Food In History-What is a “Pupton”?

One of the pleasures of reading history, whether fiction or non-fiction, is learning about the day-to-day living of people in the past.  I am particularly interested in the Georgian era in England, especially the Regency period.  Recently, I was reading a novel, in which a menu for a particular meal was detailed and “a pupton of cherries” caught my attention.  It sounded like some kind of sweet dish, and I wondered what was in it, so I tried to look it up.  Not as easy as I expected!

First of all, I could not find a definition of “pupton.”  Thanks to the miracle of Google books, I found several old cookbooks on-line.  In THE ART OF COOKERY by John Mollard (4th edition published in 1836), I found arecipe for a “Pulpton of Apples” (p. 251) in which quartered apples were stewed until tender, sieved, and mixed with spices, eggs, and breadcrumbs soaked in cream.  This concoction was baked in a buttered mould and served turned out on a dish with sifted sugar over it.   A recipe for a pulpton of apples also appears in the 1802 edition of Mr. Mollard’s cookbook.

Hannah Glasse, whose popular cookbook THE ART OF COOKERY Made Plain and Easy was first published in 1747, and was released in numerous editions until the last in 1843, includes a recipe for a “pupton” of apples as well.  In her version, the fruit was cooked with sugar and only a small amount of water, until the fruit was the consistency of marmalade.  She also combined the cooked fruit pulp with eggs, spices, cream and breadcrumbs, with some butter, baked it and served it on a plate.

Title Page from Hannah Glasse’s Cookbook

Both of these recipes sounded good to me, and I could see how this recipe could be adapted to almost any kind of fruit, including cherries.  However, this was not the end of the pupton! Looking over the tables of contents, I found recipes for savory puptons as well.  These sound remarkably like pate’s and terrines served today, as at least a portion of the fish, meat or poultry component is cut finely with equal portions of suet, then pounded into a paste, called forcemeat.  If used alone, the paste would be seasoned, then it could be rolled into balls and poached in a sauce or fried; it could be put into a bag of some kind (one recipe I found took a chicken, removed all the meat, made the paste, seasoned it, and put it back in the chicken skin) and stewed, or baked.  A fascinating recipe I found in THE LONDON ART OF COOKERY And Housekeepers Complete Assistant by John Farley (4th edition, published in 1787) included a “French Pupton of Pigeons” on page 127.  This recipe took a quantity of forcemeat, made a very thin layer (similar to a pie crust), and then proceeded to layer thin bacon, squabs, asparagus, mushrooms and several other ingredients (a few of which may seem odd in combination today, including cocks’ combs).  This was then topped with another thin layer of forcemeat, like a pie, and baked.  When done, it was to be served in a dish with gravy poured around it. 

Either sweet or savory, the pupton sounds like a wonderful and tasty dish!  I love this kind of detail, as it makes the people of the past come alive.   Food is something we all have in common.

Jane Austen’s Cavalier: Is Colonel Brandon Her Most Romantic Hero?

      Fitzwilliam Darcy seems to be the universal favorite romantic hero of Jane Austen’s novels.  However, is this really accurate?  Other male characters have their devotees and are worthy of our respect, if not our admiration. However, I submit that for sheer, unadulterated romance and derring-do, Colonel Brandon is the man for my money.  The heart of a veritable knight of chivalry beat in his chest, willing to undertake any task solely to serve his lady, exhibiting the at least four of the five virtues of a true knight: friendship, generosity, chastity, courtesy, and piety.

     Merriam-Webster On-Line’s definition of “romantic” includes: having an inclination for romance: responsive to the appeal of what is idealized, heroic, or adventurous.  The Oxford English Dictionary On-line includes “an idealized view of reality” in its definition.  The Oxford English Dictionary On-line also provides a definition of a cavalier as “a courtly gentleman, especially one acting as a lady’s escort.”In “Introduction to Romanticism” on-line, the Romantic Movement in English literature began in the later part of the eighteenth century (when Austen began writing ELINOR AND MARIANNE), and was characterized by an appreciation for nature, an emphasis on emotion and feeling, and an appeal to the imagination.  A fondness for medievalism and the Gothic occurred during this period.   SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, which evolved from ELINOR AND MARIANNE, is full of allusions to the classic romantic themes, and is a reaction to them, showing the need for a balance of common sense with the romantic sensibility. Marianne exhibits the extreme of romantic emotionalism, and embodies the “sensibility” of the title, with her passions for poetry, music, walking and nature, combined with her willingness to give way to her emotions with the slightest encouragement.  Her concentrated focus on the romantic to the exclusion of everything else is illustrated by the situation where Edward’s failure to respond to the view at Barton makes her wonder if Edward can possibly be romantic enough, even for Elinor (Austen, S & S, I, xvi, p. 88.), and her headlong plunge into despair upon receiving Willoughby’s letter in London (Austen, S & S, II, vii, 183-185) among many, many others.

     Sir Walter Scott was a popular romantic author, contemporary to Jane Austen and one whose works she is known to have enjoyed. In SENSE AND SENSIBILITY, Scott is one of Marianne’s favorite authors.  Scott’s poem, MARMION: A TALE OF FLODDEN FIELD, was published in 1808, and was very popular in England at approximately the time Jane Austen was rewriting ELINOR AND MARIANNE,  which was renamed SENSE AND SENSIBILITY and published in 1811. We know Austen read MARMION, as well as other works by Scott (Dow and Halsey).  In addition to Scott, Austen was also fond of the poet Cowper (Dow & Halsey), another of Marianne’s favorites.  Edward’s inadequate reading of the poet Cowper caused Marianne to question whether Edward could possibly be worthy of Elinor (Austen, S & S, I, iii, 17). 

     In Canto V of MARMION, we find Lady Heron’s Song, which is the story young Lochinvar and the fair Ellen.  MARMION is set in sixteenth-century Scotland and England, and is full of knights in armor, their ladies and wild, natural scenery; the story-within-the-story revolves around a young knight, Lochinvar, who rescues his love from a forced marriage via an elopement.  Lochinvar had asked her father for Ellen’s hand in marriage, but had been denied.  He arrived too late to prevent the marriage; he carried her off from the wedding festivities on horseback and they were never seen again. To my mind, this is exactly the kind of romantic, unconventional behavior that would most appeal to Marianne.  An example of Marianne’s delight in the unconventional is the circumstance where Willoughby took Marianne in his curricle to view Allenham.   She spent an entire morning with him, going over the house and garden, knowing that it was not his and having no acquaintance with Mrs. Smith (the owner).  This behavior gave rise to comment and jokes on the part of Sir John Middleton and Mrs. Jennings.  In fact, Elinor was shocked, and tried unsuccessfully to get Marianne to see the impropriety of her behavior in this matter  (S & S, I, xiii, 67-68).  While admittedly a much milder impropriety than an elopement, this shows Marianne’s willingness to flout convention.   (“…she was everything but prudent. S & S, I, 1, 6) Austen’s ironic humor allowed Marianne’s passion for poetry and romance and her unwillingness to control her emotions to focus on Willoughby, who appeared a romantic hero but was not; Marianne didn’t notice that Colonel Brandon, who in fact had attempted to elope with Eliza, mourned his lost love and cherished his memory of her in the true romantic style of the poetry Marianne admired, and yet conducted himself as a gentleman of sense and propriety.

     Col. Brandon was a man of honor and impeccable reputation, widely respected and esteemed.  As a young man, he became a soldier to spare the older Eliza’s feelings after she was married to his brother against her will (S & S II, ix, 206), and he served King and country in the East Indies.   He was regarded with respect by all who knew him, in spite of Mrs. Jennings’ whispers about his relationship to the young Eliza.

     He exhibited true courtesy-he treated all kindly, and with respect.  (“…on every occasion mindful of the feelings of others….”  S&S I, xii, 62) He worshipped Marianne from afar, and did not intrude his feelings upon her when he saw that she was in love with Willoughby.   He constantly showed concern for the comfort of others.  His “delicate, unobtrusive inquiries” (S&S, II, x, 216) to Elinor about Marianne showed his concern and his efforts to avoid giving distress.

     Col. Brandon was a classic upholder of chastity: he fought a duel with Willoughby over Eliza’s honor, and took care of her and her child (he placed them in the country) (S&S II, ix, 211).

