What do I love about Jane Austen? Better question would be, “What don’t I love about Jane Austen?” The only criticism I have of Austen is that she was only able to finish six novels before her death in 1817.
So for those who aren’t familiar with Jane Austen, let’s start with a brief biography and then a summary of her major works.
Jane Austen was the second daughter and seventh child of George and Cassandra Leigh Austen. She was born December 16, 1775 at Steventon, Hampshire, England. Her father was a clergyman and also ran a school for boys out of the Austen home. The family was very literary, reading often and writing as well. Jane Austen started writing as a child and, despite periods where she was less productive, she continued to write until her death on July 18, 1817 at the age of 41.
I’ve chosen to list the novels in chronological order based on year of publication. This is not the same as the order in which they were written.
1. Sense and Sensibility. Published in 1811, S&S is the story of the Dashwoods, specifically sisters Elinor and Marianne. Along with their mother, Elinor, Marianne, and their younger sister Margaret must leave their home when their father dies. The home, and its corresponding money, go to their older half-brother. Marianne has a suitor but why has he left town? Why won’t he contact her? Elinor also has a suitor but his behavior is confusing as well. Why won’t he declare his feelings to Elinor despite a very obvious attraction? And what about Colonel Brandon who also seems to have feelings for Marianne?
2. Pride and Prejudice. Published in 1813, P&P is the story of the Bennet family. Mr. & Mrs. Bennet have five girls and an estate that is entailed. When Mr. Bennet dies, his home will go to a distant male cousin. So Mrs. Bennet is obsessed with finding good marriages for her five daughters. The oldest Jane has a suitor who suddenly goes to London and seems to forget about Jane. Elizabeth gets a marriage proposal but it’s not from anyone she’d consider marrying. When Elizabeth travels north with her aunt and uncle, how will that change her life? Elizabeth Bennet is Austen’s most popular heroine.
3. Mansfield Park. MP was published in 1814 and is one of Austen’s less popular novels but I feel it is undervalued. Fanny Price is a heroine who comes off a bit “holier than thou” but, in truth, she is the only character who doesn’t do anything wrong. Fanny has a charming gentleman after her but she only has feelings for another who unfortunately has feelings for someone else.
4. Emma. Emma is my favorite of Austen’s novels. It was published in 1815, the last novel published while Austen was alive. Emma Woodhouse is the main character and this is a story of her realizing that she doesn’t actually have everything figured out. Some of Austen’s most memorable characters reside in this book, including Mrs. Bates, Mr. Knightley and Mrs. Elton.
5. Persuasion. Persuasion is the last novel Jane Austen completed. I consider it to be greatly under appreciated. It’s heroine is Anne Elliot who lost her chance at love but suddenly find she might have a second chance. Some of the more entertaining characters in this novel are Mary Musgrove and Sir Walter Elliot.
6. Northanger Abbey. NA is perhaps the earliest of Austen’s novels, though it wasn’t published until after her death along with Persuasion in 1818. Austen sold the rights to this novel under a different name but the publisher never actually published the book. After a few of her novels had been published, Austen bought back the rights to the novel, which was called “Northanger Abbey” by her brother Henry. Though it has definite flaws, NA is still Austen and therefore worth reading and reading again.
If you haven’t read Jane Austen and find yourself having problems understanding what’s what, I recommend “Jane Austen for Dummies”. It explains all the nuances and characters and makes reading Austen much easier for newbies. It is easier for some to view one of the many movie versions of Austen’s works to help understand the books. A word of caution though – many of us “Austen scholars” highly dislike some of the movie versions as the writers/directors sometimes have characters acted in ways they would never act in the novels. If you are considering viewing one of the Austen movies and want help picking a “good” one, let me know.
My English Obsession 