Cara Sposa
Is it just me, or does Mrs Elton say 'cara sposa' instead of 'caro sposo'?
shareI can't remember, but she probably does, as Austen uses both spellings in the novel. Some scholars think she did it on purpose to illuminate Mrs. Elton's character.
shareI've read that, too. The editor of one version of the novel says that, despite the fact that Dr. Chapman's edition is supposed to be definitive, he "streamlined" the "caro sposo" bits to make them all the same and all correct. But that particular editor agrees with you and me -- that Austen knew exactly what she was doing and she was showing just how uneducated, ignorant and snobbish Augusta really is.
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