Persuasion is Jane Austen’s last completed novel. She began it soon after she had finished Emma and completed it in August 1816. She died, aged 41, in 1817; Persuasion was published in December of that year (but dated 1818).
More than eight years before the novel opens, Anne Elliot, then a lovely, thoughtful, warm-hearted 19-year old, accepted a proposal of marriage from the handsome young naval officer Frederick Wentworth. He was clever, confident, and ambitious, but poor and with no particular family connections to recommend him. Sir Walter, Anne’s fatuous, snobbish father and her equally self-involved older sister Elizabeth were dissatisfied with her choice, maintaining that he was no match for an Elliot of Kellynch Hall, the family estate. Her older friend and mentor, Lady Russell, acting in place of Anne’s late mother, persuaded her to break the engagement, for she, too, felt it was an imprudent match that was beneath Anne.
Now 27 and still unmarried, Anne re-encounters her former love when his sister and brother-in-law, the Crofts, take out a lease on Kellynch. Wentworth is now a captain and wealthy from maritime victories in the Napoleonic wars. However, he has not forgiven Anne for rejecting him. While publicly declaring that he is ready to marry any suitable young woman who catches his fancy, he privately resolves that he is ready to become attached to any appealing young woman with the exception of Anne Elliot.
The self-interested machinations of Anne’s father, her older sister Elizabeth, Elizabeth’s widowed friend Mrs. Clay, and William Elliot (Anne’s cousin and her father’s heir) constitute important subplots.
In many respects, Persuasion marks a break with Austen’s previous works, both in the more biting, even irritable satire directed at some of the novel’s characters and in the regretful, resigned outlook of its otherwise admirable heroine, Anne Elliot, in the first part of the story. Against this is set the energy and appeal of the Royal Navy, which symbolises for Anne and the reader the possibility of a more outgoing, engaged, and fulfilling life, and it is this worldview which triumphs for the most part at the end of the novel. [x]
One of my favorite things about both Spies are Forever and Poe Party is that, while they have their share of romance, they both emphasize other types of relationships, especially friendships, more than romantic relationships. I think we need more stories like that.
Speaking of which, the Tin Can Brothers are VERY CLOSE to being able to make Wayward Guide for the Untrained Eye, which they have already stated is not a romantic story. It’s also set to feature many cast members from both Spies and Poe Party (in addition to a bunch of other awesome people). However, they still need to raise almost $8,000 by Sunday afternoon or it won’t get made. Literally every dollar helps, and this really needs to be a thing, so please pledge if you can, share if you can’t!
Hey guys, a TON of my friends are involved with a proposed show that has 4 days left to reach it’s goal, and I’m pretty intrigued by the concept. They describe it better than I could, so from the kickstarter description:
The Wayward Guide for the Untrained Eyeis a 10 episode webseries inspired by the podcasts Serial and S-Town, crossed with the game One Night Ultimate Werewolf, peppered with the surreal comedy of Pushing Daisies and Twin Peaks. Wayward Guide will feature the absurd and larger-than-life comedy that you’ve come to love from the Tin Can Brothers, but won’t be shy when tugging at your heartstrings.
Additionally, as a companion piece to the show, we will be bringing on a specialized sound design team to help us produce the complete 10 episode in-world podcast that Artemis & Paul are making in Wayward Guide. This supplemental material will be released in conjunction with the series and exist parallel to the story, offering new insight into the mystery of Connor Creek and its quirky residents.
You can watch the teaser scene/concept video and support it here. I’ve been asking people to consider donating the price of a movie ticket if it sounds like something they would want to watch when it’s out… It should be really cool to have the story told from two different angles, and this is a solid group of people, and includes some big names like Sean Astin (Samwise Gamgee), Carlos Valdes (from the Flash), and Darren Criss (Broadway, Glee, etc.)
Most of the cast from Shipwrecked Comedy’s Poe Party (A bunch of authors at a dinner party, it’s hilarious and cool and up for a ton of IAWTV awards right now) are in it, as well as a ton of people from The Lizzie Bennet Diaries (which is, no lie, why I live in LA), so I feel very invested in seeing them hit their goal. Also, these are all just fun things to watch if you’re looking to kill some time on youtube!
Pour yourself an extra bowl of red herring soup, because Poe Party is representing at the IAWTV Awards on October 4th in Los Angeles!
We are so excited and honored that Edgar Allan Poe’s Murder Mystery Dinner Party has been nominated for EIGHT IAWTV (International Academy of Web Television) Awards: Best Directing (Comedy), Best Writing (Comedy), Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Original Music, Best Male Performance Comedy, Best Ensemble Comedy, and Best Comedic Series. Congrats to Sean, Sinead, Mary Kate, Sarah, Joe, Alex, Dylan, and the whole cast and crew!
Tonight (Wednesday, September 18, 2017) I’m giving a free bird talk at the Carpinteria Veteran’s Hall (details at the link above). Part one is on corvids: Crows, jays, and magpies, with a focus on the seven corvid species regularly seen in Santa Barbara County.
Part two of the talk will cover birdwatching at Carpinteria Creek, one of the best examples of coastal riparian habitat in Southern California. This Saturday I’ll be leading a bird walk there (again, see the link above for details).
Below are a few no-frills videos I’ve made as visuals for tonight’s talk. First is a Google Earth flyby showing Carpinteria’s three major creeks from the air. See if you can spot the difference between the two channelized ones (Santa Monica and Franklin Creeks) and the unchannelized creek (Carpinteria Creek). (Hint: It’s the trees.)
Here’s a walk-through of the part of Carpinteria Creek where I’ll be leading the bird walk on Saturday:
