Saturday 30 June 2012

The Kitty and Lydia letters

"When Lydia went away, she promised to write very often and very minutely to her mother and Kitty; but her letters were always long expected, and always very short.......her letters to Kitty, though rather longer, were much too full of lines under the words to be made public."

Jane Austen's sister Cassandra destroyed most of her sister's letters, but it is likely that she used some sort of code, like Lydia, to indicate which parts of her letters were private. In this case, Lydia underlines the confidential sections of her letters to Kitty, and later on, Kitty triumphs in having known more than the others. Their letters could have been like these ones, which I wrote for fun.

June the 24th, 17--.
Brighton.

My dear Kitty,
It was a horrid journey, but I am glad to have arrived at last, and it is really wonderful. I have been here a week.-- The weather is excellent, but even if it were not, it shouldn't signify, for we could go to the libraries or the theatre.
I bought an elegant pelisse yesterday. Aren't you envious of me? There are balls and parties every night, and I danced with twenty different officers yesterday. Mrs Forster and me are having a glorious time. Guess what? You never will, so I'll tell you. Next week I'm going to elope with Mr. Wickham.
--But don't you dare tell, or I'll never trim you up a new bonnet again. What a joke!! I can hardly wait until I can sign myself Mrs Wickham!
                                                                                                                    Yours, etc.
June 28th, 17--.
Longbourn.

Dear Lydia,
What! That is most unfair. Why is it Jane gets to go to London, Lizzy gets to go to Derbyshire, and you get to go to Brighton! Mary is so dull, she doesn't care, but why must I stay at home??
If I don't tell will you trim me a new bonnet??
There have been no balls here for an age. I am not at all well, I have a dreadful cough. Nobody knows what I suffer. Jane attends mamma, Mary studies her music and moral extracts, and it is dull and poky here.
                                                                                                                     Yours, &c., &c.
Next time~~ Cooking/Recipe #2

                                                             

2 comments:

  1. What FUN! When I was in tenth grade I studied P&P for a British Literature course (it didn't feel at all like school, haha) and one of the assignments was to write several letters from various characters to other characters. One of the characters I chose was Lydia, and I wrote letters from her to Kitty while she was at Brighton! :D

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    Replies
    1. What a coincidence!!! That is one of our favourite games to play, writing letters from characters to eachother.

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