     Brandon exuded friendship and generosity.  The colonel  took care of Eliza’s mother ( of whom Marianne reminded him), allowing her to die in comfort and with care, showing true kindness to a “fallen woman” to whom he owed no obligation.  He took in her daughter Eliza in for her sake.  He told Willoughby’s story to Elinor, to give Marianne closure regarding Willoughby’s desertion.  He gave Edward a living after Edward’s disinheritance, before he (the colonel) won Marianne’s hand (done out of kindness  and respect for Edward’s honoring his obligation, not familial obligation) (S&S III, iii, 287-288).  The other significant men in the Dashwood girls’ lives (brother John, Willoughby and Edward Ferrars) were distinguished by selfishness; Colonel Brandon was distinguished by his selfless desire to secure the comfort of others in general, and Marianne’s happiness in particular.  Colonel Brandon was the only true hero in the story.  Willoughby started his relationship with Marianne cold-bloodedly for his own entertainment, not caring about her feelings (Austen S & S III.vii.319-320; III.xi.351).  Edward knew he was not available when he started to care for Elinor but continued to build a relationship with her for his own emotional need without even considering that her feelings might become engaged (Austen S & S III.xiii.368).  Both of these men were initially motivated by selfishness, and Willoughby ended his relationship with Marianne because of selfishness.  Colonel Brandon was the only male in the story capable of falling deeply in love, while having the generosity of spirit to put his own feelings to one side, to do what was needful for the happiness of the beloved.  In his treatment of young Eliza, and his lack of care for Marianne, Willoughby shows himself a predator, a parallel to the “laggard in love and dastard in war” who wed fair Ellen (Scott 125).

     Col. Brandon performed knightly deeds:  When his love was lost to him, he went into the Army.   For a very young, broken-hearted man (they were nearly the same age-she was about 17 when lost to him S&S, II, ix, 205), this profession would give him the opportunity to take part in epic battles, possibly to die performing daring deeds, and certainly preparing him to come back a strong, heroic warrior.  He was successful in his military career, rising in rank.   As mentioned, he wanted and planned to elope with his love, the older Eliza (S & S, II, ix, 206). He cared for Eliza, and rescued  her daughter after she was seduced and  abandoned by Willoughby.  Brandon fought a duel  with Willoughby to punish him for his treatment of young Eliza.  He provided  help when Marianne is ill-“…he offered himself as the messenger….-bringing her mother to her promptly”.

     Col.  Brandon fell in love with Marianne on sight.  He recognized and respected her love for Willoughby, and did nothing to distress her.  In my opinion, Colonel Brandon was capable of recognizing the fact that Marianne would always have a soft spot in her heart for Willoughby, and the toughness of mind to accept and deal with it if her romantic sensibilities dredged it up under the pressures of day to day life.  Much has been made of the fact that Colonel Brandon was too old for Marianne.   Hazel Jones in Jane Austen and Marriage refers more than once to Marianne settling for “strong esteem and lively friendship” when she married Colonel Brandon (Austen S & S III.xiv.378; Jones 120; 146).  However, that is to overlook the follow up: “Marianne could never love by halves; and her whole heart became, in time, as much devoted to her husband, as it had once been to Willoughby” (Austen S & S III.xiv.379).  Richard Jenkyns describes Colonel Brandon as “the most Byronic figure in Jane Austen’s entire canon…” (188). He would seem to be exactly the man who would bring Marianne around to giving her whole heart.   I submit that Colonel Brandon, with his combination of age, good sense acquired from experience, and his deeply romantic soul, who exhibited the true knightly virtues, was the only man who could possibly have made Marianne happy.  Jane Austen’s love of irony hid her hero behind thirty-five years, a merely pleasant face and a flannel vest; she did not allow any recitation of dashing swordplay or injuries in his military career or in the duel he fought; he was definitely not a young Lochinvar.  However, Colonel Brandon was the man whom young Lochinvar might have become with maturity.  Poetic justice was served when this knight won his fair lady.

Resources:

Ashford, Viola.  “Jane Austen’s Heroes: Colonel Brandon,”  12/27/2003. Website: Suite 101.com,  http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/jane_austen/105401/2#ixzz0o7j7YrJS

Austen, Jane.  SENSE AND SENSIBILITYThe Oxford Illustrated Jane Austen,.  Vol. 1.  R. W. Chapman, ed.  Third edition.  1933, reprinted 1988: Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. 

                            NORTHANGER ABBEY AND PERSUASION.   The Oxford Illustrated Jane Austen,  Vol. 5.  R. W. Chapman, ed.  Third edition.  1933, revised 1965 and 1969, reprinted 1988: Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.

Copeland, Edward and McMaster, Juliet, Ed.  THE CAMBRIDGE COMPANION TO JANE AUSTEN.  1997: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.

Gow, Gillian and Halsey, Katie.  “JANE AUSTEN’S READING: THE CHAWTON YEARS.”  PERSUASION ON-LINE.  Vol. 30, No. 2 (Spring 2010).   http://www.jasna.org/persuasions/on-line/vol30no2/dow-halsey.html

“Introduction to Romanticism.”  (No author shown.)  Adapted from A Guide to the Study of Literature: A Companion Text for Core Studies 6, Landmarks of Literature, ©English Department, Brooklyn College.   http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/rom.html 

Jenkyns, Richard. A FINE BRUSH ON IVORY An Appreciation of Jane Austen.  2004: Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.

