*Sneak Peek* Pride & Prejudice fanfic/pastiche

[Thorn Wilde]

I'll keep your comments in mind, Timothy. I do have some ideas of my own as to how these things happen, though. Since all gentlemen of the time were well educated, having Darcy and Bingley be old schoolmates seems the most natural, given that they're from different parts of the country (Darcy being from Derbyshire and Bingley from 'the North of England'). It's likely they went to either school or university together. Either way I have a lot of leeway here, and room to build their relationship from scratch. There may be flashbacks. I don't know. 

 

As for Wickham using a relationship between Darcy and himself to blackmail him, it would never happen. Homosexuality was a punishable offence (it had only just become a word at the time, if I'm not entirely mistaken), Darcy was in far higher standing than Wickham and people would have taken his word over Wickham's, and regardless of the outcome Wickham would have lost his army commission, and no lady's family would have come near him. These things were never spoken of. It would have been opening up a can of worms that nobody could close again and just not worth it. Neither man would have used it against the other. 

Edited April 20, 2014 by Thorn Wilde

[Irritable1]

Oooooooooh, I like the blackmail idea. 

 

You just sit there Thorn, and we'll fling random bits of plot at you and then demand that you make a coherent narrative of them.

 

 

[Irritable1]

Mmm, I think there were expulsions from public schools sometimes for getting caught , weren't there? Maybe that was more common later.

[Thorn Wilde]

Mmm, I think there were expulsions from public schools sometimes for getting caught , weren't there? Maybe that was more common later.

 

I've done some more research on this, for my story.

 

Until the end of the 19th century, there was not much public recognition of homosexuality being a thing at all, but sodomy was an offence punishable by death until 1861. The last couple to receive this punishment were James Pratt and John Smith in 1835, that is to say a couple of decades after Pride & Prejudice is meant to be set. As such, Wickham would never have risked his own life in order to blackmail Darcy.

 

Although these laws were in place, within certain groups and environments (including military institutions, the theatre and even convents) it was a well known fact that sodomy took place, but unless anyone was directly caught it simply was not spoken of. Most people had no real concept of it at all, and if they did they pretended they didn't. This is probably also true of public schools. It is most certainly a true fact that buggery has taken place between students at many of the old and fine institutions in Britain, sometimes in the form of consensual sexual acts, and sometimes, much like prison sex, as a way for older or higher esteemed students to exercise power over their underlings, for hundreds of years. At the time when Pride & Prejudice takes place it seems likely that expulsion would be the least of his worries if a student were caught; he might rather have had to fear for his life. 

 

It wasn't until such high profile cases as Oscar Wilde's towards the turn of the century that homosexuality became a thing in the public mind. It was also then that British men began to properly restrain their language when showing affection to their friends, lest someone would think they were gay (you'll find in many older books and stories, including Shakespeare's plays, that men would loudly proclaim their love for one another without there being anything strange about it; it was simply an expression of comraderie and brotherly affection and need have no deeper meaning than that, though in some cases it clearly might have). Suddenly everyone knew what buggery was all about, it was spoken of as a most scandalous thing, and goodness knows the British upper classes have always loved a good scandal. However, at a time when a girl's running off with a gentleman without her family knowing if they were married or not was cause for such scandal that her whole family were justified in fearing expulsion from all good society, it hardly seems likely that there would have been room for such a controversial subject as buggery.

 

Interestingly, lesbianism has never been addressed in British law.

Edited May 2, 2014 by Thorn Wilde

[Mark Arbour]

I've done some more research on this, for my story.

 

Until the end of the 19th century, there was not much public recognition of homosexuality being a thing at all, but sodomy was an offence punishable by death until 1861. The last couple to receive this punishment were James Pratt and John Smith in 1835, that is to say a couple of decades after Pride & Prejudice is meant to be set. As such, Wickham would never have risked his own life in order to blackmail Darcy.

