Shanstergoodheart t1_jdlubm9 wrote
Other people have more aggressive feelings about this than I do but Enid Blyton.
I remember reading the boarding school stories (Mallory Towers, Twins at St Claires etc.) and thinking that the protagonists were good eggs and that the "bad" characters were at fault. Reading them as a teenager and upwards those girls are Bitchyyy.
Poor Alison. She's just insecure and trying to find her place in the world but she is mocked and exploited at every turn. Even by the teachers.
I still think they are decent (if a little simplistic) stories but it's a whole different perspective I can tell you.
Also, as much as I love making fun of Americans, my adult brain no longer feels that her jibes to individual children are Wunnerful.
I haven't read the Famous Five or Secret Seven in over a decade but I get the impression that they hold up worse.
BloomEPU t1_jduugg7 wrote
I've been really into the Murder Most Unladylike series and I'd describe that as enid blyton but with modern sensibilities, and it's a lot of fun. I used to love the st claires series but once I realised you can have boarding school hijinks without the dodgy attitudes to women and minorities I never looked back.
floppyjoe714 t1_jdvlhcy wrote
I'm conflicted. A lot of lessons from the boarding school stories stayed with me as an adult and I didn't really internalize any of the meanness or classism. On one hand, there is a theme of valuing education for its own sake regardless of gender. The girls never think less of themselves for their gender and are encouraged to pursue their passions, whether that's their vocations or college. Even Ms. Grayling's speech is about being women that the world can lean on. There are lessons that resonated with me: don't be a tattletale, don't cheat yourself by not working hard, handle your shit. I guess I read Malory Towers first and St Clare's, which is a lot bitchier, when I was older. The classist storyline about how Sheila is insecure about her non-elegant manners and speech and how the girls make fun of her for it always made me uncomfortable, even as a child. But there are also non-British non-snobby characters who are the best-written characters of the book, including Claudine and Carlotta. Also, Alicia gets her comeuppance (sort of) for being bitchy and mellows out by the last book.
They are very mean to Alison, I agree.
Shanstergoodheart t1_jdvzxbz wrote
Ah yes, made temporarily stupid by measles was a real hero, if I recall.
I agree with everything you've said. Although, I think sexism not being a thing was primarily because there were no lads there. That said Enid Blyton was a bit of a boss in her own right (if a relatively awful mother) so maybe it wouldn't have appeared anyway.
As for Claudine and Carlotta, I used to listen to the audiobooks and my the accents.
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