The Absentee is basically a political book using fiction to decry the decimation of the Irish by absentee landlords. Along the way it also jabs at the pretenses of English high society and softening it all with a love story and a happier than realistic ending. ( )

This was really quite enjoyable. Helped, I think, by the recent tutoured read by Liz of Edgeworth's Belinda and the quite detailed introduction. I'm not sure of those two got me in the right mindset to read this, or put it all into context, but it helped.
It's a story of an heir to an estate in Ireland who is comming of age in London where his parents reside, as absentee landlords to their estate. He has a fondness for his home and so goes on a tour of the country and finds that one part of the esatate has a good overseer and the other does not. One part of the estate has tenants who are hard working, and a credit to themselves and their landlord, the other has bribery, underhand dealings, falling down houses and an oppressed tenantry. He then takes matters into his own hands and makes his social ladder climbing mother see that actually she fits back in Ireland a lot better than in London, and that they should return. It is slightly complicated by his search for a wife. He has a fondness for the woman brought up as his cousin, who in fact is the (believed) illigitimate child of his uncle's first wife, and so not a blood relative at all.
There is a lot going on slightly off stage, for want of a better description. This is set not long after the Union of Ireland with the rest of Britian into the UK, and so there is a fair amount of them & us going on, on both sides of the irish sea. This os not always evident, but in the choice of Grace Nugent as the cousin's name, Edgeworth was tapping into a thread of folk history related to the surname and the name Grace Nugent itself that gives her position within the family and her relationship (or possible relationship) with the heir a different spin. It's all very interesting and quite easy to read. A great social portrait of society at the time, with the poorer tenants featuring as well as the upper classes. ( )

Full Review: http://wp.me/pns82-145

Maria Edgeworth was a popular author in the early 19th century that has almost been forgotten today. I never heard of her before I saw this Penguin edition at the used book store. Intrigued by a story focusing on the Anglo/Irish aspect of Regency life and bought it. Plus, I liked the cover.

Edgeworth did not like novels, she thought they were frivolous, and instead called her stories “moral tales.” While she does deal more directly with the lower class than Austen did, The Abesntee shares many characteristics of Austen’s best novels: honorable children with weak, fault filled parents, a personal journey of growth through learning for the main character, a romance, characters with extreme prejudices. Edgeworth main theme of The Absentee, that Anglo-Irish landowners should be resident stewards of their estates and not leave the managing to agents while the owners live in London, is admirable but she never delves into the Anglo/Irish question or the religious differences that permeated Ireland. So, while there is a “moral” to the novel, it is a very one-sided ideal and as such, weakens the point. Especially when seen 200 years on.

Edgeworth was a skilled writer that created some of the most uncomfortable scenes and situations I’ve read in a long time. She skewered not only the vacuous attempts of an Anglo-Irish gentlewoman to be admitted into London society, a society that would never accept her no matter what she did, but she also lambasted the haughty, condescending, cruel and pettiness of those same society ladies. Only a few characters are safe from Edgeworth’s wrath and those characters border on being a little too perfect. There were a few too many coincidences to be believable but, unlike real life, plots hinge on coincidental acquaintances. Part romance and part adventure, The Absentee would be an enjoyable read for any fan of Regency literature. ( )

Read during Spring 2005

I enjoyed this much more than I expected to. There is the standard storyline of noble hero and demure heroine (of great virtue) but it is handled well and the various other characters are true characters, not stereotypes. I particularly liked Miss Broadhurst, who knows she is not a great catch except for her money but still wants to marry someone who loves her. Grace Nugent seems rather too unassuming to be true, as well as the saintly Mr. Burke. Edgeworth's contention that Ireland is best ruled by in-residence Ango-Irish nobility is problemantical for these times but I suppose was very popular at that time. A very enjoyable read.

Touching story about the evils of absentee landlords in 19th century Ireland. ( )