Victorians! discussion

This week we will take a look at the short story, Uncle Cornelius, His Story by George MacDonald, in which Cornelius posits some differences between strange stories and true ghost stories. Below are a few questions to get the discussion started, but feel free to discuss any aspect of the story which interests you. I think it can be assumed that anyone reading this thread has read the story, so you do not need to be cautious of spoilers.

Uncle Cornelius Summary & Questions…
On a dreary night, three cousins ask for a story from their eccentric Uncle Cornelius.
1. In what ways does this strange story qualify as a true ghost story? In what ways does it differ?
2. The narrator goes to some extent to give weight to the words of Uncle Cornelius. How does this color the story that he tells?
3. How does the conversation about ghosts set up the story?
4. Is the potential purpose of the visitation altered by the fact that it started before Cornelius met Leticia or went to the country house?
5. The cousins have said that Cornelius cannot tell a story without a moral. What moral does his story give?
6. What similarities are there between this story and A Christmas Carol?

I don’t think I can adequately answer Renee’s questions about this story because I found it to be very disappointing and disjointed. The characters of old Uncle Cornelius, the nephew and nieces, and of Leticia were well-drawn, but other than that the story fell flat. Cornelius first sees the old lady in London where he perceives her as cheerful and energetic. Then, as he travels to the country, he sees phantom horses which are never mentioned again. He again sees the old lady reading peacefully in the garden, and finally sees her as a careworn poor person worrying at her accounts. Never is there a connection made between these appearances or an hint of why he saw the lady in London. It’s hinted that the inhabitants of the house know there is a ghost and also hinted that the desk in Leticia’s room is part of the haunting, but again there is no connection. The conclusion seems to be that Leticia dies at the desk because her fate is somehow entwined with the old lady, but it’s just never clear. I’m sure there are others in our group who enjoyed the story, and I really look forward to hearing your comments. Maybe you can enlighten me!

I’m glad you’ve commented, even though you didn’t enjoy the story. Personally, I liked it better on reread.

Thanks, Renee. I’ll try that. And I look forward to other comments because I’m sure other people will see things I missed.

I enjoyed the story but especially Uncle Cornelius's interactions with the children.
Regarding Letitia-Uncle Cornelius had a narrow escape!
Maybe the old lady was a warning about Letitia.

Nancy-
You might also try listening. Librivox has free audio recordings and the reader for these is decent. (All readers are volunteers.) If you can’t download from the website or the app, you might try YouTube. Many recordings have made their way there.

I considered that, Rosemarie. I think she had already been seen by members of the household &/or staff, but either Leticia was immune or chose to ignore. It’s possible that the haunting was done as a warning through the one person who might gain Leticia’s attention. I agree that Cornelius was the one who gained by the loss.

I have only read one other George MacDonald novel and that wasThere & Back. I think his writing style takes some getting used to.
I thought that the conversation between the uncle and his nieces/nephew was a little too long winded even though it did set the scene for a ghost story.
The actual story had some interest, with a ghostly warning in the form of the old lady…but what the warning was I couldn’t be sure.
Having said that I’m not sure if the character of Leticia was fairly treated. Her beauty was described in a positive way but everything else about her had negative connotations.
I wondered about a different interpretation of the ghost story relating to the writing desk. By removing the desk from the locked room, Leticia unleashed the ghost of the old lady upon her and from that moment she was cursed.
Maybe the sightings of the old lady by Cornelius were warnings about the curse on Leticia although her London appearance seemed different the rest.
Like Nancy, I didn’t understand who was riding with the ghostly horses alongside his carriage. Maybe it was the old lady who had been to London to summon Cornelius so that he might marry Leticia. Was it the old lady’s scheme to get her writing desk back?
Once Cornelius lessened his attentions towards Leticia she seemed doomed to be confronted by the ghost and die of fright.

Heehee! I like the idea of an elaborate haunting to gain back the ownership of one’s desk (or library)!

Initially I suspected that it was a shade from the future… Leticia as she would become, or might become. Similar to Scrooge’s vision of his unmourned death.

I’m posting some of the final words from this story in case anyone wants to weigh in on the conclusion…


"If I lost a wife at all, it was a stingy one. I should have been ashamed of her all my life long."

"Better than a spendthrift," said Janet.

"How do you know that?" returned her uncle. "All the difference I see is, that the extravagant ruins the rich, and the stingy robs the poor."

"But perhaps she repented, uncle," said Kate.

"I don't think she did, Katey. Look here."

[Cornelius reads Heywood’s letter.]

"There!" said Uncle Cornie, folding up the letter.

"Do you think the ghost had anything to do with it, uncle?" asked Kate, almost under her breath.

"How should I know, my dear? Possibly."

"It's very sad," said Janet; "but I don't see the good of it all. If the ghost had come to tell that she had hidden away money in some secret place in the old bureau, one would see why she had been permitted to come back. But what was the good of those accounts after they were over and done with? I don't believe in the ghost."

"Ah, Janet, Janet! but those wretched accounts were not over and done with, you see. That is the misery of it."