series, and I must admit that I have mixed feelings about
the books.
Many of the incidents are really interesting; some would even
fit into a non-religious book, if the religious elements were omitted.
I like the fact that Elsie loves her Bible. Of course, in those days many books written for a Protestant audience depicted
characters reading the Bible, a hymn book, and Pilgrim's Progress.
Now for the things I find annoying about the books.
Of course, I have to mention the anti-Catholic element.
"Poor darling!" murmured Adelaide,
clasping the little form more closely,
and pressing her lips to the fair brow;
"I wish I could save you from it. He
says that if you continue obdurate, he
has quite determined to send you to a convent to be educated."
"As Adelaide made this announcement,
she pitied the child from the bottom of
her heart; for she knew that much of
Elsie's reading had been on the subject
of Popery and Papal institutions; that she
had pored overhistories of the terrible
tortures of the Inquisition and stories of martyrs and captive nuns, until she had imbibed an intense horror and dread of everything connected with that form of
error and superstition."
I'm almost sure that Martha Finley, the author of the "Elsie" books, read it!
I thought for a long time that "Maria Monk" was a pseudonym, chosen to
mock Catholic beliefs; it certainly sounds like one! However, I've recently
found out that it was her real name.
In "Elsie's Children," one of Elsie's young cousins becomes a Catholic. Her conversion is referred to as her perversion.
[In the revised, modernized version of the "Elsie" series, "Elsie Dinsmore: A Life of Faith," the anti-Catholicism is removed. The revision, however, is a bit anachronistic, because although it is set at the same time as the original series,
the Bible Elsie uses is the "New International Version", which was first published in the 1970s! I had the updated books, but I lost them when I moved.]
There are other things in the "Elsie" books that I find annoying, but they'll have to wait for another post.
So, how do I feel about the books, all in all? Well, as I said when I started this post, I must admit that I have mixed feelings about
I like the fact that Elsie loves her Bible. Of course, in those days many books written for a Protestant audience depicted
characters reading the Bible, a hymn book, and Pilgrim's Progress.
Now for the things I find annoying about the books.
Of course, I have to mention the anti-Catholic element.
"Poor darling!" murmured Adelaide,
clasping the little form more closely,
and pressing her lips to the fair brow;
"I wish I could save you from it. He
says that if you continue obdurate, he
has quite determined to send you to a convent to be educated."
"As Adelaide made this announcement,
she pitied the child from the bottom of
her heart; for she knew that much of
Elsie's reading had been on the subject
of Popery and Papal institutions; that she
had pored overhistories of the terrible
tortures of the Inquisition and stories of martyrs and captive nuns, until she had imbibed an intense horror and dread of everything connected with that form of
error and superstition."
I wonder if one of the books Elsie read was
Awful Disclosures of Maria Monk, or, The Hidden Secrets of a Nun’s Life in a Convent ExposedI'm almost sure that Martha Finley, the author of the "Elsie" books, read it!
I thought for a long time that "Maria Monk" was a pseudonym, chosen to
mock Catholic beliefs; it certainly sounds like one! However, I've recently
found out that it was her real name.
In "Elsie's Children," one of Elsie's young cousins becomes a Catholic. Her conversion is referred to as her perversion.
[In the revised, modernized version of the "Elsie" series, "Elsie Dinsmore: A Life of Faith," the anti-Catholicism is removed. The revision, however, is a bit anachronistic, because although it is set at the same time as the original series,
the Bible Elsie uses is the "New International Version", which was first published in the 1970s! I had the updated books, but I lost them when I moved.]
There are other things in the "Elsie" books that I find annoying, but they'll have to wait for another post.
So, how do I feel about the books, all in all? Well, as I said when I started this post, I must admit that I have mixed feelings about
the books. There are some things I really dislike, and some
things I really enjoy.
things I really enjoy.
1 comment:
I'm reading the first two books in the companion "Mildred Keith"series first, because they are prequels to the "Elsie"
books. The rest are concurrent with, and/or fill in gaps in, the "Elsie" series.
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