Glass Turners

"There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages." - Mark Twain

Although Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain) was not even born at the time of this tale, his analogy is apropos. The most skillful "glass turners" are those who fill their minds with the ideas of thousands of others, and examine each idea carefully so that, when the time is right, the confluence of conflicting and supporting ideas might offer solution, or at least perhaps resolution. In this tale Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy helps her young sister-by-marriage to finally forgive herself.

"Elizabeth?" Georgiana prompted tentatively. She had awoken much earlier than was her habit and now found herself sitting to breakfast with her new sister-by-marriage. The Master of Pemberley had departed even earlier to attend to the aftermath of a fire on one of his properties closer to Ashbourn.

"Hmmmm?" Elizabeth responded, without actually looking up from her perusal of the sideboard, where a variety of options had been laid out for her benefit. She was on the trailing edge of morning sickness, so she always considered long and hard before selecting what to eat. She had no desire to irritate her already troublesome digestion. When Georgiana said no more, Elizabeth looked over at the young lady, "What is troubling you, Georgiana?"

"I was just wondering... when I admitted that I was still having difficulty in forgiving myself for my stupidity, you gave me a list of reading material. You said that you would explain later. Mrs. Annesley read the list and agreed, but she would not offer any more elaboration than you."

"And have you read the list? There!" Elizabeth snagged a rather plain pastry with determination and then took her seat at the table.

"I have read them all, but I do not see...?"

"Here, let me eat this before my troublesome stomach begins to protest. Then we will talk." Elizabeth took a tentative bite and Georgiana could clearly watch the emotions and thoughts on her sister's expressive face. Georgiana almost sighed with relief when that dear face settled into a contented smile. Then Elizabeth said, "Tell me what you learned from 'A comedy of errors'."

"It was a silly catastrophe. If Aristopholus... either Aristopholus, had simply spoken truth into the confusion, then none of the misunderstandings would have happened. In fact, if everyone had just talked to each other instead of rushing to conclusions, then all could have been avoided."

"Precisely. In this instance history and precedence became the deceivers in the story: the characters knew what they knew and therefore saw no reason to investigate other possible explanations.

"What about 'Much ado about nothing'?"

"I know that it is a comedy, but I could not find any humor in the actions of Don Pedro. Even if Beatrice and Benedict end up together, what of Hero's reputation?"

"In Don Pedro's mind, I suspect that he justifies his actions as a means to an end. It is very easy to convince ourselves that what we decide to do is justified if we can envision a positive end-result. That mindset is dangerous to ourselves and others, but each of us does it from time to time."

"Like my decision to accept Mr. Wickham's plan to elope?"

"As you once mentioned, you thought that it would restore the friendship of Wickham and your brother, which was broken due to unfortunate misunderstandings. I think that now you realize that it was self-deception and justification, but I suspect that you truly did hope for such an outcome. Now, what of Romeo and Juliet."

Georgiana hesitated to answer for a long time. Elizabeth ate silently and simply waited. Eventually the younger lady stated, "They were both foolish. I do not see either of them as a villian, though their actions hurt their families. First, they defied their families without even attempting to adhere to propriety. Then they rushed off and took drastic actions without considering anyone but themselves." She looked guilty and angry with herself.

"True, in part. How old was Juliet?"

"Thirteen."

"And Romeo?"

"The Bard only states that he is too young to grow hair on his chin."

"Knowing what you know now, do you think that a girl of thirteen, or a boy not yet a man can actually understand all of the serious implications of love and intimacy? Certainly, the idea is thrilling, and every girl longs for and then remembers her first kiss..."

Elizabeth surreptitiously studied her sister's face. Georgiana flushed and looked away. As I suspected. The cad took things at least that far.

Georgiana finally answered, "No, I do not think that she did. She might have been old enough to long for love, but not old enough to understand the world of men."

"I asked my Aunt Gardiner once why girls were married off so young just a few hundred years ago. I had already asked my father, but while he has always been open with me on most issues, he balked at discussing male and female relations."

"And what did Aunt Maddie say?" Georgiana had met Mrs. Gardiner first when the Gardiners and Elizabeth were taking a tour of Pemberley. She liked the woman almost instantly and grew to love and cherish the woman as a close relative and advisor ever since.

"She said that fathers of the time did not wish to take a chance on their daughters getting into difficulties before they could marry them off. Now all of the rules of propriety are supposed to act as a shield, but before then it was not totally uncommon for young ladies to be in positions where they could be foolish and men could take advantage. You see, almost every girl begins to be fascinated with boys and men at about the age of eleven or twelve. Some, like me, had a longstanding preference for rocks and trees, but I well remember when Reverend Wilkes broke his leg and had to employ a young, handsome curate to oversee his parish for two months. I followed that poor young man around like a puppy."

