A School for Lovers

I felt at a distinct disadvantage when I first started reading Jill Paton Walsh's 1989 novel, A School for Lovers, as it draws heavily on Mozart's opera Cosi fan tutte with which I am not familiar at all. The book begins in a highly mannered, artificial way with the placing of a bet that the fiancèes of two young men will be unfaithful when presented with temptation. The two young women are then set up in a rambling old house like a stage set while the two young men set out to try to seduce each other's betrothed. Cue farcical scenes of bee stings, quaffed chemicals, extravagant meals, tears and temptations.

The story is saved from total shallowness by the inclusion of a separate couple, Thomas and Anna, who create their own misunderstandings without any assistance from outside forces. Paton Walsh likes to set up moral dilemmas and philosophical arguments between her characters (who often, fortunately, find themselves in university settings) and Thomas and Anna provide commentary on Mozart's opera as well as the vagaries of love itself. Despite some initial resistance, I found myself becoming drawn into the plot, silly as it was, and increasingly interested in Thomas and Anna's analysis of Cosi.

Some of the seduction scenes are hard to read as the young men press their wooing quite hard and without taking consent massively into account, but overall I found this a more diverting read than I expected at first.