Johnson, Claudia L.  JANE AUSTEN  Women, Politics and The Novel.  1988: University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.

Jones, Hazel. Jane Austen & Marriage.  2009: Continuum UK, London, U.K.

Merriam-Webster On-line Dictionary  http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/romantic 

Mooman, Pamela.  “HEROES IN JANE AUSTEN’S NOVELS  These Patient, Loyal Men Are Worth Waiting For.”   9/27/2009.                                               Website: Suite101.com.                                                                             http://victorian-fiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/heroes_in_jane_austens_novels

Oxford English Dictionary On-Line.  http://oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_us1285701?rskey=tl1oth&result=1#m_en_us1285701 and  http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/cavalier?view=uk

 Scott, Sir Walter.  MARMION: A Tale of Flodden Field.  H. E. Coblentz, editor.  First published 1808.  Edition used: 1893, 1911: American Book Company, New York, NY.

Schwartz, Dr. Deborah B.  “Backgrounds to Romance: ‘Courtly Love.’”  California Polytechic State  University.  ©Deborah B. Schwartz, 1998-2002.  http://cla.calpoly.edu/~dschwart/engl513/courtly/courtly.htm 

Simpson, David.  “Chivalry and Courtly Love,” 1998.  DePaul University. http://condor.depaul.edu/~dsimpson/tlove/courtlylove.html

Image: Portrait of a Man in Armour with Red Scarf by Anthony Van Dyck 1625-27. (Wikimedia Commons)

And the work goes on…..

     This has been an amazing week! I have gotten quite a bit accomplished with my current work in progress. Notes, new chapters, more research-things have been falling into place on this first draft. (I have even dreamed plot lines that I was able to remember long enough to write down!!!) This happens so seldom that I have to revel in it and share it. Writing is so much fun when it flows!

Bits and Pieces-the work in progress

    

York Minster by John Hunter 1784

For several months, I have been researching for and working on another historical novel.  The setting is in York, England, duirngthe last years of the Georgian era.  Such a fascinating city with a wonderful history!   The research has been challenging and enjoyable-at times, I find myself getting caught up in pursuing  the reading and neglecting the writing.  However, progress has been made!  

     The heroine is Anne Emmons, a young woman of respectable birth.  There is wealth, accumulated in trade.  The novel looks at friendship, the contrasts between the formal, stratified world of London  society and the more flexible society of York, and the possibility of finding happiness on one’s own terms.  Meanwhile, her father was concerned….   I thought I would introduce a few bits and pieces as I work.  Here is the first bit:

He had hoped Anne would settle long before now.  At twenty-five years of age, she had long participated in the social seasons at home in York, and in London.  There was no doubt that Sir Henry and his wife had done their best by Anne, put her in the way of meeting eligible young men, even arranging for her presentation.  Somehow, Anne had just never “taken.”  Even at home in York, acting as his hostess, she had entertained numerous young men, ranging from young fashionables in town for the races to successful young merchants and bankers.  She showed the poise of an older, more experienced hostess, yet never indicated the slightest tendre for any of them.  “Not a one of ’em stirred so much as a flutter, ” he thought gloomily, “and for all the notice she paid, none had the least inclination to pursue it.”  Well, he was going to have to take a hand, as distasteful as he found it.

     I hope you will let me know what you think of this little segment!

It’s A Scandal….

In the 18th and 19th centuries, women were extremely limited in their options, and one false step could literally ruin them. In MY LADY SCANDALOUS The Amazing Life and Outrageous Times of Grace Dalrymple Elliott, Royal Courtesan, by Jo Manning, we read of a woman whose choices were frequently (to say the least) unconventional. There is no doubt that Grace Dalrymple’s life story is extremely colorful, ranging from her love life to her time in France where she may have obtained useful information for her country. However, what made this book fascinating to me were the many notes, sidebars, quotes, illustrations and comments that illuminate Mrs. Dalrymple’s story. This book is full of historical snippets, anecdotes and explanations that bring many of the personalities, and the era itself, to life. It also highlights just how limited the choices were that women had, and how devastating the wrong choices could be. Grace’s life was frequently not a particularly comfortable life, and she died alone, in obscurity. Her story certainly provides some insight to the difficulties that someone like Eliza or Young Eliza in SENSE AND SENSIBILITY would face as a result of their poor decisions. (Very few rose to the heights (?) that Grace did in her hey-day, after all.) It is very well-written, and is an excellent source of period information for any one interested in the Georgian period.