Jane Austen is an incredible writer. I don’t want to sound like a washing machine, cycling most people’s praises and saying she’s a very captivating writer and witty author. But I would be doing her novels an injustice if I said she wasn’t all those things.
Yes, her writing truly inspires me to tackle my own prose and yes until a few days ago I was writing her last name as the capital city of Texas, Austin. But regardless of my temporary ignorance, I have high regards for her! Today I’ll introduce a brief biography of Austen and add my analysis of her writing for the curiously inclined.
Brief Biography
Austen was born on the 16th of December, 1775, into a financially stable family. Austen’s family throughout her childhood invested much time into writing, acting, and producing their own at-home-productions, and thus nurtured a passion for the arts in Austen.
Austen wrote the first version of Elinor and Marianne in 1795.
Austen wrote the first draft of First Impressions in 1796-1797.
But it seems as ifshe liked alliteration way too much and changed the title of both her books to SenseandSensibility and Pride and Prejudice, respectively.
Austen wrote Susan, the early version of Northanger Abbey in 1798-1799.
Austen got proposed by Harris Bigg-Withers in 1802, accepted, but then called off the engagement the day after, because she felt zero affection for him.
Sense and Sensibility was published in 1811 and making use of her recent spotlight she published Pride and Prejudice in 1813, Mansfield Park in 1814, and Emma in 1815.
Austen died in 1817, and while the exact time and cause of death is still speculated, one thing to be true is Austen’s success as a writer would far outlive any of her works.
The power of love
As mentioned above, in 1802 Austen was engaged to Mr. Bigg-Withers for a day, and called it off the next. The marriage was to be a sort of quid-pro-quo deal. With the groom due to inherit a large amount of property, while the bride got a stable income. But Jane’s conscience could not settle on such a deal, for she felt no feelings for him. And since her novels were centered on marrying out of true love, she would have been going against all she stood up for if she had gone through with the engagement.
According to JaneAusten.org, when a family member sought romantic advice from Austen, Austen replied that one should not wed if there is no genuine love. This is very on brand for Austen. This action attests to Austen’s belief, shown throughout her works, that love should not be materialized because of money or power.
Analysis
Fool’s Folly
One reason I appreciate her writing is because she is able to make anyone look like a fool.
Austen finds a way to not only poke fun at the extravagant nobles of her time, but also at her own heroines and show that they are no more better or worse than others – they are just people. For example, her heroines Elinor and Marianne, both sisters in her novel Sense and Sensibility, have a stunning sense of wit and maturity. Nevertheless, Austen still takes turns jabbing them when she can, whether it is by creating an awkward encounter or embarrassing gossip centered around them. Austen is ruthless with her characters, and gives no one special privileges.
You can never wholly trust one of Austen’s heroines. She creates a cacophony of sound with her varying characters, melds everyone into a chorus, and then turns it into an elegant, engaging, unceasing noise; the only relief for the reader is the sound of her main characters, which aren’t innocent angels either because they are part of the chorus after all. In short, Austen creatively constructs an environment where you don’t know who’s word to trust.
One thing I did not expect from Austen’s work is the drama. I thought the worries of the rich nobles in the 19th century was if their apricot pie had enough cream to go with on the side. But Austen yanks you into their world of frenzy and insecurity. She demonstrates how futile their attempts to stay in the top ranks of society are. How ridiculous they look trying to look rich, even if they are in crumbling debt.
Austen also writes of the woes of unrequited love, heartbreak, yearning, and every shade of love; she could have written the most gut-wrenching sentence, but you wouldn’t be able to not appreciate the beauty of her mechanical sentence.
Austen plays tricks with you
She makes you believe the story is going one way, a character is going to fall in love with this one, this person is going to have a heartache, but then she turns the whole table upside down and reveals something the reader could not have imagined.
So far I’ve only read Pride and Prejudice as well as Sense and Sensibility, but in both I feel completely transported to another period. Few books have been able to procure this sense of timeless engagement with me, but with Austen it feels as if I’m holding a portable time machine.
Austen is a great writer for readers who like long and elegant sentences. Readers who need a dash of sophistication, a touch of creativity, and a yearning for drama that will make them swab lavender water (or healing water in Austen’s time) at their mouth to ail them.
I truly admire her writing because her heroines are self-reliant, educated women who also want other women to be self-reliant and educated. Amongst her many themes in her books, one of the main ones is marriage. How it can seem like a beautiful and fairy-tale story originating from pure love, but in reality is a quid pro quo sort deal.
Her Impact
I wonder how she felt writing those novels in her time. How many unthought of obstacles she had to jump over? Compared to today, where I can easily publish my writing on the Internet without a second thought.
Austen takes her satirical tone and slashes the expectations of society, civility, and romance. She makes her heroines go through much, but however egregious the situation, these women “resolve them without sacrificing their values or their sense of humor,” said Iseult Gillespie in TED-Ed.
Austen’s complex characters have helped her stay timeless in an age of constant change. It’s almost impossible to not have watched any of Jane Austen’s works on the big screen. Like the 2020 film “Emma” with Anna Taylor Joy and Mia Goth, the 2005 film “Pride and Prejudice” with Keirra Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen and, for the oldies, the 1995 film “Sense and Sensibility,” with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet.
If you’re still not the least convinced that Jane Austen was an okay writer. Then I urge you to read her yourself. Then you’ll truly experience the true magic of her work.
