TRUTH, Mr Benn During the was in were the 'winter of umolsts, right-wing policies Mirror's front page headline when Castle's dissimilar to the Prior proposals today. announced - plans not too In the case of both In Place of Strife' and "discontent', the Mirror 'attacking the rights and interests of trade while defending the of the existing • government. And that sums up the attitude of the Mirror to the Labour Party: it supports the right wing of the party, but not the party itself.
have a devotion to their own sex -and a deep-rooted mistrust of men Weldon as adaptor Prejudice for inspired. At last, I thoughit, have an interpreter of the novel who could see romance, deep down into the more serious and more that lie beneath the surface of the story. quite what has happened. For instead of using her own modern perspective highlight perceptions, have obliterated much of the delicacy and subtlety of the original work, in a crass attempt to make it modern. - there was no need to turn her into a Sybil Fawlty. Mary, in a quiet way, was a wonderful miniature caricature credibility. Darcy's proposal, in the original, was all the better for being understated. But here, there are too many moments which are Jane Austen would never have been - over the top well - we are suspended delicious position everything to come right between the lovers, tinged with just the right won't. But there is more to the novel than romance - far more.
Aware
Austen novel must be aware that she is dealing with a closed, conservative, repressively upper society important decisions are dictated by status, money and connections. But not everyone is aware of the anger and the sorrow that underlies brilliant descriptions, characters, the fluid language - even though it is present on every page. struggling to believe in love, loyalty and integrity — when all the evidence manland Anvil, £2.5 - Anvil, £2.50.
was particularly Laboul wicked love of the ridiculous. Both | points to the fact that marriage is a That is why the choice of Fas circumstances, of Pride and television we'd beyond the comedy of original honol correctly placed.
But, for some reason, that isn't when the five Austen's Fay. Weldon seems to often-quoted book Mrs Bennet was always atrocious here she is exaggerated beyond polite that she The story flows along perfectly in the longing for anxiety that maybe touch, Anyone who has ever read a Jane WelcH. middle class all of life's most but this the the lively which For Jane Austen's heroines are all on ordinary rank and file Labour Party members whose policies are decided at conference and whose leadership is the national executive.
At present that party and its executive are considerably to the left of the PLP. And that is why the Mirror is hostile to the darling of the Labour Party rank and file, Tony Benn.
The Mirror is indistinguishable from the rest of Fleet Street in that it is run by and serves a capitalist company with a capitalist ideology. It just thinks that the best way capitalism can right-wing Labour governments rather than Conseryative ones.
THE OTHER BOOKSHOP The Singing Flame, by Ernie O'Malley • On Another Man's Wound, by Ernie O'Malley On Our Backs, Sexual Attitudes in a Changing Ireland, by Rosita Sweetman — Pan, £1.00 328 Upper Street, London N1 2XQ (Tel. 01-226-6571)
financial arrangement. All but one of her heroines (Emma) are in straitened their whole future happiness depending on the finding and trapping of a rich husband. All of them are forced to spend their adolescence hoping for coincidence - that they will fall in love with someone who happens also to be And the dilemma is never more extreme than in Pride and Prejudice, daughters Just because they are daughters — have no right to an inheritance. Their only salvation can be marriage. Hence the opening lines which, Ms Weldon's version of the novel, are put into Elizabeth's mouth.
Many of the original author's insights are given to Elizabeth - an irresistible device. Yet I couldn't help that that, too, was misleading. Jane Austen cultivates a distance characters, even the nicer ones, so can comment on them little of the tension is lost when they are allowed to do too much of the commenting themselves.
And though the handling of the absurd Mr Collins is dead right, and the elder Miss. Bingley's constantly snoring husband is good didn't feel this production ever really came to grips with the Jane Austen attitude to men. For in the novels, they are almost ail of them either ridiculous or dull. The locked in their prisons, are allowed to shine, while the men step down.
That is the most potent similarits bétween these two women writers production has failed pinpoint it. And similarly it has failed to illuminate the most dramatic ways Pride Prejudice achieves its timelessness: * The final episode will be shown . BBC-2 on Sunday evening and I repeated next Wednesday.
Socialist Chillenge ? Februaty 1980 Pagt 15
Socialist Challenge Rab Bird (shop steward, MY BOSS Derek Norton, the managing director Hadfields private company, has decided break the law. On Monday he said he was going 'withhold' £2 million a month owed to the government income tax, national insurance and value added payments. Norton says he's protesting picketing of private But only last week Norton and the rest of the private steel bosses were telling steelworkers how we had to obey the law that is the 'law' as interpreted by Lord Denning:
Now, after the Law decided Denning's ruling was itself illegai, Hadheids has decided that the taw isn't such a good thing after all.
ZIMBABWE
End British collusion!
Saturday 23 February PICKET: Foreign Charles St, SW1), 1-2pm. RALLY: LSE Old (provisionally), 7.30pm representatives from Patriotic Front parties Organised by Zimbabwe Coordinating Committee, Charlotte St, W1 (01-580 5311).
such of steel Wales.in oarticular.
to for our rights (see page 4). to But just all but won. in plants are being picketed. tax that against join the picket lines.
steel co-ordinating committee has way withdrawing all British Stee their area.
£100° million spokesperson Lords action like this:
wedd position either in.?
Let's not Office (King government.
Theatre trade Emergency c/o AAM, 89 help they can.
talking about the Tory government.
Thousands of steelworkers have double standards.
Before and after Denning, before and after the Law Lords, the picketing of private steel plants went on. In South Dickets simply ignored Denning's instructions. The message was law or no law, we fight because Denning was overturned doesn't mean the strike is The latest estimate is that only ter per cent of private steel This needs to be stepped up and the best way is apart from those working in steel, to The South Yorkshire steel strike forward. i ney are safety Love.
Corporation plants in Scunthorpe complex alone this could cost BSC Stan Sheridan, for the South Yorkshire committee, explained the "The BSC management has been sitting back for the past six weeks and not producing one ounce of steel. Sir Keith Josephi is not going to save BSC not going to be in that 'We have decided to put the boot kid ourselves. This strike is not really so much against BSC management as against the Tory It is they wao control the purse strings, just as it's they who say we have to lose over 50,000 jobs That's why steelworkers need to do all they can to win this strike, and unionists everywhere should be organising to give us all the When it comes putting the boot in, that boot should be aimed squarely at toured LATER steel strike Paddington IMG 40:00