In Pride and Prejudice there is, of course, the prospect of a Northern Tour for Lizzie, with the Gardiners:
"What delight! What felicity! You give me fresh life and vigour. Adieu to disappointment and spleen. What are men to rocks and mountains? Oh! what hours of transport we shall spend! And when we do return, it shall be not be like other travelers, without being able to give one accurate idea of anything. We will know where we have gone and will recollect what we have seen. Lakes, mountains, and rivers, shall not be jumbled together in our imagination."
But then, in the end they go no further than Derbyshire. Charlotte Bronte wrote of Pride and Prejudice "What did I find. No open country, no fresh air, no blue hill, no bonny beck. I should hardly want to live with her ladies and gentlemen in their elegant but confined houses".
Dr Greaney explored the risks and rewards of the "great outdoors" and concluded that in Jane Austen's novels the risks far outweigh the rewards.
The first risk Dr Greaney identifies exposure to the elements. Think about the outcome of outdoor exercise for Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice; Marianne in Sense and Sensibility and Louisa Musgrave in Persuasion.
The second risk is the danger of meeting a scoundrel! Mr Willoughby, Mr Wickham and Walter Elliot.
Outdoor proposals, however, are always good and full of promise. The outdoors are a place of opportunity and liberation.
The third risk is very clear in Emma where Mr Woodhouse is nervous of draughts and the outdoors, especially open windows. "I never heard such a thing, dancing with open windows."
So, we can conclude that the outdoors is a scary place, but then there is a moment where Jane Austen reflects the Romantic views of the world. In Pride and Prejudice Lizzie asks "what are men to rocks and mountains?" This suggests the Romantic perspective, which valued the sublime and awe-inspiring aspects of nature and sought to escape the confines of societal norm. Or, is Austen satirising the novels of Ann Radcliffe, the Tours of Gilpin and the poetry and writings of the Wordsworths and their circle?
We're enjoying a TV adaptation of Emma at the moment, I can't help but watch out for the moments when fresh air, exercise and outdoor accidents happen. Harriet Smith being attacked by the gypsies and rescued by Frank Churchill; Mr Woodhouse's fear of fresh air and associated hypochondria and the incident at Box Hill which isn't a physical incident but is certainly an emotional incident.
A fascinating and most entertaining talk.