Compare and Contrast the Literary
Compare and contrast the literary style, themes and characterisation from Jane Austen’s ‘Northanger Abbey’ and Ian McEwan’s ‘Atonement’.
Atonement follows the story of Briony Tallis, who witnesses events between her older sister Cecilia and Robbie Turner the son of her father’s housemaid. Briony 's innocence gives way to a misinterpretation of what she sees, triggering her imagination to run wild and leads to an unspeakable crime that changes all of their lives. Jane Austen’s first novel Northanger abbey tells the story of Catherine Morland, who is a nice girl, who has an overactive imagination, fuelled by her obsession with gothic novels. When Catherine meets Henry Tinley, she’s instantly smitten. But when she’s invited to his home, the sinister Northanger Abbey, she learns not to interpret the world through the pages of the vivid thrillers that she reads. There are various themes that both books have in common such as; love, guilt, shame, forgiveness, war, social class, identity, and loss of innocence. There are also similarities between characters despite the time difference between the novels. The Characters of Briony and Catherine, the two heroines, will be compared as well as John Thorpe and Paul Marshall who are cast in the role of the villains. In this essay I will explore and compare the style and language used for both novels and effects of the styles of writing used and their impressions on the reader will be analysed.
In Northanger Abbey the main character is Catherine, a 17 year old who is very naïve, impressionable and a bit of a fantasist who has to learn the differences between fiction and reality, false and true friends. Catherine is a fairly unremarkable young lady, living at home with her nine siblings and her parents. The Allen’s are a wealthy childless couple living next door. Before going to Bath with the Allen’s, Catherine has never been away from her family home in Fullerton for an extended period of time. Catherine’s main occupation
Atonement follows the story of Briony Tallis, who witnesses events between her older sister Cecilia and Robbie Turner the son of her father’s housemaid. Briony 's innocence gives way to a misinterpretation of what she sees, triggering her imagination to run wild and leads to an unspeakable crime that changes all of their lives. Jane Austen’s first novel Northanger abbey tells the story of Catherine Morland, who is a nice girl, who has an overactive imagination, fuelled by her obsession with gothic novels. When Catherine meets Henry Tinley, she’s instantly smitten. But when she’s invited to his home, the sinister Northanger Abbey, she learns not to interpret the world through the pages of the vivid thrillers that she reads. There are various themes that both books have in common such as; love, guilt, shame, forgiveness, war, social class, identity, and loss of innocence. There are also similarities between characters despite the time difference between the novels. The Characters of Briony and Catherine, the two heroines, will be compared as well as John Thorpe and Paul Marshall who are cast in the role of the villains. In this essay I will explore and compare the style and language used for both novels and effects of the styles of writing used and their impressions on the reader will be analysed.
In Northanger Abbey the main character is Catherine, a 17 year old who is very naïve, impressionable and a bit of a fantasist who has to learn the differences between fiction and reality, false and true friends. Catherine is a fairly unremarkable young lady, living at home with her nine siblings and her parents. The Allen’s are a wealthy childless couple living next door. Before going to Bath with the Allen’s, Catherine has never been away from her family home in Fullerton for an extended period of time. Catherine’s main occupation
References: http://www.shmoop.com/northanger-abbey/lies-deceit-quotes-2.html [online accessed 20th May 2013] http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-atonement/quotes.html [online accessed 20th May 2013] http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/northangerabbey/[ online accessed 20th May 2013] http://www.gradesaver.com/atonement/study-guide/short-summary/ [online accessed 20th May 2013] http://www.gradesaver.com/atonement/study-guide/about/ [online accessed 20th May 2013] Austen, J (2005) Northanger Abbey, Macmillan Heinemann, Oxford Austen, J (2003) Northanger Abbey, Penguin classics, London McEwan, I (2001) Atonement, Vintage, London BBC dvd (20??) Northanger Abbey ITV (20??) dvd Atonement