Sense And Sensibility And Sea Monsters (46 page)

Elinor’s marriage divided her as little from her family as could well be contrived; for her mother and sisters spent much more than half their time with her, since they now had no proper home of their own, their island having turned out to be the skull of a giant sea monster, and were now living in a tent on the grounds of Sir John’s home on Deadwind Island. Mrs. Dashwood was acting on motives of policy as well as pleasure in the frequency of her visits at Delaford; for she felt earnestly that island life was no longer healthy for Margaret, who had, since the Leviathan’s waking, begun a slow, difficult recovery to her old self—her hair was growing back out, and she had begun again to speak in halting sentences. Frequent visits to Delaford also served Mrs. Dashwood’s wish of bringing Marianne and Colonel Brandon together; precious as was the company of her daughter to her, she desired nothing so much as to give up its constant enjoyment to her valued friend; and to see Marianne settled at the mansion-house was equally the wish of Edward and Elinor. They each felt his sorrows, and their own obligations, and Marianne, by general consent, was to be the reward of all.

With such a confederacy against her—with a knowledge so intimate of his goodness—with a fast-fading horror of his nauseating appearance—with a conviction of his fond attachment to herself—what could she do?

Marianne Dashwood was born to an extraordinary fate. She was
born to overcome an affection formed so late in life as at seventeen, and with no sentiment superior to strong esteem and lively friendship, voluntarily to give her hand to another! And
that
other, a man who had suffered no less than herself under the event of a former attachment; whom, two years before, she had considered too old to be married; who turned away at times from his own face in the mirror, so cursed was it to look upon—and who still suffered on occasion the smallest case of cartilage rot!

But so it was. Instead of falling a sacrifice to an irresistible passion, as once she had fondly flattered herself with expecting—instead of remaining even forever with her mother, and finding her only pleasures in retirement and study towards designing a superior Sub-Marine Station, as afterwards in her more calm and sober judgment she had determined on—she found herself at nineteen, submitting to new attachments, entering on new duties, placed in a new home, a wife, the mistress of a family, and the patroness of a village. She found, in the event, that his face was not the only region of his physiognomy that could be described as multi-appendaged, and she found that fact to carry with it certain marital satisfactions.

Colonel Brandon was now as happy, as all those who best loved him, believed he deserved to be; in Marianne he was consoled for every past affliction, even for that affliction which had so defined his life. Her regard and her society restored his mind to animation, and his spirits to cheerfulness; and that Marianne found her own happiness in forming his, was equally the persuasion and delight of each observing friend. Marianne could never love by halves; and her whole heart became, in time, as much devoted to her husband, as it had once been to Willoughby.

Willoughby could not hear of her marriage without a pang; and his punishment was soon afterwards complete in the voluntary forgiveness of Mrs. Smith, who, by stating his marriage with a woman of character as the source of her clemency, gave him reason for believing that had he behaved with honour towards Marianne, he might at once have been happy and rich.

That his repentance of misconduct, which thus brought its own
punishment, was sincere, need not be doubted—nor that he long thought of Colonel Brandon with envy, and of Marianne with regret. But that he was forever inconsolable, that he fled from society, or contracted an habitual gloom of temper, or died of a broken heart, must not be depended on—for he did neither. He lived to exert, and frequently to enjoy himself. His wife was not always out of humour, nor his home always uncomfortable He resumed his constant searching for treasure, digging up with new maps, outfitting new schooners, and training new dogs.

For Marianne, however—in spite of his incivility in surviving her loss—he always retained that decided regard which interested him in everything that befell her, and made her his secret standard of perfection in woman; and even though in later years he obtained a new octopus whistle and used it liberally, many a rising beauty would be slighted by him in after-days as bearing no comparison with Mrs. Brandon.

Among the merits and the happiness of Elinor and Marianne, let it not be ranked as the least considerable, that though sisters, and living almost within sight of each other, they could live without disagreement between themselves, or producing coolness between their husbands; all lived in contented proximity—except for nights when they were awoken, in their separate establishments, by a cold and unmistakable sound, echoing across the countryside:
K’yaloh D’argesh F’ah! K’yaloh D’argesh F’ah!

THE END

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters
is a multilayered study of love, sisterhood, and giant octopi. We hope these questions will deepen your appreciation and enjoyment of this towering work of classic sea-monster literature.

1. Marianne has a lifelong fascination with “gentlemen of fortune,” but her most up-close experience with actual pirates is a letdown, to say the least. How do pirate characters and pirate themes (particularly the Dashwoods’ encounter with Dreadbeard) illustrate the gulf between perception and reality?

2. In
Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters,
painful personal setbacks often occur at the same moment as sea-monster attacks, suggesting a metaphorical linkage of “monsters” with the pains of romantic disappointment; for example, Marianne is rebuffed by Willoughby at Hydra-Z precisely as the giant mutant lobsters are staging their mutiny. Have you ever been “attacked by giant lobsters,” either figuratively or literally?

3. Various explanations are floated over the course of the novel for “the Alteration,” which first turned the beasts of the sea against the creatures of land. Which explanation do you find most plausible? Are you satisfied with Mr. Palmer’s tale, in
Chapter 49
, which blames it all on the slumbering monster-gods who, as the novel closes, have begun to waken?

4. Why is Margaret the only one alarmed by the odd “happenings” on Pestilent Isle, such as the distant chanting and the pillar of steam? Is her
family’s dismissal of her concerns only a reflexive skepticism toward young people, or does it suggest a deep-set unwillingness to grapple with the unknown?

5. Which would be worse: being eaten by a shark or consumed by the acidic stomach juice of a sand-shambling man-o’-war?

6. It would be too easy to attribute Marianne’s disinterest in Colonel Brandon merely to the fact that she is smitten with Willoughby. Does she overlook the steadfast and wise Brandon as a suitor primarily because of his age? Because he has been “attached” before? Or because of the unspeakable, writhing carnival mask of his lower face?

7. For Elinor and especially for Marianne, matrimony is a state to be ardently desired; but for Lady Middleton it is a prison to be escaped. Is this seeming contradiction a matter of adding depth to the plot, or does it reflect ambiguity on the part of the author toward marriage? And could one woman, with no previous training in nautical engineering, really teach herself to pilot a submarine?

8. Have you ever been romantically involved with someone who turned out to be a sea witch?

9. Life in Sub-Marine Station Beta is marked by a dissipation and devotion to amusement impossible to achieve outside “the Dome,” where constant sea-monster attacks are a fact of life. Do you think the apocalyptic destruction of the Station by an army of fish is meant as a comment on that kind of indulgent lifestyle?

10. Is Monsieur Pierre a symbol for something? Name three other well-known works of Western literature that feature orangutan valets. Are those characters also slain by pirates?

Thanks to Jason Rekulak at Quirk Books for inviting me to play in this world, and to the rest of the amazing team who created this book. Eugene Smith provided all of the delightfully ridiculous illustrations; Lars Leetaru painted the wonderful cover art; Doogie Horner designed the cover and interior; copy editors Margaret “McG” McGuire and Cathlyn Matracia repaired a number of embarrassing errors; Dorothy Lun keyed in hundreds of last-minute edits; and John J. McGurk and Melissa Jacobson made sure the books arrived on time.

I’m also grateful to Erik for the early read, to Diana and Spike and Tree for making everything fun, and to my collaborator, Jane, for a solid first pass.

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