Monica Fairview, Author

"Silly things do cease to be silly if they are done by sensible people in an impudent way." Emma I was looking at this quotation yesterday, wondering what it means, and thought I'd put in up for people to share their thoughts about it. I rather think of it as a tongue twister but for the brain -- a brain twister. You have to slow down and think about it for your mind to be able to follow its twists and turns. So what do you think it means? Is Jane Austen supporting impudence, and saying that if you're impudent you can carry off anything, and she admires impudent people for it? Or is it the opposite? That silly things are still silly, even if it's sensible people do them? Or is she condemning the fact that sensible people can get away with silly things because of people's perceptions that they are sensible? Or is she laughing at us and talking about herself? Let me know what you think Jane Austen is saying here.

Yesterday's question was a tough one, but some of you had some very perceptive answers. Well done! Recognize the village from my previous blog? I watched Emma last night, as I said I'd do in my last blog. I'll give you a quick summary of how it went, and my general impressions. The mini series starts with a review of Emma's childhood. We see Miss Bates as a fixture in Emma's childhood, constantly reading out letters detailing Jane Fairfax's accomplishments. We see her as she grows up, with Mr Knightly another fixture. Knightly seems inclined to reprimand both Emma and Miss Taylor. We catch a glimpse of John Knightly and Emma's sister, whose marriage Emma believes she engineered. And then Miss Taylor's marriage with Mr Weston. The action starts after Miss Taylor's wedding, where Emma is left quite lonely in a big house with her father. Consequently she seeks out a companion, and she chooses Harriet, who is very pretty but quite empty-headed. K...