No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy, would have supposed her born to be an heroine. ~ Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Dover, 2000 (1817)
Fiction; 192 pgs
Northanger Abbey was such fun. It is on the lighter side with a sense of humor, a Gothic parody, if you will. I can see why so many Jane Austen readers favor this book. Full of misunderstandings and a few twists, it was easy to get caught up in the drama as it unfolded. The novel almost feels like two different novels, were it not for the characters, from the more formal and yet airy society life in the resort town of Bath to the perceived darker, more Gothic tones of Northanger Abbey, a countryside estate that had once been a church.
A small town young woman, Catherine Morland, travels to Bath for the first time to stay with family friends and enjoy the society there. She befriends Isabella Thorpe and gains an admirer in her friend's brother. Catherine, however, has her eyes set on Henry Tilney, a rather handsome clergyman. Isabella admits to fancying Catherine's older brother, James. And so it goes from there. The first section of the novel takes place in Bath as Catherine makes her way in the society, spending time with her friends, untangling misunderstandings, and coming into her own. In the second section, our heroine is invited to Northanger Abbey, the Tilney's family estate, to spend time with her new friend, Henry's sister. Henry's father assumes Catherine comes from money and treats her quite well, despite his otherwise cold and demanding manner. Catherine cannot help but speculate on the death of his wife years before, however, especially as she discovers the untouched room of the late Lady Tilney.
Early in the novel, we discover Catherine is a reader of fiction with a particular love for Gothic romances, counting Ann Radcliffe among her favorite authors. She may take her reading a little too far, applying her reading to reality around her, jumping to conclusions and looking for secrets in all the dark corners, especially once at Northanger Abbey.
Catherine is a very likeable character, if very naive. She truly is a good person, but her trusting nature makes it easy for others to take advantage of her. While I couldn't help but shake my head at some of the situations Catherine found herself in, she is still such an endearing character. I enjoyed her conversations with Henry and his sister and cringed every time she had to spend time with John Thorpe, who is quite self-serving.
As a love story, Northanger Abbey highlights the practices of the time in courting, Austen making fun of them a bit. There is not much romance in this one, I felt. The ending to be a bit rushed in comparison to the rest of the novel, but it was satisfactory. I found Northanger Abbey to be both a charming and entertaining read. While perhaps not my favorite, I can see why this one is so well loved.
To learn more about author Jane Austen and her work, please visit the Jane Austen website.
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