William Makepeace Thackeray - Vanity Fair

[Chance]

Hi! I hope this is the right place to put this! I am looking for a review of Vanity Fair if anyone has read it? I am especially looking for someone who has seen both the movie as well as read the book.

Thanks!

[simonetta]

Hi there,

I haven't seen the movie yet but this is an interesting review:

Vanity Fair is an epic story by William Makepeace Thackeray of the rise Becky Sharp through the social ranks from her impoverished beginnings as an orphan girl. The film is your usual period extravaganza with all the usual trappings - lush locations, stunning costumes, hairstyles, horses, but what makes it a bit special is the director Mira Nair who is an Indian gal who made her mark with the brilliant "Monsoon Wedding" a couple of years ago.

Mira brings a fresh eye to the period and even gets a chance to throw in a Bollywood style dance number at one point! If you are more of a purest then maybe the BBC-TV version is more for you.

Reese Witherspoon could have made the whole thing unbearable but actually pulls it off nicely with her wicked slow eyes and shrewd moves reminiscent of Tracey Fleck in her best film to date - "Election". Also worthy of mention is Rhyss Ifans in a rather dapper serious role as an Army captain and Gabriel Byrne as the rather onerous Marquis of Steyne.

It's a long film loaded with matters of manners and backroom bitchiness, all to do with breeding but overall a familiar story quite well told.

Source (http://www.abc.net.au/brisbane/stories/s1212552.htm)

[Chance]

Interesting! Thanks for that!

I enjoyed Reese's performance. She is beautiful in my opinion. I just saw her in an interview, seems very down to earth.

[Polka Dot Rock]

Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray (http://www.penguinclassics.co.uk/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780141439839,00.html) (1853)

"Vanitas Vanitatum! Which of us is happy in this world? Which of us has his desire? or, having it, is satisfied?"

The blurb:

No one is better equipped in the struggle for wealth and worldly success than the alluring and ruthless Becky Sharp, who defies her impoverished background to clamber up the class ladder. Her sentimental companion Amelia, however, longs only for caddish soldier George. As the two heroines make their way through the tawdry glamour of Regency society, battles – military and domestic – are fought, fortunes made and lost. The one steadfast and honourable figure in this corrupt world is Dobbin with his devotion to Amelia, bringing pathos and depth to Thackeray’s gloriously satirical epic of love and social adventure.


So, I finally finished this monster-sizes brick of a novel! I nearly gave up towards the end as it was taking ages, but I'm so glad I didn't.

My favourite aspect of Vanity Fair has to be the delicious narrative voice: as contemporary readers, we have become used to the idea that a novel's narrative should not be interpreted as the writer's own. Well, Vanity Fair completely turns that on its head! The voice Thackeray inhabits is most definitely that of a gossipy writer - constantly curious and judging the characters, as well as rifling through their private thoughts, whilst insisting that he couldn't possibly know. I love how he claims Amelia as a true and good woman, yet bluntly comments on how naive and wet she really is.

What also makes this classic novel interesting from a contemporary perspective is the way that Becky's character is handled. Rather than the stereotypical fate of a socially rebellious woman (i.e. death), Becky get away with it all - and gloriously so! The narrative voice is particularly wonderful when discussing Becky: Thackeray is mock-horrified at Becky's outre behaviour, yet he can't resist admiring her spirit and wit. Therefore, although Becky can be downright bitchy at times, the reader can't help but love her. Let's face it, if we had to choose which literary heroines to be, I'd definitely be first in line to claim Becky!! Much more fun than Tess or Cathy...

However, Becky is certainly not my favourite character: that honour goes to the loyal and true Dobbin. Such a sweet and patient that at times, it's quite hard to resist the urge to feel like slapping Amelia over the head for choosing who to give her love to so unwisely.
Apparently, Thackeray based Dobbin upon himself as the writer was also in love with a friend's wife. Dobbin is a richly realised character, and he injects a novel swimming with cynicism with a much needed sense of humanity and pathos. The couple of chapters are probably amongst the most exhilarating writing I've ever read. The moment when Dobbin finally tells Amelia how foolish she has been in her life-long rejection of him and leaves makes you want to cheer and cry simultaneously! And I love that Becky helps to redeem herself in her own eyes by sacrificing her own connections with Amelia so that she can aid Dobbin and Amelia to happiness.

It is easy to sometimes become frustrated with Vanity Fair's occasional habit of going into a bit too much inconsequential detail, but you find yourself quickly becoming accustomed to the novel's pace, so you can easily skip irrelevant passages without causing yourself confusion later.

For such a lengthy book, I was wholly satisfied by its conclusion(s) and I feel I will miss the company of Becky, Dobbin and Amelia. I also found it very easy to read, and was surprised by how contemporary the writing it seemed.

A novel that fully deserves its classic status: clearly groundbreaking, and full of sharply drawn characters with a witty, engaging narrative. A very British epic!

8/10

[Angel]

Another one on my shelf awaiting to be read that I must get round to this year

[kernow_reader]

Oh, I adore Vanity Fair!! To me it's a veritable feast of words to gorge upon. I also like Becky Sharp the protagonist. And Dobbin rocks!!!

[Kell]

To me it's a veritable feast of words to gorge upon. I just LOVE how you put that! I'm going to have to give this one a try too now - you guys are going to bankrupt me in no time at all! off to add this to my wish-list...

[Renniemist]

Good review PDR. It makes me want to read Vanity Fair despite its length.

[Purple Poppy]

Good review. I don't think I have read it (it's on my TBR list) but I did see the television drama. I don't remember being that enamoured of Becky though.

Trish did you deliberately put this?
And Dobbin rocks!!! or was it a lucky choice of words?

PP

[madcow]

Good review PDR. It makes me want to read Vanity Fair despite its length.

Same here, I've set myself a challenge to read a few classics this year and this could be one of them.

[Ronny]

I liked this movie and ordered the book and it was burried at the bottom of my TBR pile but I think your review has comvinced me to move it up quite a bit :)

[Polka Dot Rock]

I think the film is really good - I watched it last night, again! It was very unfairly bashed by critics, criticising how they'd edited the story. Well, it's over 800 pages long! How else would they fit it into two hours?? I think it's an excellent interpretation of the novel: it's so beautiful to look at and Mira Nair captures the decadence and 'gloss' of Thackeray's world. Reese Witherspoon's portrayl of Becky got some 'tut-tutting' but I feel some critics forgot that Becky's scheming side is only really apparant in her thoughts, not her behaviour.

I remember watching the BBC series, but I wasn't particluarly enamoured with it. After reading the novel, I think Mira Nair's film is much better.

[Polka Dot Rock]

Oh, and in the film, Rhys Ifans makes for a very foxy Dobbin ;)

[velocipede2288]

Vanity fair is one of the greats. Thackery was a contemporary of Dickens and his equal if not so prolific a writer. An all time favourite.

[Echo]

This is one of my favorites, but I haven't read it yet this year. Dobbin is my favorite character, but both female main characters annoy the heck out of me, especially Amelia. I think Becky is far more entertaining.