In S&S3 there is a display of ripe fruit at Delaford (in the library?) to suggest Marianne’s readiness for a relationship, romantically and sexually with Colonel Brandon. In another scene he releases a falcon (Marianne) to have it (her) willingly return to his arm. Overblown harvest and hunters, it is a bit heavy-handed for my taste. I am an unrepentant S&S2 admirer but I like S&S3 despite these heady scenes and other errors of judgment, one being the retooling of Colonel Brandon. In S&S3 he is turned into a bristling angry man rather than a passionate melancholy gentleman who is roused to anger by the abuse of his ward and later his friend by the same rascal. I think this retooling of his character is one of the reasons for the suggestive symbols used to tell his growing relationship with Marianne. What I mean is he is a rather heavily dramatic Colonel Brandon and his relationship with Marianne must follow the same curve.

S&S2 is a bit more straight-forward in telling their growing relationship. Marianne’s thanks to Colonel Brandon after her illness seems sincere, grateful and respectful—she sees him with new eyes. Brandon reads poetry to Marianne, a frequent activity of the disappointed in love if Captain Benwick (P, 11) is to be believed. Colonel Brandon intends a trip, for secret reasons; there is gentle, affectionate teasing on his part and from Marianne new feelings revealed. Marianne does not want him to go and if he must go, not to go away for long as a lady with a growing attachment might reasonably feel—she does not go into hysterics as she did when Willoughby announced his departure. He is ever kind in his reassurance. Colonel Brandon buys Marianne; she says the family, a pianoforte. It is an expensive present to be sure but not Marianne or anyone appears to feel this in a mercenary sense; rather in a sense that it is a sign of his great esteem for Marianne. He includes sheet music and asks her to learn it—is it a melancholy tune or one more optimistic? I do not recall but it is a gift well-chosen and well appreciated. Marianne immediately sits to the pianoforte to try out the music. It is seduction through arts and sensibility. It is less dramatic than S&S3 yet still romantic and not at all mercenary.

The wedding scene is charming. I addressed why the coin toss message is not money conquers all in another post so I will concentrate on how the bride and groom appear in the scene. Colonel Brandon has not a hint of dullness to suggest he is Marianne’s choice for any reason other than she finds him worthy of her affection. He is handsome, dashing, manly and sexy in his redcoat. He is impressive amongst his brothers in arms. He has an air of vigor, generosity and a touch of boyishness tossing the coins in the air. Marianne appears serenely radiant professing in looks a depth of affection and happiness altogether more than pleasing. It is a fine portrayal of ‘extremely happy – but there is a gravity to her joy’ as Emma Thompson describes her on page 202 of the screenplay. In the novel Elinor describes Marianne as “very earnest, very eager in all she does -- sometimes talks a great deal and always with animation -- but she is not often really merry” (17). I think Marianne might use a little more animation but other than that I have no fault to find in her—it would be uncharacteristic for her to chatter away and I cannot be persuaded she is less than eager to marry Colonel Brandon.