The Semi-Attached Couple (1860) by Emily Eden
Emily Eden (1797–1869) belonged to the English aristocracy. Born in Westminster, she was the seventh daughter of William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, and his wife Eleanor Elliot (and the great-great-great-aunt of Prime Minister Anthony Eden). In her late thirties, she and her sister Fanny traveled to India, where her brother George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, was in office as Governor-General from 1835 to 1842. The accounts she wrote about India were later collected in the volume Up The Country (1867). While the emphasis was on travel descriptions and local color, Eden also paid attention to the major political events that occurred during her brother's term of office.
Emily Eden never married and was financially well enough off not to need to write, but did so out of passion. She wrote two successful (but now forgotten) novels: The Semi-Detached House (1859) and The Semi-Attached Couple (1860). The latter was written in 1829, but not published until 1860. Both have a comic touch that critics have compared with that of Jane Austen, who was Emily Eden's favorite author.
Emily Eden never married and was financially well enough off not to need to write, but did so out of passion. She wrote two successful (but now forgotten) novels: The Semi-Detached House (1859) and The Semi-Attached Couple (1860). The latter was written in 1829, but not published until 1860. Both have a comic touch that critics have compared with that of Jane Austen, who was Emily Eden's favorite author.
[Emily Eden]
The resemblance to Jane Austen is mentioned by every reviewer and indeed the writing style is very Austen-esque in tone and wit, while the social satire is just as sharp. But in other aspects the comparison is to the disadvantage of Eden, whose novels lack the depth and complexity of Austen's best work. On top of that, as many readers have complained, it is difficult to keep her characters apart - simply because Eden's characterization is poor, or in most cases, totally absent. She is wholly focused on plot and dialogue and leaves the secondary characters as vague phantoms. That is especially problematic when also the names are almost the same, as in "Lord Beaufort" and "Colonel Beaufort." I started making a character list but gave that up as futile when I noticed that at their first appearance characters were not at all introduced. Just reading on helped, however, enough to enjoy the basic story.
Another difference (but this one is not negative, on the contrary) is that the main plot starts where most books by Austen leave off: with the wedding and the aftermath: two people who do not know each other at all, trying to be husband and wife - in this respect I was reminded of Middlemarch by George Eliot.
The Semi-Attached Couple concerns two neighboring families, the Douglases and the Eskdales. The Eskdales are a Lord and Lady, one rung higher on the social ladder than Mr and Mrs Douglas. Mrs Douglas is the clearest character among the older generation, a woman who is full of hilarious snide comments, much like Mrs. Bennet from Pride and Prejudice, only with a sharper tongue.
The star of the novel is Helen, the youngest and most beautiful daughter of the Eskdales. She is about to be married to the super-wealthy Lord Teviot, who is considered quite a catch: "With five country houses—being four more than he could live in; with 120,000l. a year—being 30,000l. less than he could spend; . . .and the good looks of the poorest of younger brothers—what could he want but a wife?"
They marry too quickly after meeting and then have trouble getting to know each other afterwards. Helen has led a sheltered existence with her family and isn't quite ready to leave her home at 18 years of age; she is also frightened by Lord Teviot's passion for her. He in his turn becomes jealous of the influence her family has over his wife, feels there is lack of affection on her side, and frequently lets his temper get the best of him. One thing leads to another and the marriage appears doomed. Their problems are dissected with glee by opportunistic acquaintances who want to widen the rift between them for their own purposes.
The star of the novel is Helen, the youngest and most beautiful daughter of the Eskdales. She is about to be married to the super-wealthy Lord Teviot, who is considered quite a catch: "With five country houses—being four more than he could live in; with 120,000l. a year—being 30,000l. less than he could spend; . . .and the good looks of the poorest of younger brothers—what could he want but a wife?"
They marry too quickly after meeting and then have trouble getting to know each other afterwards. Helen has led a sheltered existence with her family and isn't quite ready to leave her home at 18 years of age; she is also frightened by Lord Teviot's passion for her. He in his turn becomes jealous of the influence her family has over his wife, feels there is lack of affection on her side, and frequently lets his temper get the best of him. One thing leads to another and the marriage appears doomed. Their problems are dissected with glee by opportunistic acquaintances who want to widen the rift between them for their own purposes.
The worst of these acquaintances is Lady Portmore, who is one of many invitees to a huge marathon house party Lord Teviot gives just after the marriage at his estate. Lady Portmore acts as the most important person in the world by slyly criticizing and even slandering all others - a bit like Caroline Bingley or Lady Catherine de Bourgh from Jane Austen's novels. Below is an example of conversation between Lady Portmore and Lord Teviot. Lady Portmore asks:
"Is that Helen's new horse she is riding? "
"No; Miss Forrester is on Selim." (answers Lord Teviot)
"Well, I wonder Helen did not prefer your gift. I am sure that from sentiment I should never allow any human being but myself to ride a horse that had been given to me by the person I loved best in the world."
"That is an interesting and romantic idea; but as I shall probably have the honour of furnishing Lady Teviot's stud to the end of our days, it is not very likely that she will refuse to lend a horse to her friends when they come."
"Oh dear, no, that would be selfish; and you know how I hate selfishness. I often say there is nobody thinks so little of self as I do. Still I wonder Helen did not ride Selim."
Lord Teviot was silent.
Of course, this being a Jane Austen type novel, in the end everything comes right, different from Middlemarch where two marriages end in shambles. It is a fun read with lots of wit and satire (there is also the description of a local election, which called Trollope to mind) - an outcome for all Austen fans who are starving for more books in the same style.
The Semi-Attached Couple is in the public domain and (like Eden's other novel) available for download at Wikisource.