Georgiana giggled, as much at Elizabeth's expressions as at her tale. Elizabeth smiled and continued, "Looking back, I feel quite foolish about my actions... and perhaps I realize that I might have been more understanding with Kitty and Lydia."

The mention of Lydia, now Mrs. Wickham, put a somber shroud over the table, yet Elizabeth pressed on, "I gave no thought to propriety while I followed young Mr. Banton around. Had he been a different sort of man, he could have done anything he chose to me without anyone being able to hear. I would like to believe that I was sensible enough to not let him talk me into an indiscretion, but I cannot be certain of that. It was an exhilarating experience to know first love."

Georgiana pondered this and nodded. For once her thoughts about the past did not make her face crumple. The memory of her own feelings, at least, had some pleasure. Then that oppressive guilt reasserted itself. "But you didn't try to elope with the man."

"Rembember, Georgie, Mr. Banton was a good man. He had to see my girlish feelings, but he was a truly good man with a kind heart. He never made me feel foolish. He never took advantage. He always spoke to me with respect while at the same time keeping his distance. And when it seemed necessary, he spoke privately with my father and he gently set me straight. But what if he had not been a good man and what if I had a large and tempting dowry?"

"Then you might have been in danger. But you would not be so easily fooled by a bad man."

"Georgie, as you know, I am a person who likes to study characters. I have made a habit of this since my earliest years and I prided myself on being a very reliable judge of character. Yet one insult from your brother which I was not supposed to hear and I decided that anything that he said or did was arrogant and mean-spirited. In the same respect another young man paid me every attention and flattered my belief in my sound judgment. Of him I thought nothing be good. No matter what either man did, I continued in my determined prejudice: one man was haughty and cruel, so even any acts of kindness were self-motivated and arrogant. The other man was kind and downtrodden, so even when reports of his misconduct began to come to my notice, I would make justifications.

"So you see, Georgie, I was just as decieved by George Wickham as you. Had I possessed a fortune or... I suspect, younger and more pliable, he might have targeted me. Your youth at the time was not a fault applied to you, but it is to him. He seems to like girls too young to know better. Whether it is because they are easier to deceive or based upon his own proclivities, I cannot say."

There was a long silence before Georgiana returned to her original question, "But why have me read all of those other books?"

Elizabeth smiled, "In every one of those books deception plays a major part in the tale. In some the deception is almost self-imposed. In others the deception guided by avarice or revenge. And in some it is the product of careful planning toward a predetermined end. Writers, poets, and playwrights pen such tales because they are part and portion of everyday existence. Georgiana, your story is not new, nor is it unusual, or even paricularly dramatic. Parents warn against being alone with a man because such happens every day, often with ruinous results. They warn against elopement because elopements happen more often than you might realize. The anvil at Gretna Green has many visitors, sometimes several each day.

"George Wickham and Mrs. Younge played upon your innocence and self-doubts. They saw your fortune as theirs for the taking because people like them cannot imagine working for their own fortune. And you were only one spoke of the wagon wheel in his plans for your family's fortune. Think about it: in his mind he was your father's favorite. I think he convinced himself that he, rather than you or your brother, were entitled to the Darcy fortune. When your father died and William inherited everything, it threw off all of Wickham's planning.

"We should all be thankful that he was indolent and debauched, actually."

"What? Why?"

"Because if he had approached his earliest schemes and deceptions soberly and earnestly, he may very well have achieved his aim. He is a gifted liar. Who knows what havoc he might have played in your home."

"What is important, my lovely sister, is this: You did not elope with the snake. You were but fifteen and you made a poor choice, to be certain. But you survived the experience and came out wiser from the experience. Life is not about living a perfect, flawless existence, but about making mistakes and growing from them. It is time for you to stop feeling guilty about the past and devoting your time to making yourself into the woman you wish to be in the future."

Georgiana thought about this and then rose from the table. "Thank you for speaking with me, Lizzie. I think that I understand now. I need to open my eyes and truly see the world around me so that I can never be deceived again."

"None of us are entirely safe from deception, but an educated and thoughtful mind is a place of safety. Just make sure that when you look at the world with open eyes, you look for the good as well as the bad."

Georgiana looked at the dear, sweet, intelligent young woman who had captured her brother's heart, "Oh, I know that there is good, Elizabeth. I get to see it every day."