Harrington

For Wed. pls answer question 2

For Friday, please respond to question 6

1. Evaluate this reading of Harrington. "The association of Jewishness with money and greed leads to a plausible deduction that Edgeworth does not fully abandon her previous conceptions regarding the Jewish spirit of materialism, being a social evil threatening the socio-economic order" (Rachel Schulkins, "Imagining the Other: the Jew in Maria Edgeworth's Harrington" European Romantic Review 22 (2011): 489.

Do you agree? Disagree? Why?

2. Harrington meets Bereniece at a performance of Merchant of Venice. What is the role of this play in the novel?

3. The novel is interested in the ways that prejudice can be instilled in the young. How does the novel associate this type of education with gender?

4. Harrington's fear of Jews is depicted as a kind of nervous condition. How does this portrayal effect the novel's overall portrayal of anti-Semitism?

5. What is Berenice's identity? What difference does it make to your reading of the novel? How does she compare to Abigail and Jessica?

6. The novel features numerous English "heritage" sites, notably the Tower, site of some very notable behavior on Harrington's part. How do these depictions of English history and English historical tradition relate to the novels portrayal of Jews and their place in England?

7. The novel features two paintings of violence against Jews. What is their role in the novel? Why does Edgeworth include them?