could not help but feel a certain admiration for the Captain’s take charge mentality, and this unwelcome realization proceeded to worsen his mood even further. 

Mary's Response to Louisa’s Accident

This rewrite focuses on Mary’s response to Louisa’s fall in which she becomes hysterical and can only worry about how the emergency affects her health and emotions. (p. 107-109 in Vintage edition)

“Oh my Lord she’s dead!” She’s dead Charles! There’s no way she could’ve survived that fall!” Mary shouted into her husband’s ear, shaking him violently as if he hadn’t seen what happened. She was bouncing up and down scared of what would happen now. Who would carry the body? Would this incident cancel their visit? Most importantly, Mary was worried about how this bout of stress would affect her health. Poor Mary was left to handle the gravity of her emotions alone for Charles was soon called over by Anne to provide to comfort to Captain Wentworth. “How dare Charles!” Mary thought, “Choose to console another man over his own frightened and ill wife!” Whatever was Mary to do but stare unbelievingly at Louisa’s limp and waning figure on the stone pavement, her eyes already starting to look glassy.

“I can’t stand it!” Mary fluttered, wringing her hands as if trying to roll the responsibility of handling the body off her fingertips. “Who can help us? How will we get back to the house? Has anyone seen this horrid accident? What a terrifying embarrassment!” Mary’s mind continued to spin with how this near-death experience ailed her, hoping someone would be decent enough to come over and comfort her. Anne tried to quiet Mary as she was trying to de-escalate the tragedy so her own mind could think clearly. “How dare you ask me to calm myself with a body strewn between us. Lord, what people think? Would they believe we had something to do with Louisa’s accident? Oh Anne I simply can’t believe this is happening. Leave me to my lamentations whatever they may be.”

Henrietta remained in her own world of misery weeping and sobbing in hysterics as if her sister were already dead. She turned away from the scene, a hand on her head as if to stabilize her thoughts, but Henrietta’s gaze would betray her and turn back towards the ghastly sight of her sister and commence in her louder cries of agony. “Lord if only I could go over to hold and comfort her,” Mary thought. “But woe is me I can’t. Forgive me Lord but I can’t, not in the state I’m in.” Mary’s anxiety and pangs of loneliness only heightened the longer she had with only her arms wrapped around her and the ground beneath her to keep herself steady.

Mary had been so distracted by the violent display that just took place that she only noticed everyone else’s activity by the running footsteps of Benwick. Her grief still couldn’t be contained. “Oh please somebody hold me. Charles? Charles where are you? Come quickly I feel faint! I don’t think I can hold consciousness for much longer. Who knows if I’ll be able to return to consciousness again. ” Mary looked over at Charles to see if he heard her trauma, but he only sat asking Anne “What should we do next?” as he was now supporting the weight of Louisa’s head on his shoulders and torso on his own. “Oh Charles! To comfort another woman in my time of need?” she moaned before glaring over at Captain Wentworth who just leaning on the wall aimlessly with a pitiable expression on his face. “Why can’t Wentworth get Louisa? He doesn’t seem to be occupying any useful employment right now.” Mary whined, and rightfully so she thought.

Suddenly Anne’s voice came shooting through the air, giving orders. “Carry her gently to the inn”. Charles and Captain Wentworth confirmed the command by bounding into action. Wentworth adamantly went to pick up Louisa and left the rest of the lot in Charles’s hands. “Oh how Charles jumps to the sound and action of everyone else’s feeling but my own. Now I will receive his comfort only by default.” Mary pouted and looked discontentedly at Louisa’s unconscious and limp figure being lifted as she too wished someone would do for her. “Oh Louisa why did you do this to us? To me? Whatever will we tell your family?” Mary cried further. Anne tried to further calm and comfort in the situation, tending to Henrietta as Charles approached Mary to walk her back. Mary felt a quiver of spite at Anne thinking that she could handle the situation better than anyone else, and for people Mary had been acquainted with longer at that. “I guess we can go and face the future consequences of this debacle now.” Mary sighed, nudging Charles away so that she may rest her anger with him long enough to accept his comfort for her weakening state on their walk back to the inn.

Week 4 Online Assignment

Austen is using “free indirect discourse” in alliance with Lady Russell on her reasoning and ultimate persuasion as to why Captain Wentworth is not suited for Anne in Chapter 4, 3-4 paragraphs in.

