Colm Toibin shares his experience of reading Jane Austen's "Persuasion" at a young age in an Irish boarding school. Influenced by the societal pressures to lose their country accents, students were subjected to elocution lessons. During one session, a quiet boy read a poignant passage from the novel, channeling Wentworth's emotions intensely despite his accent, illustrating the deeper connection to Austen's themes of loss and longing. Toibin reflects on his identification with Anne Elliot, underscoring the novel's exploration of lost opportunities and shifting social landscapes, drawing parallels to his own life circumstances.
"While most guys in the class believed themselves to be Captain Wentworth, I thought I was Anne Elliot, but quietly and secretly and not all the time."
"He read it with coiled and wounded passion, using his own country accent. He managed to put the elocution teacher in her place."
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