30 Sense &Sensibility-Bedtime Tales With Stephanie Poppins

When Mr. Dashwood dies, he must leave the bulk of his estate to the son of his first marriage. This leaves his second wife and their three daughters Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret in difficult circumstances. They are taken in by a kindly cousin, but their lack of fortune affects the marriageability of practical Elinor and romantic Marianne.

When Elinor forms an attachment for the wealthy Edward Ferrars his family disapproves and separates them. And though Mrs. Jennings tries to match the rich and kind Colonel Brandon to Marianne, she finds the dashing and fiery John Willoughby more to her taste.

In this episode, Elinor does her best to protect Marianne.

Transcript

Hello.

My name is Stephanie Poppins and this is my Romantic Bedtime Podcast,

Sleep Stories with Steph.

Guaranteed to afford you a great night's sleep.

It is time to relax and fully let go.

Take a deep breath in through your nose.

And let it out on a long sigh.

That's it.

There is nothing you need to be doing and nowhere you need to go.

Feel your shoulders melt away from your neck.

And the pressure seep away from your cheeks.

As you sink into the support beneath you.

This is your safe place.

Where we travel back to stories of times gone past.

Happy listening.

Sense and Sensibility By Jane Austen Chapter 30 Mrs.

Jennings came immediately to their room on her return and opened the door and walked in with a look of real concern.

How do you do,

My dear?

Said she in a voice of great compassion to Marianne,

Who turned away her face without attempting to answer.

How is she,

Miss Dashwood?

Poor thing.

She looks very bad.

No wonder.

It is but too true.

He is to be married very soon.

A good-for-nothing fellow.

Mrs.

Taylor told me of it half an hour ago and she was told of it by a particular friend of Miss Gray herself.

Well,

Said I,

All I can say is,

If it is true,

He has used a young lady of my acquaintance abominably ill.

If ever I meet him again,

I will give him such a dressing as he has not had this many a day.

But there is one comfort,

My dear Miss Marianne.

He is not the only young man in the world worth having.

And with your pretty face,

You will never want admirers.

Well,

Poor thing.

I won't disturb her any longer,

For she better have her cry out at once and have done with it.

The Parrys and Sandersons are coming tonight and that might amuse her.

Then she went away,

Walking on tiptoe out of the room,

As if she supposed her young friend's affliction could be increased by noise.

Marianne,

To the surprise of her sister,

Determined on dining with them.

Eleanor even advised her against it.

But no,

She would go down.

She could bear it very well.

When there,

Though looking most wretchedly,

She ate more and was calmer than her sister had expected.

Had she tried to speak,

Or had she been conscious of half Mrs.

Jennings' well-meant but ill-judged attentions,

This calmness could not have been maintained.

But not a syllable escaped her lips,

And the abstraction of her thoughts preserved her in ignorance of everything that was passing before her.

Eleanor,

Who did justice to Mrs.

Jennings' kindness,

Though its effusions were often distressing,

Made her those acknowledgements,

And returned her those civilities which her sister could not make or return for herself.

Their good friend saw Marianne was unhappy.

She treated her,

Therefore,

With all the indulgent fondness of a parent towards a favourite child on the last day of its holidays.

Had not Eleanor,

In the sad countenance of her sister,

Seen a check to all mirth,

She could have been entertained by Mrs.

Jennings' endeavours to cure a disappointment in love by a variety of sweetmeats and olives and a good fire.

As soon,

However,

As the consciousness of all this was forced by continual repetition on Marianne,

She could stay no longer.

With a hasty exclamation of misery and a sign to her sister not to follow,

Marianne directly got up and hurried out of the room.

"'Poor soul,

' cried Mrs.

Jennings as soon as she was gone,

"'how it grieves me to see her!

"'Well,

It is the oddest thing to me that a man should use such a pretty girl so ill.

"'But when there is plenty of money on one side and next to none on the other,

"'Lord bless you,

They care no more about such things.

' "'The lady,

Then,

Miss Grey,

I think you called her,

Is very rich?

' asked Eleanor.

"'Fifty thousand pounds,

My dear,

And by all accounts it won't come before it's wanted,

But they say he is all to pieces.

