Victorians! discussion

MadgeUK wrote: "Kathy/Chris: Re post 88 in Part 3:

According to Tomalin, Hardy did not get to the Great Exhibition of 1851 but he was so keen to get to the International (scientific) Exhibition of 1862 that he mo..."

What an awesome pocket watch! Maybe just a tad out of my price-range though...Ha-ha!

Wonderful links, Madge!

MadgeUK wrote: "Re Chris's Eweleaze poem and Eweleaze Farm:-

Above the bay at Osmington (which is where the Farm is) there is a large White Horse with a man on it carved into the chalk hill, supposedly George III..."

I love the Osmington Horse cut into the chalk! How cool is that. I think there are other large figures scattered about the region kind of like this too. What a nifty little tale about it too! Thanks!

MadgeUK wrote: "There is the ancient Cerne Abbas giant in Dorset which Hardy mentions, although he calls the place Abbots Cernel. I think that is in The Return of the Native:-

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti..."

"In modern times the Giant has been used for several publicity stunts and as an advertisement for "...condoms, jeans and bicycles."[12:] A low-key example was the sponsorship of the 1983 scouring by the brewers Heineken. As a publicity stunt for the opening of The Simpsons Movie on the 16 July 2007, a giant Homer Simpson brandishing a doughnut was outlined in water-based biodegradable paint to the left of the Cerne Abbas giant. This act angered local neopagans, who pledged to perform rain magic to wash the figure away. [20:][21:]"

LOL!

MadgeUK wrote: "Sandybanks wrote: "MadgeUK wrote: "There is the ancient Cerne Abbas giant in Dorset which Hardy mentions, although he calls the place Abbots Cernel. I think that is in The Return of the Native:-

h..."

Isn't that hilarious? If the neopagans could conjure up rain to wash the Homer Simpson figure away, I'd be their first convert! ;D

This is such a better idea! This way people who want background information can access this thread and those who don't will not be scared off by the many references and length of the text. Thank you for doing this!

I agree with Marialyce - thanks MadgeUK! Thank you, also, for taking the time to put all these together and place it in one concise location for reference!

MadgeUK wrote: "Re Post 11 Part 4:-

Re Dorset's Jurassic coast: Lyme Regis is Bere Regis in Hardy's novels (and of course in Austen's Persuasion Louisa fell off The Cobb there - I climbed carefully down the very..."

Excellent links! You are the second to recommend Chevalier's book about Mary Anning and Elizabeth Philpot to me. I am going to find that for sure.

Awesome information, Madge, and thank you!

MadgeUK wrote: "Re Post 11 Part 4:-

Re Dorset's Jurassic coast: Lyme Regis is Bere Regis in Hardy's novels (and of course in Austen's Persuasion Louisa fell off The Cobb there - I climbed carefully down the very..."

That Granny's teeth steps look really dangerous! No wonder Louisa fell there. Do they still keep them like that, or is it all fenced up now?

MadgeUK wrote: "No they are still there Sandybanks - I walked down them 3 weeks ago, with great trepidation but determined to follow in Austen's footsteps! They were very dry at the time but I think that when the..."

Yikes! You be careful, Madge! I have a very healthy respect for the power of the sea, and I can only imagine how slick and dangerous the Cobb could become in less than favorable conditions! At the same time, how remarkable it is that little, if anything, has changed with the scene since Austen wrote Persuasion. Wonderful photographs! Cheers! Chris

I also want to tack on to this thread that I just finished Claire Tomalin's wonderful biography of Thomas Hardy, and have posted my review on Goodreads. It was an excellent book, and having read most of Hardy's works relatively recently made it all the more enjoyable. I highly recommend this biography for all Hardy enthusiasts. Cheers! Chris

Dumb question! I started way later than everyone else and am only about half way through FFtMC, and would like to read the early posts, but I can't find them. Where are the ones for the early chapters?

I have been enjoying the background information very much. It's contributing quite a bit to my pleasure in the book.

Joanna wrote: "Dumb question! I started way later than everyone else and am only about half way through FFtMC, and would like to read the early posts, but I can't find them. Where are the ones for the early cha..."

Pardon me, Madge, I might be able to help also. Joanna, all the threads within a folder don't always show up on the main page. Click the small "view all" out to the right of the folder name (in this case "Group Read Discussions"). This will list all the threads that are included in this discussion of Far from the Madding Crowd and you can easily access them.

This background material is some of the very best that I have ever seen associated with a book and group read discussion. I have had more fun with Madge's links! I cannot thank her enough for all of this wonderful information. It has brought Thomas Hardy and his novels to life for all of us!

MadgeUK wrote: "PART 4 Chapter 33:

Cain, upon his return from the city, of Bath says 'there are two religions going on in the nation now - High Church and High Chapel' which is probably a reference to the Oxford ..."

Thanks for the explanation, Madge. My impression is that the High Church is the one which is closer to Catholicism, both in doctrine and liturgy. So which faction is the most dominant in Hardy's time, the High or Low Church? How about today?

MadgeUK wrote: "PART 4 Chapter 33:

Cain, upon his return from the city, of Bath says 'there are two religions going on in the nation now - High Church and High Chapel' which is probably a reference to the Oxford ..."

My wife, a cradle Anglican, has a different, but relared, explanation: 'high chapel' refers to the small alcoves within the sanctuary of a large Anglican church. These chapels are used for weekly services like Morning Prayer and Vespers, which do not include Holy Communion. A few of these chapels used to be open 24/7. High insurance rates have closed all such chapels in my area.

MadgeUK wrote: "Yes, the Church of England hierarchy came much nearer to the Catholic church following the Restoration and in Hardy's day the Oxford Movement sought to bring it even closer. See my post No 24 above..."

Let us get our terms correct. The ROMAN Catholic Church was formed when the Bishop of Roman excommunicated the Bishop of Constantinoble in the eleventh century. This event is called the Great Schism' The term 'catholic' refers to the one united church before the Schism, whose doctrine came out of the 7 Councils of the undivided church. Both Wesley and Luther took this view of 'catholic', and sought to restore the church, not 'protest' it. But most people call these men "Protestants",because they protested against the status quo.

As it is has been a problem for some readers, I have now deleted all of my background information. I am unable to delete the entire Background thread from the board. Sorry therefore if the above comments are now out of context.

NB: Someone has just written to me in appreciation of some of the stuff I had posted here and has asked to see it again. I have emailed some info to her and if anyone else would like me to 'resuscitate' background info and/or links, please email me.