Rewrite in alliance with Anne:

               “Anne Elliot, with all her claims of birth, beauty , and mind to have found true love at nineteen; be able to commit herself to an engagement with a young man with nothing but himself and his love for her, at her young age.  What a rare, unpredictable thing!  It may not be ideal, for he does not have the fortune that he promises to the lady with time, Miss. Anne is unable to resist.  The two love birds have fallen hopeless, blindly, devoted to each other at an alarming pace.  Anne Elliot, so young; known to very few, swept off her feet by her soul mate without his alliance or fortune…yet.  He has pulled her from a state of ever wearing, or state of anxiety because he promises to covet his lady and make sure they see brighter and always delightful days in each other’s company, of course.  It is said that if Anne had her mother’s influence and love she would know better than to fall for sly Captain Wentworth but it is impossible to meddle with fate, only post-pone it.  If Captain is the one, Anne will find herself by his side, cherishing each other’s love, in due time.

                Captain Wentworth does not yet have his fortune.  He has since been lucky in his profession, spending freely what has come to him.  Anne is not worried because she is familiar with this behavior to be the same as her own father and often associates males with unruly spending.  She prides herself on her abilities to be frugal.  She finds comfort in Captain’s confidence and believes she may be able to monitor and ultimately control his spending habits if she is lucky enough to marry the man she believes to be the “one.”  It is undeniable to Anne that Lady Russell disapproves of her courtship to Captain.  She cannot bear to ignore her judgment, finding Lady Russell and her motherly influences dear to Miss Anne’s heart.  For Lady Russell finds the same qualities Anne admires in Captain to be troublesome.  Such confidence, fearlessness of mind and powerful in his own warmth the boy has, so intriguing and beautiful to Anne.  Qualities she hopes her love will instill in her with time.  Anne believes herself to be the luckiest young lady in town as her life falls together right before her own eyes.  Yet something, or quite possibly someone, she does not know what makes her feel her completeness and happiness may be too good to be true.”

Persuasion Rewrite: A Worthy Successor

Original passage (Chapter One, page 6):

Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot's character; vanity of person and of situation. He had been remarkably handsome in his youth; and, at fifty-four, was still a very fine man. Few women could think more of their personal appearance than he did, nor could the valet of any new made lord be more delighted with the place he held in society. He considered the blessing of beauty as inferior only to the blessing of a baronetcy; and the Sir Walter Elliot, who united these gifts, was the constant object of his warmest respect and devotion.

            Rewrite (Sir Walter Elliot’s perspective):

Sir Walter Elliot assured himself a suitable heir to his family name. Indeed, he proved to be a shining example of good breeding; the beauty innate to his physical form had diminished little in his fifty-four years, and it was a divine gift he greatly treasured, second only to his standing in high society. All of Somerset county recognized the place he had secured for himself - and consequently, the rest of his family - and Sir Walter reassured their gestures with the humble acknowledgement worthy to the steward of a baronetcy.

He would be free to relish the spoils of his social endeavours, had only his wife’s devotion not fallen short of its mortal boundaries, thrusting upon him the responsibility of their consummation; namely, his three daughters, and nary a son to bear witness to his family glory. Despite all the effort he had put in maintaining his reputation and the lavish displays of wealth that followed it, the Elliot name was in jeopardy of falling from its well-earned graces; after all, they could scarcely reap the benefits of his brilliance forever. Daughters were merely destined to be married off to other families, and he was but one man – however presentable.

Persuasion Scene Re-write

Louisa Musgrove fell, badly hurt, and appeared lifeless in the scene between pages 101 and 109, which concluded Volume I. Several key characters were involved in the scene, but I chose to write from the perspective of Captain Benwick.

Captain Benwick notices Louisa atop the stairs and sees Captain Wentworth shaking his head at her. “Oh no, she fell!” Captain Benwick exclaimed as Louisa jumped down from the stairs. Captain Wentworth shouts, “Louisa’s dead!” Everybody starts losing control, especially Henrietta, who nearly falls on the stairs if it weren’t for Captain Benwick and Anne holding her up.