 

Although these laws were in place, within certain groups and environments (including military institutions, the theatre and even convents) it was a well known fact that sodomy took place, but unless anyone was directly caught it simply was not spoken of. Most people had no real concept of it at all, and if they did they pretended they didn't. This is probably also true of public schools. It is most certainly a true fact that buggery has taken place between students at many of the old and fine institutions in Britain, sometimes in the form of consensual sexual acts, and sometimes, much like prison sex, as a way for older or higher esteemed students to exercise power over their underlings, for hundreds of years. At the time when Pride & Prejudice takes place it seems likely that expulsion would be the least of his worries if a student were caught; he might rather have had to fear for his life. 

 

It wasn't until such high profile cases as Oscar Wilde's towards the turn of the century that homosexuality became a thing in the public mind. It was also then that British men began to properly restrain their language when showing affection to their friends, lest someone would think they were gay (you'll find in many older books and stories, including Shakespeare's plays, that men would loudly proclaim their love for one another without there being anything strange about it; it was simply an expression of comraderie and brotherly affection and need have no deeper meaning than that, though in some cases it clearly might have). Suddenly everyone knew what buggery was all about, it was spoken of as a most scandalous thing, and goodness knows the British upper classes have always loved a good scandal. However, at a time when a girl's running off with a gentleman without her family knowing if they were married or not was cause for such scandal that her whole family were justified in fearing expulsion from all good society, it hardly seems likely that there would have been room for such a controversial subject as buggery.

 

Interestingly, lesbianism has never been addressed in British law.

 

I've spent some time researching this for my "Bridgemont" Series.  There was definitely a subterranean culture for homosexuals.  One of the more interesting phenomenons were Molly Houses, which were prevalent in the Holborn district of London.  I suppose that was the 18th/19th Century equivalent of the Castro District in San Francisco.

 

There was also an interesting study done (I can't find the damn thing, but when I do I'll cite it) that noted that while sodomy was illegal, punishment of it was unsurprisingly more draconian during periods of religious revival.  And as always, homosexuals from the upper classes generally managed to dodge legal complications better than their less well-connected gay brothers.

 

This is a very interesting site, well worth visiting.

Edited May 2, 2014 by Mark Arbour

[Thorn Wilde]

I've spent some time researching this for my "Bridgemont" Series.  There was definitely a subterranean culture for homosexuals.  One of the more interesting phenomenons were Molly Houses, which were prevalent in the Holborn district of London.  I suppose that was the 18th/19th Century equivalent of the Castro District in San Francisco.

 

There was also an interesting study done (I can't find the damn thing, but when I do I'll cite it) that noted that while sodomy was illegal, punishment of it was unsurprisingly more draconian during periods of religious revival.  And as always, homosexuals from the upper classes generally managed to dodge legal complications better than their less well-connected gay brothers.

 

This is a very interesting site, well worth visiting.

 

Thank you for the links! They'll come much in handy. This is a period that interests me greatly, and I have had ideas even before this one popped into my head of writing original period pieces as well, Georgian and Victorian England being the most interesting to me.

[Timothy M.]

I've done some more research on this, for my story.

 

Until the end of the 19th century, there was not much public recognition of homosexuality being a thing at all, but sodomy was an offence punishable by death until 1861. The last couple to receive this punishment were James Pratt and John Smith in 1835, that is to say a couple of decades after Pride & Prejudice is meant to be set. As such, Wickham would never have risked his own life in order to blackmail Darcy.

 

If Wickham was completely straight, he could have accused Darcy of trying to seduce him or rape him. I'm aware that he'd probably never do so for fear of his own reputation - but he might threathen Darcy with this. Sort of: "Well if you're going to ruin my reputation anyway by telling people about things I've done, then I may as well tell them of the time you tried to kiss me and tempt me to unnatural acts." Just the risk of being associated with sodomy - even if people didn't believe it - could ruin much more for Darcy than Wickham (who after all was just the son of old Mr Darcy's steward if I recall correctly).

 

In any case I just wanted to argue for Thorn's story having Darcy avoiding any sort of liason with Wickham whether he had a childish crush on him or not. Just to be on the safe side

 

And reading the Bridgemont series certainly makes you aware of the dangers of sodomy suspicions at that time. Wonderful story, by the way.