‘Mrs Norris must be one of the most irritating women in literature. She is a snob with prejudices of class and an ingratiating manner to her perceived superiors taken to extremes. What’s more, she is a terrible cadger and someone who puts self-interest well above kindness to those around her.’
It can hardly be said that Ellen could ever be mistaken for a Mrs. Norris fan. Yet in Bethany there was a reluctance to join in this outright condemnation without considering background detail that might have contributed to some of Mrs. Norris’s less appealing manners. She ventured a defence:
‘Poor Mrs. Norris had two sisters. One managed to marry a rich and influential man whilst the other married a seaman who came down in the world. She was in the middle of these extremes and married a local clergyman who seems rather dull and uninterested in matters beyond his mealtimes. She was bored, and sought to enliven her days by visiting the rich man’s household. The sister there was poor company so she tried to involve herself in the lives of the four nieces and nephews who despised and avoided her. All she had left was to abase herself and seek to be useful to the master and mistress of the house. It is sad that her sacrifices were so undervalued by the family and possibly cost her the opportunity of making lasting friendships.’
Ellen was slightly moved to sympathy, but carried on with her negative assessment:
‘What about Mrs. Norris the bully then? She made the daughter of her poorer sister suffer and undermined her confidence by stressing her humble family. It’s ironic really – the sisters came from the same family yet Mrs. Norris discriminated between the children of rich and poor marriages.’
Bethany was well aware of Mrs. Norris’s less attractive habits but still felt some sympathy for her situation:
‘Think what Mrs. Norris might have been if she had been free of her wealthy sister’s household concerns and her rather dull husband. If she had not feared loneliness and a lack of family ties, she might have used her energy and developed her skills in company and friendships she had chosen. She might have enjoyed her days without need to seek favour, and might have looked forward to visits and holidays with friends. Things might have been very different for Mrs. Norris if she could have exercised choice in those she spent her time with.’
The two friends talked more of the choices open to women of Mrs. Norris’s era. The lack of autonomy, the tyranny of social position, the importance of economic independence. A slight sympathy was formed for those then, as now, required to fall in with the plans of family at the expense of friendships in order to secure some material or social gain. They found some agreement that poor Mrs. Norris was a victim of her social milieu that had shaped her poor behaviour, and felt happy in their own friendship.