"'No wonder dashing about with his hurricane hunters.

"'When it don't satisfy talking,

But when a young man,

Be he who he will,

"'comes and makes love to a pretty girl and promises marriage,

"'he has no business to fly off from his word only because he grows poor "'and a richer girl is ready to have him.

"'Do you know what kind of a girl Miss Grey is?

Is she said to be amiable?

' "'I never heard any harm of her,

Indeed.

I hardly ever heard her mentioned,

"'except that Mrs.

Taylor did say this morning she believed Mr.

And Mrs.

Ellison "'would not be sorry to have Miss Grey married,

For she and Mrs.

Ellison could never agree.

' "'And who are the Ellisons?

' asked Eleanor.

"'Her guardians,

My dear,

But now she's of age and may choose for herself,

And a pretty choice she's made.

"'What now?

' after pausing a moment.

"'Your poor sister has gone to her room,

I suppose,

To moan by herself.

"'Is there nothing one can get to comfort her?

"'Well,

By and by we shall have a few friends and that will amuse her a little.

' "'Dear Mum,

This kindness is quite unnecessary,

' said Eleanor.

"'Marianne,

I dare say,

Will not leave her room again this evening.

"'I shall persuade her if I can to go early to bed,

For I'm sure she wants rest.

' "'Aye,

I believe that will be the best for her.

"'Lord,

No wonder she's been looking so bad and cast down this last week or two,

"'for this matter,

I suppose,

Has been hanging over her head as long as that.

' "'And so the letter that came today finished it.

"'Lord,

How concerned Sir John and my daughters will be when they hear.

"'If I had had my senses about me,

I might have called in Conduit Street in my way home "'and told them of it.

"'But I shall see them tomorrow.

' "'It would be unnecessary,

I'm sure,

' said Eleanor,

"'for you to caution Mrs.

Palmer and Sir John against ever naming Mr.

Willoughby "'or making the slightest allusion to what has passed before my sister.

"'Their own good nature must point to them,

"'the real cruelty of appearing to know anything about it when she's present.

"'And the less that ever may be said to myself on the subject,

"'the more my feelings will be spared,

As you,

My dear madam,

Will easily believe.

"'Oh,

Lord,

Yes,

That I do indeed.

"'It must be terrible for you to hear it talked of,

"'and as for your sister,

I'm sure I would not mention a word about it to her for the world.

"'For my part,

I think the less said about such things,

The better.

"'The sooner it's blown over and forgot.

"'And what good does talking ever do,

You know?

' "'In this affair,

' said Eleanor,

"'it can only do harm,

For it's been attended by circumstances which,

"'for the sake of everyone concerned in it,

"'make it unfit to become the public conversation.

"'I must do this justice to Mr.

Willoughby.

"'He's broken no positive engagement with my sister.

"'My dear,

Don't pretend to defend him.

"'No positive engagement indeed,

After taking her all over Allenham House "'and fixing on the very rooms they were to live in hereafter.

' "'Eleanor,

For her sister's sake,

Could not press the subject further.

"'After a short silence on both sides,

Mrs.

Jennings,

"'with all her natural hilarity,

Burst forth again.

"'Well,

My dear,

It is a true saying about an ill wind,

"'for it will be all the better for Colonel Brandon.

"'He will have her at last.

Aye,

That he will.

"'I hope he will come to-night.

"'It will be all to one a better match for your sister.

"'Two thousand a year without deck or drawback.

"'Except the little love-child,

Indeed.

"'I'd forgotten her.

"'But she may be prenticed out at small cost,

"'and then what does that signify?

"'If we can but put Willoughby out of Marianne's head.

' "'Aye,

If we can do that,

Ma'am,

' said Eleanor,

"'we shall do very well with or without Colonel Brandon.

' "'Then rising,

She went away to join Marianne,

"'whom she found,

As she expected,

In her own room,

"'leaning in silent misery over the small remains of a fire.

"'You had better leave me,

' "'was all the notice her sister received from her.

' "'I will leave you,

' said Eleanor,

"'if you will go to bed.

' "'But this she at first refused to do.

