I used the despicable me meme format to poke fun at Jo Baker’s decision to smear Mr.Wickham’s character further. I’m all for the Wickham slander but the introduction of pedophilia into Longbourn was disconcerting. I understand and appreciate the darkness or “shadows” that Baker creates in the book but having Wickham finger the walls is just too much for me. It does beg the question, though, did Wickham interact much with the servants at Pemberley? As a steward of Pemberley, his father must have helped manage the estate, hiring new servants and farmers. Being in the kitchen would have been uncommon still, as steward was considered the highest class of servant and maids as some of the lowest. Especially under the watchful eye of the late Mr.Darcy, I doubt it would have been acceptable for Mr.Wickham to enter the kitchen and bother the housemaids. I question this part of Wickham’s character in Longbourn. If he was trying to marry up, wouldn’t it be in his best interest to stay away from the lower class and any scandal of association altogether?
The medical concept of pedophilia didn’t appear until 1896, so there was no name to the perversion Wickham possessed. Even when it was defined, any sort of incest was ignored as being pedophilia and it was portrayed to be a thing of strangers, so far removed from polite society. It’s scary to think what sort of atrocities went on in the background of Jane Austen’s society. How such perversions were addressed is unclear but it’s likely that if an individual with sinful desires would come to someone like Mr.Collins to ask for advice, just as Sarah did. It truly put James in an uncomfortable position in protecting Polly because of the class gap between him and Wickham because Wickham had power over James despite his bad behavior. His word would reign supreme over anything James accused him of, and if reported, James would be dragged back to the militia.
