Hot and Bothered

It’s time for the Netherfield Ball in Chapters 17 and 18 of Pride and Prejudice . Mr. Darcy finally asks Lizzy to dance and the whole Bennet family seems to be on a mission to embarrass themselves in front of everyone. Vanessa and Lauren discuss the undercurrent of class privilege that surrounds balls in general and Lizzy’s prejudice around Darcy specifically. Dr. Amanda Calhoun joins us at the en...

Last month, a new Pride and Prejudice adaptation dropped – Fire Island directed by Andrew Ahn. As your go-to place for all things Pride and Prejudice, we felt it was our duty to watch the film and report back on how it compares to the original. And we were lucky enough to get Tobin Low, the co-creator of the Nancy podcast and current editor at This American Life , in the studio to break it all dow...

A new love interest has hit the scene in Chapters 15 and 16 of Pride and Prejudice. The handsome Mr. Wickham has caught Lizzy’s eye, and he has quite the story to tell about Darcy. Vanessa and Lauren discuss their first impressions of Wickham and what it means to trust a stranger.  Dr. Mary Jean Corbett joins us at the end of the episode to discuss the British marriage law and customs that su...

We're cross-posting this special episode of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text, which we've released today. This year in commemoration of Juneteenth, Not Sorry is spotlighting The Final 5 Campaign , a coalition working to close the final five youth prisons in Illinois. Vanessa is joined in conversation by one of their leaders, Alicia Brown, who tells us about what it means to be a prison abolitionis...

Mr. Collins, the Bennets’ horrible cousin, has arrived at Longbourn in Chapters 13 and 14 of Pride and Prejudice . Vanessa and Lauren dig into Collins as a religious figure and the impact of his sermonizing on the Bennet daughters. Dr. Sandra Macpherson joins us at the end of the episode to discuss the entail and British land law. Our next episode is on July 1st and we'll meet another exciting cha...

With Jane sick upstairs, Elizabeth is stuck navigating the drawing room at Netherfield in chapters 9 through 12 of Pride and Prejudice. Vanessa and Lauren discuss the influence of The Enlightenment on Austen, continue their discussion about Caroline Bingley, and evaluate the budding chemistry between Elizabeth and Darcy. Nell Stevens joins us at the end of the episode to discuss the ‘mean gir...

Poor Jane Bennet has caught a cold in the rain in Chapters 7 + 8 of Pride and Prejudice. Vanessa and Lauren discuss Darcy’s moral compass, the value of reading, and the prototypical ‘mean girl' – Caroline Bingley.  Thanks to Dr. Tim Fulford for speaking to us this week about the military context of Austen’s England. Our next episode is on May 27th and we'll hunker down in the Netherfield parl...

The Lucases take center stage in Chapters 5+6 of Pride and Prejudice . Vanessa and Lauren discuss the friendship between Charlotte and Lizzy and the way that historical and cultural ideas around masculinity might affect how we read Darcy.  Thanks to Dr. Kate Fullagar for speaking to us this week about notions of savagery in 18th century England. Our next episode is on May 20th and we'll trave...

It’s time for the Assembly Ball and Bingley and Darcy are on the scene in Chapters 3 and 4 of Pride and Prejudice . Vanessa and Lauren discuss Darcy’s famously bad first impression on Lizzy as well as the socio-political dynamics of a ball in the 19th century and today. Our next episode is out on May 6th and we'll spend some time with Charlotte Lucas in chapters 5+6! --- Don't spend your daughter'...

Vanessa and Lauren dive into Pride and Prejudice , starting with a close look at Chapters 1 and 2. They discuss the famous first line of the book, the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet, and the brief glimpse of Lizzie we get in this chapter.   Our next episode is on April 22nd and we'll get our first glimpse of Mr. Darcy in chapters 3+4. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more info...

Pride and Prejudice is one of the most famous and beloved novels of all time. It’s also, in many ways, the foundational text of the Romance genre. In our quest to unravel the gifts, mysteries, and inner workings of romance literature, it seemed only right that we turn to Lizzy and Darcy next. But before we jump into the first chapters, a few questions need to be answered. Questions like: Who is Ja...

Welcome to our new season, where we're coming to you Live from Pemberley ! Starting March 25th, Vanessa and Lauren will dive into Pride and Prejudice , investigating its power and legacy in the Romance genre and our hearts. This is your hand-lettered formal invitation to join us! Pack your corsets and pack your bait (because I hear if you're nice enough, Darcy might even invite you to fish on his...

