Pivotal events (4.5)

And then there is the pivotal non-event. We also get this odd little interjection:

His [Captain Tilney's] taste and manners were beyond a doubt decidedly inferior [to his brother's]; for, within her hearing, he not only protested against every thought of dancing himself, but even laughed openly at Henry for finding it possible. From the latter circumstance it may be presumed that, whatever might be our heroine’s opinion of him, his admiration of her was not of a very dangerous kind; not likely to produce animosities between the brothers, nor persecutions to the lady. He cannot be the instigator of the three villains in horsemen’s greatcoats, by whom she will hereafter be forced into a traveling–chaise and four, which will drive off with incredible speed.

Well, it's obvious you say, this is the beginning of Catherine's imaging herself a Gothic heroine leading to interesting results. Except it isn't because here is the very next sentence:

Catherine, meanwhile, undisturbed by presentiments of such an evil, or of any evil at all, except that of having but a short set to dance down, enjoyed her usual happiness with Henry Tilney, listening with sparkling eyes to everything he said; and, in finding him irresistible, becoming so herself.

Why, the commentary comes from Jane Austen herself and the whole point is to tell us that Catherine has no such thoughts. This is odd because she soon will be having such thoughts. What's going on here?

Pivotal events (4)

And we might include the odd conversation with John Thorpe at the end of Book one where he obviously means to begin making love to Catherine combined with the Isabella's obvious campaign against the Tilney's in the central chapter that begins book 2. This pathetic failure (in more than one sense of pathetic) of a love affair contributes to Thorpe's anger and his subsequent denunciation of Catherine's family to General Tilney.

The only thing all these central events have in common is Catherine's inability to decipher other people's motives and we might clean things up a bit that way. But is that what the book is about?

Maybe.

Pivotal events (3)

Next, we have the arrival of James Morland's second letter and the revelation of the financial settlement being proposed for the young couple. The disappointment of both Isabella and Mrs. Thorpe is obvious to anyone whos name is not Catherine Morland and even she has uneasy feelings she can't quite define.

Pivotal events (2)

Next we have the arrival of Captain Tilney and his obvious interest in Isabella and her encouragement of his attentions.

This is accompanied by Henry noting that Catherine does not wonder much, or worry much, about other people's motives. This is not a pivotal event but it is worth noting how unusual this makes her for an Austen heroine. Some have compared Emma to a mystery novel but, it seems to me as I write this (and I'll have to check this going forward), that all the great Austen heroines behave like detectives trying to work out people's motives.

Pivotal events (1)

The centre, BTW, is Book 2, Chapter 1 or—if you have a crappy edition—Chapter 16.

The first pivotal event is Catherine's attendance at Milsom-street to visit General Tilney, his son and his daughter. The event is a disappointment. Something is wrong but Catherine cannot put her finger on what.

She does decide not to blame the General:

... it had been a release to get away from him. It puzzled her to account for all this. It could not be General Tilney’s fault. That he was perfectly agreeable and good–natured, and altogether a very charming man, did not admit of a doubt, for he was tall and handsome, and Henry’s father. He could not be accountable for his children’s want of spirits, or for her want of enjoyment in his company.

Good heavens, that's free indirect speech. And that has to at least tempt us to think that we are reading something that Jane Austen added while revising the book.

An aside, some critics have argued that Austen always or sometimes equates manners and moral character. Hardly, what Austen believes (not what she assumes) is that good character and manners have a relationship not unlike that of faith and acts in the Epistle from James: "But someone will say, 'You have character and I have manners.' Show me your character apart from your manners and I by my manners will show you my character."

But while you can't have character unless you also have manners, it is certainly possible to have manners without having moral character as both the General and his eldest son show us in this novel.

The centre

The centre of an Austen novel always features a pivotal event. Elizabeth's refusal of Darcy's first proposal is at the centre of Pride and Prejudice. Marianne shows Elinor Willoughby's appalling non-apology letter along with her returned letters from him at the centre of Sense and Sensibility. In Emma it is the arrival of Jane Fairfax's pianoforté. In Mansfield Park it is Henry Crawford announcing his plan to make Fanny Price fall in love with him.

In Northanger Abbey, the centre of the novel features a whole lot of pivotal incidents; features far too many pivotal events. There are three or four depending on how you count them—and I'll count them out ina series of upcoming posts.