Zombies

Final Project Draft

Andrea Hewes

CLINE

ENG 102

3 November 2011

More Than Meets the Eye

            The term hero has many different meanings and they are found in many different people.  They are strong and courageous, and they are admired for their actions and deeds.  Heroes are also those mythological figures that have a significant ability unlike anyone else.  Heroines are a hero’s female counter part.  When thinking of heroes and/or heroines it may be someone like a NFL quarterback, or a favorite teacher, or maybe even a mom or a dad.  It could be a figure like Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, or the X-Men.  Anyone of these people may be seen as a hero or a heroine, and they are always eager to confront and neutralize the villain.  When thinking of a hero thoughts are immediately drawn to their nemesis.  With Superman it is Lex Luthur, with batman he had many but no one like the Joker.  Wonder Woman’s nemesis was Baroness Von Gunther, in X-Men it was Magneto, for the quarterback it is the opposing team, and with a mom or dad it could be that monster that is hiding in the closet.  In Jane Austen’s novels there is always a heroine that might even share the spot light with a hero, and they are constantly fighting against a villain.  However, the hero might actually be the villain and the villain might turn out to be the hero.  This is no different in the novel Northanger Abbey, in fact she talks of heroes in all its forms in this novel more than any of her other novels combined .  In Northanger Abbey Jane Austen continues to reveal her literary genius through the portrayal of heroines, heroes, and the worst kind of villains.   

            A heroine should be someone that is magnificent, one that has created acts that are timeless and unforgettable.  However, in Northanger Abbey Austen writes about a different type of heroine a person that to look at you would see nothing significant.  Catherine Morland is unlike any other hero that Jane Austen writes about in her other novels.  This is what she says of Catherine: “No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be a heroine…She had a thin awkward figure, a sallow skin without colour, dark lank hair, and strong features-so much for her person; and not less unpropitious for heroism seemed her mind” (Austen 917).  So ordinary is Catherine Morland, maybe that is what makes her such an extraordinary hero.   In “Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen”: Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism, Volume 51 Andrew H. Wright says:

“Catherine Morland is a goose, but a very engaging goose, and a goose you must respect for her sincerity, her high principles, her generous trust of others, and her patience under trials that would be too great for much stronger heads…and in spite of her romantic folly she has so much good heart that it serves her in place of good sense” (Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen).

It wasn’t Catherine Morland’s super powers that made her a heroine; it was the beautiful person that she was on the inside.  She was loved and endeared by all of those that met her and to some that is what makes the greatest kinds of heroes.  

            In many cases the heroine’s love interest is also considered a hero in his own right.  In this case Jane Austen writes about Henry Tilney.  “He seemed to be about four or five and twenty, was rather tall, had a pleasing countenance, a very intelligent and lively eye, and, if not quite handsome, was very near it.  His address was good…He talked with fluency and spirit-and there was an archness and pleasantry in his manner which interested” (Austen 922-923).  Henry is the kind of hero that should be honored, and he helps those around him for the sake of humanity.  He is not the type of hero that uses his special powers or abnormal strength to help those that are in need.  He is one that shows courage when standing up for something he believes in, and shows genuine love and concern for those that he cares about.  Catherine sees this in him many times which is what draws this heroine to her hero.  Of Henry’s type of hero Debra Teachman in the book Student Companion to Jane Austen says: 

“He is a self-sufficient individual who can and does stand on his own even in the face of great difficulties…He loves the heroine because of her purity of spirit…While Henry is not a swashbuckling hero who must fight to the death Catherine’s enemies, he does stand up for her, protects her to the best of his abilities, and ultimately provides her with the safety and security of a home filled with love and trust” (Teachman 121). 

Henry Tilney may not be the kind of sword-slashing, gun slinging hero that we think of when we define the term hero.  However, he was the hero of Catherine Morland’s heart.

            A villain is someone that is conniving, untrustworthy, secretive, manipulative, and is someone that is constantly trying to thwart the lives of those around him.     It is the hero or heroine’s role to fight against the villain’s trickery and stop their evil plan.  The problem with villains is that they can be anyone, even those that could never be imagined as such.  Two of Jane Austen’s villains in Northanger Abbey is John and Isabella Thorpe, a brother and sister mastermind duo.   In the book Student Companion to Jane Austen Debra Teachman says: “They represent the desperate fortune-hunters of both genders who pursue money to exclusion of anything else…The truth is meaningless to them; deception is their stock and trade.  Loyalty is irrelevant” (Teachman 121).  Each of these villains use their evil talents, separately but deliberately, to prove that sometimes those that are closest in life can turn out to be those that should be the most feared.  Therefore the role that the villain plays teaches the most important lesson.  In Jane Austen: A Literary Reference to Her Life and Work by William Baker he says: “Isabella has an important role in Catherine’s voyage from innocence to experience of people and the world” (Baker 290). Of John he says: “He has an important function in the novel: Catherine learns not to trust what he says.  He is important for her education and destiny” (Baker 291).    In this situation with the Thorpe’s, the hero or the heroine is deceived by the villain not knowing who they really are, but that is not always the case.

            An example of the perfect kind of villain created by Jane Austen is in the persona of General Tilney.  He is a father and should be loving and kind in fact Austen describes him as, “a handsome man, of a commanding aspect, past the bloom, but not past the vigour of life” (Austen 952).   However, because he is so demanding and dominating there is always the feeling that there is an underlying force that causes him to act with such kindness towards Catherine.  Trust is never a feeling that General Tilney warrants, which is why he is a character that the reader loves to hate.  According to Debra Teachman in Student Companion to Jane Austen write this about General Tilney: “He is the harsh father/guardian figure who is more interested in increasing the money and power associated with his estate and position than he is in the happiness and care of his own children” (Teachman 122).  In this way General Tilney shows that there is no need for super human powers to destroy those in their way.  Being a villain can just be the way that life is conducted, the philosophy that directs that life, and the way that they treat others.  The true test of a literary villain is whether or not the reader dislikes the character, and the havoc that they have created in the lives of those around them.  In this way Jane Austen is a master of manuscript for you truly hate her villains. 

