Men of Character

The other day, I annoyed by brother Aaron via Facebook; I mentioned that I don't understand how there can be so much to say about football (a valid question!). Aaron responded with, "Hold your tongue. How can there be so much to say about wallpaper and Jane Austen?" I told him, "Wallpaper? I have nothing to say on that subject. But there's plenty to talk about Jane Austen if you've read her books. Just saying." His retort: "Okay, carpet. Bedding. Any of the dumb [crap] women spend hours talking about."

I seem to have struck a nerve with him, yes? (You forgot to mention shoes, brother.)

Aaron, you have just opened a can of worms, my friend, because this post is dedicated to literary men. Specifically, men penned by Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, and Elizabeth Gaskell.

I know they're not real, but these men (in the books and the movies) just make my heart flutter.

...a few of them, actually.

The Austen fellow I'm deeply smitten with is not Mr. Darcy (although he's kind of great). The Austen man who makes me swoon is Colonel Christopher Brandon from Sense & Sensibility. That's right, friends; Col. Brandon is my Mr. Darcy. HE IS SO WONDERFUL. He's sweet and caring, and he loves Marianne Dashwood SO MUCH. He's amazing in the book, and he's dynamite in the movie. (I might love him extra in the movie because he's portrayed by Alan Rickman--who, by the way, I think ought to be knighted. Sir Alan Rickman has a nice ring to it. He's a terrific actor, and I could listen to him talk all the livelong day. Oh, that voice!) Ah, and in the movie Sense & Sensibility, my favorite scene is when Marianne is singing at Sir Middleton's house, and Col. Brandon walks in late...but in that scene, YOU WATCH HIM FALL IN LOVE with Marianne! Oh my goodness, it's ridiculously precious. (I rewind it a few times every single time I watch it. Maybe.)

This is the scene where I first fell in love with Col. Brandon...

Then there's Mr. John Thornton from Elizabeth Gaskell's North & South. I watched the movie after I'd read a few chapters of the book. (He seems a lot harsher in the movie than in the book, but I can't help but love him throughout the movie, and I'm not going to lie, it probably has something to do with the fact that he's portrayed by the beautiful and talented Richard Armitage.) The book takes a while to get through because there's a glossary full of French words, but it's a wonderful book.

Mr. Thornton!!!

Ms. Brontë's man of character is, of course, Mr. Edward Rochester. He's a tortured soul, but he's got a story worth reading, and he loves Jane Eyre so much! I've read Jane Eyre only once (need to remedy that, actually), and I've only ever seen the brand new version of the movie portrayed by one Michael Fassbender--which was enough to make me a little weak at the knees. I watched it (for the first time) with Beth, Bethany, Keri, and Lindsey; it was that same night I found out there's a Broadway musical of Jane Austen. Do you want to know whose voice melts my heart into a soupy puddle? It's Mr. Rochester! Gah, I love him...

Mr. Edward Rochester

Now don't go thinking that I have unreal expectations about my future husband; I know these men are fictitious, and I don't really LOVE-love them. I just recognize amazing characters in books when I read them. (Take, for example, Severus Snape; he was my favorite Harry Potter character from the very beginning. So complex, and a total hero!)

Obviously, I'd take a real living, breathing man over the fictitious ones any day.

Just waiting to find him...