The Civilized Imagination: A Study of Ann Radcliffe, Jane Austen and Sir Walter Scott

240 Pages·2009·2.29 MB·English

by  Daniel Cottom

The civilized imagination

The civilized imagination
A study of Ann Raddiffe,
Jane Austen, and Sir Walter Scott
DANIEL COTTOM
Wayne State University
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University of Cambridge
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CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
Cambridge
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For my mother and father
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York
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© Cambridge University Press 1985
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception
and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 1985
This digitally printed version 2009
A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data
Cottom, Daniel.
The civilized imagination.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. English fiction - 19th century - History and
criticism. 2. Aesthetics in literature. 3. Perception
in literature. 4. Social classes in literature.
5. Radcliffe, Ann Ward, 1764-1823-Aesthetics.
6. Austen, Jane, 1775-1817-Aesthetics. 7. Scott,
Walter, Sir, 1771-1832-Aesthetics. I. Title.
PR778.A38C68 1985 823'.7'09 84-17002
ISBN 978-0-521-30172-5 hardback
ISBN 978-0-521-11097-6 paperback
Contents
Acknowledgments page vii
Abbreviations viii
i Introduction: Of taste and the civilized
imagination i
Part I Ann Radcliffe
The figure in the landscape 35
The labyrinth of decorum 51
Part II Jane Austen
4 The control of meaning 71
5 Attachments and supplantments 88
6 Reading the word of nature 106
Part III Sir Walter Scott
7 Blind roads 127
8 Superstition and the enchanted reader 148
9 Violence and law 171
10 Conclusion 193
Notes 203
Index 225

Acknowledgments
I would like to express my appreciation to my colleagues Nancy
Armstrong, Charles Baxter, Michael Bell, John Franzosa, and Ross
Pudaloff, whose comments about various parts of this work have
been of great value to me.
Special thanks are due to Leonard Tennenhouse; the generosity
of his encouragement and criticism have made this book far better
than it would have been without his aid.
I also would like to thank the editors of The Journal of Aesthetics
and Art Criticism, Novel, ELH, and Studies in Romanticism, where
the original versions of chapters one, five, eight, and nine first ap-
peared.
vn
Abbreviations
Works of Ann Radcliffe
CAD The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne
I The Italian
J A Journey
MU The Mysteries of Udolpho
RF The Romance of the Forest
SR A Sicilian Romance
Works of Jane Austen
E Emma
L Letters
MP Mansfield Park
NA Northanger Abbey
P Persuasion
PP Pride and Prejudice
SS Sense and Sensibility
Works of Walter Scott
Ab The Abbott
AG Anne of Geierstein
An The Antiquary
B The Betrothed
BD The Black Dwarf
BL The Bride of Lammermoor
CD Castle Dangerous
CRP Count Robert of Paris
FMP The Fair Maid of Perth
Vlll
Abbreviations
Works of Walter Scott (cont.)
FN The Fortunes of Nigel
GM Guy Mannering
HM The Heart of Midlothian
I Ivanhoe
K. Kenil worth
LM The Legend of Montrose
M The Monastery
OM Old Mortality
P The Pirate
PP Peveril of the Peak
QD Quentin Durward
R Redgauntlet
RR Rob Roy
SD The Surgeon's Daughter
SRW St. Ronan's Well
Wa Waverley
Wo Woodstock
IX