Captain Wentworth continues to attend to the fallen Louisa, but needs assistance. Captain Benwick leaves Anne to help Henrietta in order to attend to Louisa with Captain Wentworth. Charles also helps both of the captains with Henrietta as everybody is following the lead of Anne Elliot. Captain Wentworth faltered a bit and when he neared the wall, Captain Benwick heard Captain Wentworth cry over the fact that Louisa’s parents needed to be informed of her situation.

Then, Captain Benwick was called upon by Anne to find a surgeon for Louisa. So, wanting to do what Anne said because he liked her, he left Louisa in her brother Charles’ care and set off for the town since he knew where to find a surgeon. In a few moments, the surgeon that captain Benwick called upon showed up and started operating on Louisa. Louisa only once opened her eyes, but it appeared to be a sign that she was going to be able to survive this fall. With the help from people of the likes of Captain Benwick, Captain Wentworth, and Anne, Louisa was going to pull through.  

A View from Fredrick

This scene is of when Fredrick Wentworth and Anne Elliot meet for the first time after their eight year separation since their canceled engagement. Chapter 7, page 88 sentence starting with "Anne understood..." leading into page 89 when Anne and Mary finish their breakfast. I have the eBook Barnes and Noble Classics Series, so the page numbers might be a off.

Fredrick understood it. She probably wished to avoid seeing him. She presumably inquired after him, the way he did after her. She must be indifferent to his being such a short way away from her, considering the last time they met.

On the marrow he met with Charles to go shooting, which was agreeable. Fredrick walked with Charles’ sisters, just five minutes after Charles himself, to visit Mary and the child, with intentions to wait on her for a few moments. Anne and Mary seemed to just be starting breakfast, and Anne looked down and away with such shyness and reserve. He wondered, for a brief moment, what was she thinking and if anything was it about him like his thoughts were on her.

Hundreds of emotions flooded over him as he made quick eye contact with Miss. Elliot herself. He spoke to Mary, letting her know that all was alright, while he thought of Anne and what she might be thinking, again. Why was he here, when she appeared to not want him in the same room, so he continued to talk to Mary about Miss Musgrove, a girl that he was not absolutely interested in, just to be admittedly distracted. After a few minutes it ended, and Charles was at the window, showing his eagerness to go, - so Fredrick took his bow and left, unknowing if Anne felt uncomfortable as much as he did. He’d hoped to see her again, and that the next time their encounter would be less strained. It had been so long since they last crossed paths, and he thought of nothing while he was gone except for her and his love for her, which never faded or left his heart. 

Scene Rewrite- Henrietta's reaction to Louisa

This scene is from Chapter 12, starting on page 101 and going to page 109 in the Penguin edition. It is the scene in which Louisa falls unconscious being jumped down from the Cobb during their walk.

Henrietta carefully descended stair by stair of the Cobb. Behind her, she could hear Louisa's giggles as Captain Wentworth jumped her down, which was likely highly unnecessary as the other women were having no problems descending unaided. The only reason she did not speak of it was because her sister was happy.

Suddenly, the giggling stopped and she heard more thuds than just the thuds of her sister’s feet safely on the stairs. She turned around to find Louisa lifeless in Captain Wentworth’s arms. Mary cried out that she was dead and Henrietta lost all control of her emotions. She did not know what was happening but Anne and Captain Benwick were supporting her between them. Words were lost to her. Everything moved in slow motion and Anne’s calming voice broke through the murky sound of everyone taking direction and running for help.

Workers from around the Cobb swarmed around them but Henrietta paid them no mind. She simply wandered about with Anne still by her side. At some point, they arrived at Captain and Mrs. Harvilles’ house and Henrietta was sat down outside of where they lay the lifeless Louisa, for every time she saw the pallid face, she felt Louisa was dead and could not bear the thought.

In a quick manner, almost without her noticing, decisions were made about who would be telling their parents. Henrietta was one of the coach’s passengers as well as Captain Wentworth and Mary. However, when Mary heard of the plan, she caused all sort of uproar that upset Henrietta again, as on the Cobb, and Anne replaced Mary in the coach ride back to Uppercross.

Finally, they were seated in the carriage and on their way back to her home. Soothing words came from the direction of Captain Wentworth but she had no need for them. Instead, she covered her face with her shawl and leaned into the corner of the carriage. She hoped that the tears would stop momentarily and that sleep would soon take over…