{"id":196,"date":"2015-02-06T04:42:07","date_gmt":"2015-02-06T04:42:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/?p=196"},"modified":"2016-08-24T15:52:07","modified_gmt":"2016-08-24T15:52:07","slug":"unlit-torches-and-the-failed-repetition-of-blackwater-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/2015\/02\/06\/unlit-torches-and-the-failed-repetition-of-blackwater-park\/","title":{"rendered":"Unlit Torches and the Failed Repetition of Blackwater Park"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>The Woman in White<\/em> is full of repetitions, and noticing the differences between these repetitions creates meaning that neither instance can achieve alone. One such replication can be seen in two evenings that Collins describes in detail\u2014one narrated by Walter Hartright at Limmeridge (57-58), and the other narrated by Marian at Blackwater Park (286-287). The scenes are set up to appear almost identical: Laura plays the piano while Marian sits slightly removed at a far window, passing time as the day transitions to night. In the scene at Limmeridge, Walter acts as our guide to appreciating the evening\u2019s qualities of light and sound, while Count Fosco occupies that role at Blackwater Park. Walter\u2019s and the Count\u2019s descriptions of the evening are tied together by common words such as \u201cheaven,\u201d \u201ctrembling,\u201d \u201ctwilight,\u201d and \u201ctenderness,\u201d as well as by both men\u2019s desire that the torches remain unlit.<\/p>\n<p>However, the differences between the two scenes convey starkly opposing meanings. While Walter describes the light as \u201cshading leaf and blossom into harmony,\u201d Count Fosco twice refers to the light as \u201cdying\u201d against the trees. This reference to death recalls to mind Marian\u2019s first descriptions of Blackwater Park\u2019s decaying forest. Furthermore, while at Limmeridge the lamps go unlit \u201cby common consent,\u201d at Blackwater only Count Fosco \u201cbegs\u201d for the lamps to remain dark. These variations reveal that Blackwater is, in actuality, a failed replication of Limmeridge House. Instead of the harmony and easy companionship between Laura, Marian, and Walter, Blackwater is filled with discord and decay, highlighted by Count Fosco\u2019s rejected attempts to become friendly with Marian and Laura.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Woman in White is full of repetitions, and noticing the differences between these repetitions creates meaning that neither instance can achieve alone. One such replication can be seen in two evenings that Collins describes in detail\u2014one narrated by Walter Hartright at Limmeridge (57-58), and the other narrated by Marian at Blackwater Park (286-287). The &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/2015\/02\/06\/unlit-torches-and-the-failed-repetition-of-blackwater-park\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Unlit Torches and the Failed Repetition of Blackwater Park<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1778,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[111380,108029],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-196","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-360-victorian-sexualities","category-spring-2015"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1778"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/victorianlit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}