Jane Austen the complete Novels

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The ladies here probably exchanged looks which meant, "Men never know when things are dirty or not;" and the gentlemen perhaps thought each to himself, "Women will have their little nonsenses and needless cares." Couples that might change the world with their love are torn asunder by a disapproving bunch of relatives or even religious heads with their "concern" for the "soul" of the one who might bring wonderious gifts but is not one of them (hence the gifts of course), and the miracle that would have been the families and souls generated with such love are nipped in the bud. Of course, it is only the couple that knows the tremendous love and the pain and suffering of being torn asunder, while others merely go about congratulating one another for having averted an unsuitable match with an outsider. Those who work hard for it, are looked down upon. The rich is expected to be idle. Only the poor working class soil their hands. mp_sf_list_4_description:What They're About:Northanger Abbey tells the coming-of-age story of heroine Catherine Morland, a young and naive girl determined to see the best in other, and her journey to better understanding the world around her. Northanger” is filled with colourful descriptions of the social life at Bath, and Austen’s satire on the public’s fascination with gothic novels was quite amusing indeed, a fun blend of gothic mystery with a humorous, bracing wake-up call to reality displaying the ambitious, greed-filled folly of human nature. “Lady Susan” and the depraved depths that vixen will go to deceive all around her for her own ends was a fascinating character study, so was “Emma” with her playful scheming to arrange the love lives of those closest to her, a capricious innocent tale in comparison with “Lady Susan”! One theme I find interesting in Austen’s writings is the ‘semi-outcast’ family member who is treated harshly but manages to find happiness such as Anne in “Persuasion” and Fanny Price in “Mansfield Park”. A second theme is ‘toxic relationships’ as seen with overbearing parents or guardians, for instance, Fanny’s uncle in “Mansfield Park”, “Lady Susan”, and General Tilney in “Northanger Abbey”. Obviously, Austen seemed to be fascinated with these topics and explored them in different settings.

The tone of P&P is one of wit, sardonic humour and sly social observation. There is little of this in Mansfield Park. It is replaced with a preachy moralising. If one never knew anyone of this sort, one would think the character is entirely invented. At that it is not that uncommon to come across men who deal with their own children, especially daughters, this cruelly or worse, but they are excused or even pressured to be this cruel and admired for it in various cultures (not excepting west or US for that matter) while women are usually this cruel with children of other women, say a lover's wife or a sister in law. But the character therefore is entirely possible, especially in an era when a woman could only obtain wealth and consequence by marriages her own and her relatives'; and the only area she could use her mind however sharp was in fields related to intrigues of social sort, marriages, love affaires, and so on, especially gossip and vile gossip about other women. This unfortunately is what far too many women and even men use their minds for, even now, for sport and not for want of subjects that could use the sharp minds. Sometimes it is the heart of such a gossiper and mud thrower that is at fault seriously in that destroying another person is the pleasure, and use of mind and other facilities is merely a means. I love these books for their relatablity. Their sense of hope, and their quoteability. I, personally, will be adopting the following for the coming year "It sometimes happens that a woman is handsomer at 29 than she was 10 years before."

Preview

Emma” ~ The delightful tale of a girl who thinks she knows everyone’s heart and is ignorant of her own takes it upon herself to play matchmaker for her acquaintances to the amused chagrin of Mr. Knightly, a family friend. Poor Emma is in for a surprise when her games of love go awry. Will it all end as happily as she envisioned? Austen was gifted with a keen observation of human nature and possessed a refined sense of the satirical, a master at setting off events with the clash of weak versus strong characters, and how all things will settle themselves for better or worse, depending on the choices each person makes. More so, Austen wasn't a radical, she wasn't suggesting that women burn their corsets and hold out for a better deal. She was just describing life as she saw it, with frankness and humor that can be rare in the genre nowadays. She knew that relations between men and women could be complicated, messy, and frustrating-- and that's just the way she liked it. Austen is clear about her contempt for a modicum of behaviour slightly reminiscent of Mary Bennett from her most famous work, Pride And Prejudice.

What It’s About: Sense and Sensibility tells the story of the Dashwoods, sisters Elinor and Marianne, and their romantic endeavors. Marianne wears her heart on her sleeve, plunging headfirst into love. Elinor, on the other hand, is cautious and cares about social convention. Jane Austen was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the landed gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature, her realism and biting social commentary cementing her historical importance among scholars and critics.

strong>Austen Connections: "It’s not surprising that Sanditon is hyper-focused on health and illness, written as it was in 1817, the last year of her life, when Jane Austen’s own health was declining," Looser explained. "Her own deteriorating health must have informed what she was writing then. How could it not? She would have had visits from doctors. She probably had to listen to suggestions from everyone around her about what was wrong with her, and what she should try to do, or eat, or take--or not do, not eat, or not take--for a cure. Pride & Prejudice: I honestly had read it years ago and it was an instant and solid lovable novel to me. I always had issues with Classics and reading this book made a huge difference that played a huge role in adding Classics into my booklist. Often people of a bit less comprehension are likely to make the mistake of a common sort, where they conclude "Elizabeth married Darcy not out of love, but for his money". She - the writer - herself makes a joke of the sort, somewhere along towards the end, but it is clearly a joke for all that. Elizabeth might not have been sighing and fainting with passionate abandon at first sight, but that is because unlike figures of trashy pulp she is a person with a mind and other concerns as well, and for a normal young woman passion does not necessarily come as the blinding flash at first sight any more than it does for - say - a writer or a poet or an artist or a scientist. Which does not reduce the final outcome of a certainty when it does come. Elizabeth married for her conviction of love, respect and rectitude, not for money.

Austen Connections: Rumor has it, Elizabeth Bennet was Austen’s favorite among all of her heroines. “I think we imagine her as Austen’s favorite heroine because of a line from Jane’s letter to Cassandra,” Looser explained. “Jane writes of her creation, Elizabeth Bennet, ‘I must confess that I think her as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print.’ Two centuries of readers agree!” And that reminds me, that the twists at the end of NA are as fast-paced and breathtaking as in any of the later books. Also, the sketch of Catherine's mother, at the end, as a sort of overworked, over anxious, barely affectionate country parson's wife is very well done. The young man however has excellent character and fortunately realises what is what, and love triumphs even without money. The prevalent theme that meanders throughout the novels by Austen is money, and more of it, is the oxygen of the upper class.Generally, I enjoyed this whole-long experience and I admit, Jane Austen is brilliantly a pioneer author. Now, brings me to my last point. Masculinity. Women have read these books since forever and I've always heard them goo-goo and ga-ga over Mr. Darcy and other men in these books. Why? It's because they are masculine men. These men are gentleman, good, kind, and respectful. Girls like that. However, today, the masculine man is being demonized. Pride and Prejudice” ~ Ah yes, the handsome Mr. Darcy, but out of misplaced pride he snubs Elizabeth Bennet on their introduction. Consequently she perceives him to be cold and aloof, sparking her prejudice against him despite his fortune and good looks. Will ever the twain meet? Austen lived her entire life as part of a close-knit family located on the lower fringes of the English landed gentry. She was educated primarily by her father and older brothers as well as through her own reading. The steadfast support of her family was critical to her development as a professional writer. Her artistic apprenticeship lasted from her teenage years until she was about 35 years old. During this period, she experimented with various literary forms, including the epistolary novel which she tried then abandoned, and wrote and extensively revised three major novels and began a fourth. From 1811 until 1816, with the release of Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1815), she achieved success as a published writer. She wrote two additional novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1818, and began a third, which was eventually titled Sanditon, but died before completing it.