Author: Elizabeth von Arnim
I knew I loved the 1920s fashion, the amazing flapper, bob, and heavy makeup. I often think that if time travel were ever invented, I would want to go to 1920s Chicago and find speakeasies and see American women wearing flappers, heavy makeup, and short hair for the first time, and dancing their souls out. But it turns out I might be loving the 1920s literature. I absolutely loved Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence, a 1920s Pulitzer winner, which made it to my top 10 books list last year. Now, I also loved The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim, another 1920s book, this time by an Australian-British author. Had von Arnim been American, she would have likely won a Pulitzer, too.
The Enchanted April follows a similar writing style to The Age of Innocence, with long chapters and characters’ points of view being narrated in stories, with chapters switching from one character to the other. This requires some concentration, but one gets used to it quickly.
The story follows three middle-class and one upper-class woman from London who decide to violate strict societal rules and go on a holiday to Italy. The decision-making process and thoughts of the characters are beautifully portrayed because making this decision required some deception of husbands, and justifying the notion of spending nest eggs, which mainly come from dress dowry (common in England for middle-class women during early 20th century), and husband’s allowance, these housewives saved rather than for a cause of helping others through charity work, for example. These thoughts are portrayed beautifully, and characters tell us their thinking, including how tired they are of being good wives and never doing anything for themselves, having any peace or agency (Ms Wilkins), being alone due to an estranged husband (Ms Arbuthnot), being too cooped up in the house due to being too strict and abiding to societal rules to ever do anything (Ms Fischer), or being overwhelmed with attention (Lady Caroline). Ms Wilkins, a wife of a strict solicitor who uses his cross-examination skills on his wife, instigates the trip by randomly approaching Ms Arbuthnot in a woman’s club and arguing passionately about how good they have been and have never done anything for themselves, thus needing a holiday and some freedom. As it later turned out, the holiday and freedom just meant being on their own with their thoughts and not burdened with servitude to their husbands and societal rules. Thus, women mainly sit on their own in gardens or go for walks and just rest and enjoy time on their own. This is poignantly described and creates a thought process within a reader on how society restrained women during the 1920s, but it also signals that things are changing for Edwardian women of the 19th century would not have thought of acting so independently.
Readers also witness the formation of unlikely friendships. Initially, Lady Caroline and Ms Fischer do not like the other two women who organize the trip and see them as ‘originals’ (thoughts of Lady Caroline) or too modern and free without respects for their husbands and societal strict rules (Ms Fischer) but eventually, they embrace friendship and relax with one another. What I was particularly interested in were the initial thoughts of Ms Fischer and Lady Caroline, who were very patriarchal, so Lady Caroline calls the other two women ‘originals’, basically criticizing them for having their own thoughts and views, but then finds herself thinking things through. Ms Fischer, too, expresses patriarchal views and prefers men, but with some conflict, i.e., she criticizes women who think saying women are supposed to dedicate themselves to families, but then we learn she enjoys having conversations with men about politics and literature, thus allowing herself to think. So, she is basically a masculine woman who finds other women boring but does not see that her support of men’s leadership and dominance, which she expresses, leads to the situation that women have no thoughts of their own, or they do but are too afraid to express them. This internal struggle, conflict, and contradictions are explored very well, and I truly disliked Ms Fischer throughout the book, which testifies to excellent writing. Lady Caroline, on the other hand, was a much more likable character who simply found ‘originals’ boring because she worried they would try to ‘grab’ her attention like everyone else does in London, but once she realizes this is not the case, she surprises herself with ‘originality’, and embraces other women, particularly the unconventional Ms Wilkins who starts speaking freely. The character of Ms Fischer reminded me of women who were anti-suffragettes who opposed the suffragette movement because they were thought not to think or have any wants, and ultimately, their opposition to women’s empowerment was likely about jealousy against independent women, and fear of independence for living a life as one is told, then suddenly finding oneself in a situation where they need to make decisions, was not an easy task. The opposition to other women and a lack of solidarity are not less deplorable, but it is a complex issue, which is explored in The Enchanted April.
There is a class element here, which is portrayed through narration of manners, behaviors, and communication. Ms Wilkin’s husband, who joins them at the holiday following Ms Wilkins’ invite, which she extended once she realized she had never gave him a chance and has always feared her husband, particularly describes differences in manners of the so-called blue blood and praises the discretion of the aristocracy and Lady Caroline’s manners. This was also praised later when Lady Caroline also saves an awkward moment between Ms Arbuthnot and her husband, who also comes to the villa, and when the husband praises her for showing him the solidarity of a man, attributing this to blue blood and discretion.
Even more so, The Enchanted April is about taking time for oneself and finding happiness, and how one navigated these important elements of mental health in a strict patriarchal society, such as the middle-class and upper-class society of 1920s London. Therefore, four women ultimately look for time for themselves and happiness, but are afraid to admit that even to themselves, for a lady was not supposed to have original thoughts or want anything other than serving her family and societal roles.
Beautiful! Inspiring! Read this book!
Thank you for reading!