Tea at Trianon: Orchard House

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, December 12, 2019

Orchard House

From Literary Hub:

If any Alcott ghosts linger, they play docile host as you pass through the house, first to the kitchen where May carved Raphael’s face on the back of a cutting board with a hot poker, and then to the parlor with Elizabeth’s chickering piano, where the sisters kept their audience for dining room plays—hanging fabric in the doorway to act as a stage curtain, running to the stairs for costume changes—and where, later on, Anna would get married. It’s also home to the couch on which Louisa’s so-called mood pillow still sits, flipped on its side to alert the family of a bad temper or a writing “vortex,” as she called fits of inspiration when she wanted to be left alone. All these things happen in the book, and sometimes the tour’s distinction between the real girls and the fictional ones grows foggy. (Read more.)

Here is a review of the 2019 version of Little Women. It seems heavy on the feminism, although pleasing to watch. I do not know why they make Beth the youngest; Amy was the youngest. From ScreenRant:

Based on the 1868 novel written by Louisa May Alcott, Little Women is a story that has endured for more than a century and a half, with adaptations being done for the stage, film and TV over the years. Telling the story of four sisters who come of age in the years after the American Civil War, Little Women deals in themes of family, marriage and how girls find their way in life. The coming of age narrative has resonated with women and girls of all ages for generations and seems poised to do so for many to come. The latest iteration of Little Women features an ensemble cast of both established and up-and-coming performers who breathe new life into Alcott's classic tale. Greta Gerwig's Little Women weaves a stunningly heartfelt and achingly honest coming of age story with excellent performances from its entire cast.

Little Women follows the four March sisters - Meg (Emma Watson), Jo (Saoirse Ronan), Amy (Florence Pugh) and Beth (Eliza Scanlen) - who live with their mother Marmee (Laura Dern) and spend a great deal of time with their neighbor and friend Laurie (Timothée Chalamet). The outspoken Jo dreams of becoming a writer and never settling down to get married, while both Meg and Amy set their sights on marrying good men. Beth, the youngest, is a skilled piano player with a kind heart. As the four sisters and Laurie grow up, though, they all must confront how much things can change as they deal with love, loss, marriage and heartbreak. Spanning two time periods seven years apart, Little Women showcases the March sisters when they're teenagers and pre-teens and later when they're grown women. (Read more.)