Horse Sense: Servants and Servanthood in Jane Austen's "Mansfield Park"

This is an abridged, adited version of an article originally published in Persuasions Online, Vol 44, No, 1, Winter 2023, titled "What the Coachman Said: Servants and Servanthood in Mansfield Park."

- By Tom Phillips 

Jane Austen 

“‘It is a pleasure to see a lady with such a heart for riding! . . . I never see one sit a horse better’” Thus begins a singular speech in the Jane Austen canon, spoken by a serving-man, invoking fear and trembling, body and spirit.  Addressed to Fanny Price early in Mansfield Park, it foreshadows a tale of upheaval in England, the British empire, and the world.

Viral Spring #7: A Little Night Music

-- By Tom Phillips 

President Trump is not the only one tweeting in the wee hours. With the campus of Columbia University emptied of people by the Coronavirus, a congress of American Robins has flown in for their spring break and mating season.  At midnight they perch in trees and bushes, on fence posts and statues, and sing their little heads off.