I was quite interested in Ann Eliza's jealously of Evelina. It is like she is jealous of her youth, and thinks she is wasting it to become like her. She knows her time has passed, and when she meets this new German clock man, she wants to be able to fall in love with him and have babies. Evelina is not past her 'prime,' yet she isn't meeting someone and getting married as her sister thinks she should. Therefore, Ann Eliza is really jealous and angry that her sister isn't taking advantage of her youth and beauty.
The clock is most probably a symbol of the time that is running out for the women of this time period. Once they have reached a certain age, they are just going to be lonely for the rest of their lives. The clock was purchased to show Evelina that her time is running out and that she should hurry and get married so she can make something of herself.
Also, I really like the name Evelina...
I agree with your comment about the clock representing the time that the sisters' have until time runs out of them getting married. This quote brought this to my attention: "Ann Eliza lay awake in the unfamiliar silence, more acutely conscious of the nearness of the crippled clock than when it had volubly told out the minutes." This quote demonstrates how Ann Eliza hears the clock consciously. This was interesting to me because it illustrated how the ticking was consciously reminding Ann Eliza of what little time she had left and had not been married yet.
ReplyDeleteI also thought that the clock would symbolize the time that two sisters are spending and somehow wasting. Also, it was interesting that as you said, Evelina needs to get married and should not waste her time.
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