It is intriguing to see the significance of relationships that takes place between the transatlantic serializations of The Moonstone, and how the illustrations work with the novel and the pieces that were surrounding the text impact the story. The England publication All The Year Round is heavily text-based were the American publication Harper’s Weekly is a large journal that incorporates many detailed images alongside its text and has three pages in the back dedicated towards advertisements. The serialization of The Moonstone for June 20th, 1868 is chapter seven. In this chapter, Mr. Franklin Blake is narrating about the encounter with Rachel. Also, Rachel reveals that she witnessed Mr. Franklin stealing her diamond. Moreover, it is essential to understand some of the social contexts that were taking place during 1868, which parallels the printing of The Moonstone in Harper’s Weekly, as it was the end of the civil war in America. Thus, America was in a state of uniting individuals’ perspectives and literally trying to obtain a united state with a collective ideology.
In the article “The Transatlantic Moonstone: A Study of the Illustrated Serial in Harper's Weekly” by Mary Leighton and Lisa Surridge they talk about how images have contributed to Harper’s Weekly and impacted the way you read The Moonstone. Leighton and Surridge are introducing that “the Harpers illustrations formed an intrinsic part of the American Moonstone, heightening the text's sensationalism, complicating its already intricate narrative structure, and shifting its treatment of gender, disability, class, and race” (207). Moreover, The article briefly talks about how Collins sought after a relationship with America by releasing The Moonstone across the Atlantic, which could benefit himself commercially (208). However, I want to expand on the idea of forming relationships. I argue that the illustrations provide insightful information about the significance of relationships whether that is through kinship or economical associations as a way to benefit each other and provide stability. The first two images focus on the relationship aspect and my second two images focus on the sanctuary that interrelations provide.