Saturday, September 17, 2022, brought JASNA-NY Metro Region’s first live, in-person event since our birthday meeting in December 2019! Over 30 happy JASNA members attended a provocative talk by Prof. Susan Celia Greenfield of Fordham University entitled, “Another Queering of Mansfield Park: Incest, Sodomy, Fanny and Tom, and a Little Speculation about Sir Thomas,” which took place at a mid-town pub, accompanied by lunch.
Prof. Greenfield shared her enthusiasm for Mansfield Park and brought us some quite intriguing insights, including the possible incestuous relationship between Fanny and Edmund; speculation regarding Tom Bertram’s sexual orientation; and Sir Thomas’ likely immoral and abusive sexual activities in Antigua as a slaveholder, while at home he wishes to regulate the romantic desires of his children. While acknowledging that there is no explicit support in the novel for her speculations, Prof. Greenfield provided much historical context to support her insightful observations and ideas.
Michele Kling and Patricia Maniscalco