            In the story of Northanger Abbey through the heroines, heroes, and villains Jane Austen reveals her mastery with the written word.  She allows you to know who her heroine is right from the beginning.  However, she also allows you to meet others that, through their actions, become heroes as well.  Heroes can be the simplest of people like Catherine Morland, which are very average when it comes to their physical features.  Or they can be like Henry Tilney, who from the moment that they enter into the story you know that they are going to be someone great.  Therefore, because they are the hero you know that they are going to stand up against the vilest person.  It is these types of people that you need to be the most aware of.  They can be deceiving like Isabella and John Thorpe, that pretend to love and care about you only to reveal that they are only out for themselves.  Or they can be a villain like General Tilney, whom you know that from the beginning you need to watch out for his every move.  You cannot have light without dark, good without bad.  Such as it is with novels you cannot have a hero without a villain.  Peter S. Beagle said: “Great heroes need great sorrows and burdens, or half their greatness goes unnoticed.” http://enchantedserenityperiodfilms.blogspot.com/2008/01/northanger-abbey.html

           

Work Cited

Austen, Jane. Seven Novels: Northanger Abbey. New York City: Barnes & Noble,

Inc., 2006. 915-1040. Print.

Baker, William. Jane Austen: A Literary Reference to Her Life and Work.  New

York City: Fact on File, Inc. 2008. 235-295. Print.

  Catherine Morland Image: http://www.ivewatchedit.com/movie/18093/Northanger-Abbey

Henry Tilney Image: http://enchantedserenityperiodfilms.blogspot.com/2008/01/northanger-

            abbey.html

 "Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen." Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed. 

Marie Lazzari. Vol. 51. Detroit: Gale Research, 1996. 1-73. Literature Criticism Online. Gale. Yavapai College. 3 November 2011 

<http://galenet.galegroup.com.proxy.yc.edu/servlet/LitCrit/yava/FJ3573350002>

 Northanger Abbey Image: http://christianfictionqueen.xanga.com/638590571/northanger-abbey/

Teachman, Debra. Student Companion to Jane Austen. Wesport, 2000.

Greenwood Press. Web. 3 November 2011. <http://site.ebrary.com/lib/yavapai/docDetail.action?docID=5003999&

p00=northanger%20abbey>.

Annotated Bibliography

Austen, Jane. Seven Novels: Northanger Abbey. New York City: Barnes & Noble,    
       Inc., 2006. 915-1040. Print.

This source is my primary source.  It is one of Jane Austen’s first written work but last to be published and printed.  It is the story of seventeen years old, Catherine Morland.  One of ten siblings, Catherine is able to vacation in Bath with neighbors that her parents entrust her care and safety with.  While in Bath she finds what friendship truly is and falls in love with the honorable Henry Tilney.  After some time in Bath she is invited to Northanger Abbey, and with eagerness she immediately accepts.  Not knowing that her invitation was under false pretenses.  After all situations are revealed she is turned out by the master of the house without a friend or penny to her name.  She knows not why she was treated in this fashion, or whether she will ever see Henry again.  I will be using this source as the main reason that I am going to be writing the paper.

Baker, William. Jane Austen: A Literary Reference to Her Life and Work. New 
      York City: Fact on File, Inc. 2008. 235-295. Print.

In this source the author gives a brief summary of each of Jane Austen’s literary works.  The author also gives a synopsis and commentary for each chapter of her books, to help you understand his take on the things that Austen wrote about in her books.  I focused primarily on his pages that were about Northanger Abbey. After his breakdown of all the chapters of the book he continues with a brief description of each of the characters their roles, and the importance they are to the main character.  The reason that I chose this source is because I wanted a little more of an in depth look at the hero and heroine of the book and their character portrayed by Austen.

"Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen." Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed.Marie Lazzari. Vol. 51. Detroit: Gale Research, 1996. 1-73. Literature 
      Criticism Online. Gale. Yavapai College. 3 November 2011 
      <http://galenet.galegroup.com.proxy.yc.edu/servlet/LitCrit/yava/FJ3573350002>

This source is several essays that have been compiled that are critical analytical essays about Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey.  These different essays all have various topics and are written by different authors.  Their essays are on topics like Gothic romance, comedy, and the sentimental elements of this particular work by Austen.  There is one essay that is on the exact topic that I am going to be writing on, so this is the essay that I am going to be using as one of my sources.

Teachman, Debra. Student Companion to Jane Austen. Wesport, 2000. 
      Greenwood Press. Web. 3 November 2011.

http://site.ebrary.com/lib/yavapai/docDetail.action?docID=5003999&
p00=northanger%20abbey>.

In this source it gives a biography of Jane Austen.  The author also describes the different types of novels and breaks down how each of Austen’s novels might fit into these different categories.  When this is concluded the author specifically writes about six of Jane Austen’s novels.  In this breakdown I will be focusing on the chapter about Northanger Abbey.   In this chapter it starts with a brief synopsis of the book and its main events.  Then after that it gives a character development section giving a closer look to the characters in the book and their personalities.  I am using this source because I want as much information that I can get about each of the characters and their roles in the story.