"'Her sister's earnest,

Though gentle,

Persuasion,

However,

"'soon softened Marianne to compliance,

"'and Eleanor saw her lay her aching head on the pillow "'and as she hoped,

In a way,

To getting some quiet rest,

"'before she left her.

"'In the drawing-room she was soon joined by Mrs Jennings "'with a wine glass full of something in her hand.

"'My dear,

' said she,

Entering,

"'I've just recollected I've got some of the finest old wine "'in the house that was ever tasted,

"'so I've brought a glass of it for your sister.

' "'Dear ma'am,

' replied Eleanor,

"'how good you are!

"'But I've just left Marianne in bed and I hope almost asleep,

"'and as I think nothing will be of so much service to her as rest,

"'if you'll give me leave,

I'll drink the wine myself.

' "'Mrs Jennings,

Though regretting she had not been five minutes earlier,

"'was satisfied with the compromise,

"'and Eleanor,

As she swallowed the chief of it,

"'reflected its healing powers on a disappointed heart,

"'might be as reasonably tried on herself as on her sister.

' "'Colonel Brandon came in while the party were at tea,

"'and by his manner of looking round the room for Marianne,

"'Eleanor immediately fancied he neither expected "'nor wished to see her there,

"'and in short that he was already aware of what occasioned her absence.

"'Mrs Jennings was not struck by the same thought,

"'for soon after his entrance she walked across the room to the tea table "'where Eleanor presided and whispered,

"''The colonel looks as grave as ever,

You see.

"''He knows nothing of it.

Do tell him,

My dear.

' "'He shortly afterward drew a chair close to hers,

"'and with a look which perfectly assured her of his good information,

"'enquired after her sister.

"''Marianne is not well,

' said she.

"''She has been indisposed all day,

And we have persuaded her to go to bed.

' "''Perhaps then,

' he hesitatingly replied,

"''what I heard this morning may be.

.

.

"'there may be more truth in it than I could believe possible at first.

' "'What did you hear?

' "'That a gentleman whom I knew to be engaged,

But how shall I tell you?

"'If you know it already,

As surely as you must,

I may be spared.

' "'You mean,

' answered Eleanor with forced calmness,

"'Mr.

Willoughby's marriage with Miss Gray.

"'Yes,

We do know it all.

Where did you hear it?

' "'In a stationer's shop in Pall Mall,

Where I had business.

"'Two ladies were waiting for their carriage,

And one of them was giving the other "'an account of the intended match.

"'The name of Willoughby,

John Willoughby,

Frequently repeated,

"'first caught my attention,

And what followed was a positive assertion "'that everything was now finally settled,

Respecting his marriage with Miss Gray.

"'It would be impossible to describe what I felt.

"'The communicative lady I learned on inquiry was a Mrs.

Ellison,

"'and that,

As I have been informed,

Is the name of Miss Gray's guardian.

' "'It is,

' said Eleanor.

"'But have you likewise heard Miss Gray has fifty thousand pounds?

"'In that,

If anything,

We might find an explanation.

' "'It may be so,

But Willoughby is capable,

At least I think.

' "'He stopped a moment,

Then added in a voice which seemed to distrust itself.

"'And your sister,

How did she?

' "'Her sufferings have been very severe,

' said Eleanor.

"'Till yesterday I believe she never doubted his regard,

And even now perhaps.

"'But I am almost convinced he never was really attached to her.

"'He's been very deceitful,

And in some points there seems a hardness of heart about him.

' "'Ah,

' said Colonel Brandon,

"'there is indeed.

"'But your sister does not consider it quite as you do.

' "'You know her disposition,

' said Eleanor,

"'and may believe how eagerly she would still justify him if she could.

' Colonel Brandon made no answer,

And soon afterwards the subject was necessarily dropped.

Mrs.

Jennings,

Who expected to see the effect of Miss Dashwood's communication in such an instantaneous gaiety on Colonel Brandon's side,

As might have become a man in the bloom of youth,

Of hope and happiness,

Saw him,

With amazement,

Remain the whole evening more serious and thoughtful than ever.

Reviews

Oh Willoughby, you rat! And enter Mr Brandon… the plot thickens! Thank you🙏🏽🙏🏽❤️❤️