feel is the wroset, one of the good things of the On Line was that it
did try to give us rounded characters, who even if they behaved
appallingly at times, were usually shown to have some good point, or
at least an explanation of why they weree awful.
I think that Sarah is a bit inconsistently portayed – in the first
series while she is a perfect wife for greedy selfish rather weak and
foolsih robert, (ie has many of his faults but is tougher than he is
and able to stiffen him up!) she is also oftne kind, such as when she
tells Robert that if he throws Eliz. out becuase she is pregnant, she
will go with her. I think it is more likely that Sarah as generally
shown, would be as hostile to a pregnatn foolsih immoral Elizabeht
as Robert was.
in the later seasons she si shown as farily capable but far from
clever, selfish but not excessively so. One mihgt not really want
her around on'es house for Christmas dinner but one could put up iwth
her company from time to time.
I remember the bit wehre she tires to contact Robert after his death,
and James says that Robert was a pompous idiot when he was alive so
he'd be very surprised if he was different in the afterlife. (AFAICR)
She and Robert are great comic characters and at times they can be
awful,
I suppose Callon is probalby the worst charater, he is selfish and
hard, but more than that, he is domineering. He really can't stand
the fact that James wants to leave his service and become his own
master.. he hates the thoguht of James getting away from him- which
is why he becomes James' big enemy in the first season. It is that
bulying self important " I WONT be beaten" streak that makes him
really unpleasant.
another character who does not actually appear but I feel I know is
Samuel Onedin the father of the family. I think HE msut have been a
real horror, since all hsi childrne ahve gornw up hard and selfish,
and he is at tiems referred to as a hard man, who showwed them no
affection, so they ahve all reacted against this in their different
ways. James is ruthless iwth himself and with others, he is prepared
ot make sacrifices and endure hardship at sea and then to make others
suffer in order to have his own business… Robert is weak and
selfihs, Eliz is selfish and wants to get away from the harsh
enviroment she has grown up in, by marrying a rich man…
all in all, Samuel seems to ahve been an unpleasnat bloke
G
> I tend to agree with you, Carie. One of the best lines regarding
> Robert occurred (wow, I have NO idea about the season numbers!)
> shortly after his death and Sarah was consulting a medium for
> consolation. James (being our typical James) tells off the medium
> with a classic, "My brother was a pompous overblown fool while he
> lived…" and I laughed so hard I didn't catch the rest.
> But a little word in Sarah's defense (I hope): mightn't she more
> accurately represent the "typical" 19th century Victorian woman in
> more ways than the educated and competent Anne or the beautiful and
> manipulative Elizabeth?