Throughout our season of On Eyre , we've given you some small glimpses into the life of Charlotte Brontë. You probably know that she came from a literary family, that she attended a school very like Lowood, and that she died young. But before we put Jane Eyre back on the shelf, we wanted to spend some more time with dear Charlotte and her life in Haworth. This episode we're joined by the incredibl...

After visiting the land of Jane Eyre films, we’re returning to modern book adaptations with Re Jane by Patricia Park . We’re lucky enough to be joined by Patricia Park herself to discuss her feelings about "Reader I married him", how she re-imagined Bertha, and how her own experiences visiting Korea informed the book. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When the wonderful women of the Heaving Bosoms podcast invited Vanessa on their show, we couldn't resist roping them in to our Jane Eyre adaptation project! This week, in a crossover episode, Vanessa, Erin, and Melody watch the 2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre. P.S. There's a lot of talk about Vanessa's book, Praying with Jane Eyre, in this episode. If you have yet to purchase your copy, just a r...

When Jean Rhys published Wide Sargasso Sea in 1966, she took on a question we’ve been asking a lot throughout this podcast: what about Bertha? This episode, we are lucky enough to be joined by Dr. Erica L. Johnson, co-editor of Wide Sargasso Sea at 50  and Jean Rhys: Twenty-First Century Perspectives to discuss the book. From Dr. Johnson, we learn about Rhy’s life, how to categorize and think...

Even though we've technically finished up our reading of Jane Eyre, we feel like the season isn't quite complete without a look at the many adaptations of the text. Over the next few months, we'll be looking a few examples and asking the question 'what do these teach us about the original text?' The first episode of this short series is all about The Flight of Gemma Hardy by Margot Livesey, and we...

We’ve been sitting on this lovely interview with Jasmine Guillory for a while, and we thought we’d share it with you as a special holiday treat! We discuss the personal and political as they relate to romance novels, and her latest book While We Were Dating .  We hope you’re taking care of yourself this season! To quote Jasmine in this episode “thinking of yourself as a person worthy of care...

After months for reading the book together, Vanessa and Lauren return to their original question for this podcast: Is this a book we want to be passing on? We discuss the importance of critical reading and what we think this weird book is all about.  -- As we approach the end of this book, we’d very much like to keep the show going and read Pride and Prejudice next! If you’re excited about a...

Unfortunately we've run into some technical difficulties with the final episode of On Eyre! (Is this fate telling us that the season should never end?) While you wait, we have for you a short sermon Vanessa wrote about Jane Eyre. -- As we approach the end of this book, we’d very much like to keep the show going and read Pride and Prejudice next! If you’re excited about a trip to Pemberley, please...

Vanessa and Lauren have finally finished the whole dang book! This week we read the very last chapter and discuss the hegemony of marriage, Bronte's descriptions of 'true love', and why St. John gets the last word of the novel. -- As we approach the end of this book, we’d very much like to keep the show going and read Pride and Prejudice next! If you’re excited about a trip to Pemberley, please he...

Vanessa and Lauren reach Ferndean in chapters 36 and 37 of Jane Eyre. This week we discuss Bronte's depiction of disability, Bertha's powerful exit from the novel, and how gossip spreads in the wake of tragedy. -- As we approach the end of this book, we’d very much like to keep the show going and read Pride and Prejudice next! If you’re excited about a trip to Pemberley, please help us out by supp...

Vanessa and Lauren say 'no' to St. John, in Chapters 34 and 35 of Jane Eyre. This week, St. John proposes to Jane. We look at his behavior before and after the proposal, discuss his missionary zeal, and debate whether the supernatural elements of this book serve or hinder its message. -- As we approach the end of this book, we’d very much like to keep the show going and read Pride and Prejudice ne...

Vanessa and Lauren enter Jane’s school room in Morton, in Chapters 31 through 33 of Jane Eyre. They continue to debate whether Jane should have left Rochester, and discuss St. John’s missionary aspirations and Rosamund’s beauty. As you’ll hear in this week’s episode, we’re starting to think about the end of Jane Eyre! We’d very much like to read Pride and Prejudice next. If you’re excited about a...

This week, we find that Jane has run away from Thornfield and is wandering the moors of England without a shilling to her name. Vanessa and Lauren discuss homelessness past and present and its tropes in literature. We also meet four brand new characters: The three Rivers siblings and their housekeeper Hannah.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.