(Blog 4) Brainstorming thesis for first paper

It’s not what you read; it’s how you use it. I’m wondering if Shelley or Austen is trying to make this point in her book. I think I could use some of the characters and their applications of different types of knowledge to argue the point. I’m not sure which book I would like to write about so I did a little brainstorming of ideas.

In my last blog post I said “Shelley doesn’t seem to be questioning what types of books to read but rather- what will one use that knowledge for? To go on a great adventure? To produce something good or terrible? To understand the self? The question is not whether to read this or that but how one will use or apply that knowledge in their life.”

Michelle mentioned that this might be a good paper topic to explore with Frankenstein or Northanger Abbey so I’ve written out a few ideas about how characters use their different types of knowledge in different ways- forming relationships, exerting power, doing certain tasks, etc.

Northanger Abbey

·         Catherine

o   Using novels to bond with friends such as Isabella

o   Using novels and storytelling to bond with Tilney

o   Her imagination from novels gets her into trouble at Northanger Abbey

There is a lot of discussion about whether novels are useful or not and good or not for education. Catherine has examples of ways in which her application of knowledge from novels was applied to her benefit and to her misfortune.

·         Tilney

o   Uses education to woo Catherine

o   He also uses it to educate her and occasionally tease her

·         Thorpe

o   Uses his education to put others down and make himself feel superior

o   Disdains Catherine’s reading of novels

While Tilney and Thorpe may both be educated in a more formal way than Catherine, they exhibit this knowledge differently towards her and one is clearly more successful as a suitor through his application of education than the other.

Frankenstein

·         Victor

o   Gets formal education but uses it to create something unnatural and then abandons that creation

·         The creature

o   Uses books to try and understand human nature, emotions, language, etc.

o   Repeatedly uses this knowledge to try and make a friend or companion

·         Walton

o   Uses knowledge from voyage books to go on an actual voyage

(Blog 3)- Education with Books/Novels

All three of these pieces of literature discuss the importance of reading books in their own way. What types of book those should be and what kind of consequences may come from them differ between authors.

Wollstonecraft:

Wollstonecraft expresses an extreme distaste for novels. She might equate them to a modern tabloid or trashy harlequin romance, calling their authors: “stupid novelists, who, knowing little of human nature, work up stale tales, and describe meretricious scenes, all retailed in a sentimental jargon." However, she qualifies her opinion by pointing out that with the lives which they live, deprived of many interesting experience afforded to men, the novel is one of the few sources of interesting entertainment for them. Furthermore, she says that it makes sense for women to find the reading of history very dry when the rest of their time is filled with “trifling employments.” Finally she has to concede that reading something is better than reading nothing. Because Wollstonecraft is fighting against systems of oppression she must have a firm stance on education and therefore she stresses the importance of reading ‘legitimate’/education books but at the very least women should be exercising and growing their brains with something.

Austen:

Austen expresses more fondness for novels. Although Catherine has not been able to travel much in her life, she has been able to ‘experience’ certain countries and places through the reading of novels. The character in Northanger Abbey who expresses the greatest distaste for novels is Thorpe. As he is also one of the most unpleasant characters, his opinion is discredited. Meanwhile it is the more lovable characters (Catherine and the Tilneys) who have an affinity for novels and so this gives their perceptions a positive weight in the book. Nonetheless, Austen exposes the danger of indulging in too much imagination and not enough rational thinking with the result of Catherine’s suspicions at Northanger. In this way, Austen’s commentary on education does align somewhat with Wollstonecraft’s. Reading anything is good, reading novels along with other literature is better. I think Austen gives more merit and power to the novel, particularly in the sense of using them to experience things that might be impossible within certain lifestyles and financial constraints.

Shelley:

Shelley’s characters are constantly reading and storytelling. It frequently reminds the reader of the sheer power of books because they can divulge vast amounts of knowledge which can then be utilized by the characters- whether for good or evil. Walton is able to form a career from reading books. Frankenstein also learns his skills of natural philosophy through books but then he uses that power for morally questionable purposes. The creature uses books to try and understand language and the human experience. The importance of reading as a part of education is unquestionable in Frankenstein. Even when the character is learning from a teacher (Frankenstein and his professors/the creature and the DeLaceys), she is careful to describe their personal experiences of reading books as a part of that education. Certainly a factor in this significant theme could be connections to Shelley’s own life- learning her mother through her writings and living with a group of writers. Unlike Wollstonecraft and Austen, Shelley doesn’t seem to be questioning what types of books to read but rather- what will one use that knowledge for? To go on a great adventure? To produce something good or terrible? To understand the self? The question is not whether to read this or that but how one will use or apply that knowledge in their life.

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(Blog 2) Education in Shelley’s Frankenstein

There seems to be a higher level of agency afforded to the characters in Frankenstein regarding their own education. Whereas, in the Vindication of the Right’s of Women and in Northanger Abbey there was a lot of focus on the mother as an educator, the importance of experience, and the importance of a formal education. Thos texts, particularly Wollstonecraft’s, talk a lot about whose duty it is to do the educating, which often points to some “other” whether that is the mother, teachers, etc. Contrastingy, Shelley’s Frankenstein places an emphasis on the desire to learn and the power of the autodidact.  Both Walton and Frankenstein take the initiative to study books to such an extent that they are both able to learn and practice their respective trades (fisherman and scientist) mainly through self education, although Frankenstein does attend college and receives more direction.

First Walton is introduced and he explains that although his education (his formal education) was neglected, he was “passionately fond of reading.” Walton studies about voyages day and night and is able to learn a trade through his self-discipline. Walton is fascinating because he does not limit himself only to books that will help him become a fisherman/voyager. He also remarks on his time spent reading poetry and how he himself tried out the practice. He speaks on this topic with a sort of reverence, going so far as to call his attempt at writing “a Paradise of my own creation.” Here I wonder how much of Shelley and her reverence for her fellow friends in her literary circle is coming out. Later in the book there are allusions to more poets and even a piece of Coleridge within the text. By contrasting Walton’s study of nautical literature and his study of poetry, Shelley explores multiple purposes of education, even if it is an informal one. On the one hand, Walton uses his readings as a utility, to learn a trade. On the other hand, he reads poetry and experiences it as a creative outlet and art form, something that give him great pleasure.

Frankenstein too tells about the passions which led him to conduct his own study of various subjects. At 13, he found a book which, at first, he thought might be boring. Upon reading it, he gained an enthusiasm for natural philosophy and so was spurred to read extensively on the subject. Again, Shelley shows how the desire to learn and the self-discipline to study alone can lead to a rich self-education. However, with Frankenstein, she also shows how one’s passions for knowledge might be greatly influenced by others, particularly professors. Frankenstein is disillusioned from the study of natural philosophy and for a while he leaves it to study mathematics instead. When he goes to Ingolstadt, Krempe turns him off from natural philosophy while Waldman inspires him to take up its study with his greatest fervor yet, stating “From this day natural philosophy, particularly chemistry, in the most comprehensive sense of the term, became nearly my sole occupation.” The combination of Frankenstein’s passion for knowledge and Waldman’s support push him to a point in which his life is consumed by the pursuit of his subject.

                Notably, while the power of self-education is emphasized, there is still a level of privilege that must presuppose any autodidacticism. Both Walton and Frankenstein must both be literate before their desire to gain more knowledge can actually be utilized. Shelley exposes the role of individual agency in pursuing education, however, this would be unattainable if one could not read or did not have access to books.

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(Blog 1) Northanger Abbey

Scene-Chapter XIV, Walking around Beechen Cliff with the Tilneys

At the beginning of this scene Catherine states “I never look at it [the hill] without thinking of the south of France.” Tilney is surprised at first because they had previously discussed that she had not ventured much abroad (except for Bath). She then reveals that she has only dreamed about these places through the reading of novels such as the Mysteries of Udolpho.

Here Catherine expects to be put down once again for her love of novels (as she had earlier by John Thorpe). She also considers Tilney highly educated and expects for him to be a reader of “better books” and not novels. Tilney’s response is surprising because, while he often teases her on points of education, here he agrees with her about the pleasure of novels. He goes so far as to state “The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not the pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.” Rather than pinning Catherine as unintelligent for her lack of experience traveling and reading high brow literature, he pins “the other” as the “intolerably stupid.”

Instead of mocking Catherine for her lack of travel experience, he praises her for her enjoyment of novels. In a sense, this scene compares elements of formal education (better books, real travel experience) alongside elements of imagination (the reading of novels) and it finds value in those elements of imagination, both pleasurable and educative. Although Catherine has not seen many places before, she has been able to imagine them through novels. Therefore, she is better off for having read something rather than nothing, even if she did not read “better books.”

Furthermore, he aligns himself with Catherine in this moment by claiming his own love for novels, particularly Radcliffe novels and the Mysteries of Udolpho. He does this in a very clever way as to both align himself with Catherine and not embarrass her, but to still maintain a level of power, dominance, and/or intelligence over her. First, he reveals that he too finds pleasure and even value in the reading of novels. Next, he claims that he has read far more than Catherine (“hundreds and hundreds”) and that if she questions him on novels he has read: “I shall soon leave you as far behind me as…”

To drive his intellectual superiority further, he switches to a point of conversation on an aspect of more formal education. While he may be willing to indulge with Catherine on matters of novels and imagination (he does this in other scenes such as telling her ghost stories, etc.), he still finds it necessary to correct her on issues of formal education, particularly language. Catherine questions “do you not think Udolpho the nicest book in the world?” Tilney then expounds on his problems with her usage of the word nice. He complains about the overuse of ‘nice’ in every situation and how it has become a rather flimsy and meaningless expression which will not do to describe the book (or anything else for that matter).

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