Why do we love Jane Austen with such devotion? Every reader's answers will be unique, but as I researched all known images and descriptions of the author and worked at my canvas to pay tribute to her, I had many quiet hours for contemplation of why I have treasured her masterpieces for decades. Perhaps, in my list of reasons to read and to love Jane Austen, you will find some of your own thoughts reflected.
1) The value of a woman's voice in history
It is Anne Elliot in Persuasion who wisely points out,
"Men have had every advantage of us in telling their own story. Education has been theirs in so much higher a degree; the pen has been in their hands."
Because Austen took the pen into her own hands, the women of our own age can connect with those of the Georgian and Regency periods. Austen's vivid prose brings to life the lived experiences of the ladies of her place and class, creating uncommon bonds of sisterhood across centuries. How much the poorer we would be without the mirror of Jane reflecting for us the relatable dramas of family life, courtship, love, marriage, economics, and so much more.
Close readings reveal all that has changed between the author's day and ours, and all that has remained the same for women amid predominantly male world-building. There are so many centuries in which the voices of women have been utterly lost to us, making Jane Austen's private and public words incalculably precious.
2) Exquisite escapism
J.R.R. Tolkien believed that one of the gifts of fairy stories was their power to facilitate the temporary escape of the modern reader from dissatisfactory circumstances. In a future article, I will further explore the undervalued Faërie hiding in Mansfield Park, but for now, it is enough to say that millions of readers are sufficiently discontented with 21st-century life to actively seek escape through Jane Austen's novels.
Who can blame us if we would sometimes prefer to trade in our polyester yoga clothes for a sprigged muslin gown, our polluted environment for pastoral freshness, our uncivil online discourse for the genteel conversation of a Regency drawing room? Thousands flock to Chawton Cottage, to Bath, to Lyme every year, escaping for a few glorious days into Jane's world through balls, teas, tours, and cosplay. We are in evident need of relief!
And we find what we are seeking within the pages of Austen's novels. I have often wondered how many other readers who first encountered these works in childhood took hold of the misperception (as I did) that life should resemble Austen's works, only to be rather bewildered by the manners and customs of our present day.
3) The apex of the English language
While some scholars opine that Shakespeare's age marks the pinnacle of the usage of the English language, I would argue that Jane's prose is unsurpassed in elegance. The beautiful flow of her sentences, the nicety of her choice of words, the sophistication with which she shares both humor and wit are peerless. Meanwhile, for the philologically-minded, her works are now old enough to have become a treasure trove of fading words we rejoice to encounter. In 21st-century America, the majority of the textual content we absorb has been designed and "optimized" to market to us; what bliss to sink into a realm of words meant merely for our delight!
4) The stories, themselves
When it comes to story-weaving, Jane Austen is the Lady of Shalott. Her tapestry of absorbing plots, unforgettable and sympathetic characters, and enviable settings is so skillfully-wrought, it almost seems like effortless work. Without the evidence of how painstakingly she toiled at revisions, we might think Jane an enchantress of some kind to have written such brilliant tales!
One of the greatest proofs of her genius is that readers take up her books again and again throughout all the seasons of life, eager to return to Longbourn, to Pemberley, to Uppercross. I personally hold my breath for the entire perusal of Captain Wentworth's letter, despite having read it dozens of times. I find something new in Mansfield Park every time I read it. Almost any day can be made a little better if, like Lady Bertram, we can retreat to a sofa with our cozy shawls and a favorite Austen novel. The stories are simply so good that we can hardly wait for our next reading of them.
5) Austen's faith
Whether we have Edmund Bertram, Elizabeth Bennet, Emma Woodhouse, or Mr. Darcy in view, we learn that Jane Austen firmly believed that human beings are capable of recognizing error and resolving to do better in the future. The revelation that we have deceived ourselves is always painful. Mr. Knightley's confrontation with Miss Woodhouse over her wretched treatment of Miss Bates and Elizabeth's confrontation with herself over having a misplaced sense of pride in her discernment are utterly mortifying. Yet, Jane Austen's Christianity enables her to restore erring characters to both proper humility and right relationship with others. Those uncomfortable moments hold the seeds of better wisdom and harmony.
Jane Austen was not perfect, but she was a pious woman who penned heartfelt prayers as well as sparkling prose, and for many readers, her faith is yet another source of kinship and fellow feeling.
6) Jane's life
Who can read a biography of this lovely, gifted woman without weeping over the brevity of her life? If only she had been spared to remain the beloved companion of Cassandra, the dear auntie to her nieces and nephews, perhaps even to become the sweetheart of some worthy gentleman and find a Pemberley of her own, free from illness, financial worries, and loneliness. If only she had been able to finish The Watsons and Sanditon, and a dozen more remarkable tales for the world to celebrate. Jane simply left us far too soon, and while I am convinced she now adds to the brightness of Heaven, I wish she might have shone here a little longer.
When I read Northanger Abbey, I see the originality of Jane the girl, the clergyman's daughter with the winsome ways and startling wit. When I read Mansfield Park, I glimpse the journey of her maturing faith. When I read Sense and Sensibility, I see her enduring love for her sister in a stormy world. The dream of a fairytale marriage makes the pages of Pride and Prejudice poignant, while the autumnal longing for a second spring in Persuasion makes one yearn for everything to have turned out differently for Jane.
Yet, she was gallant, and bore with the vagaries of life while retaining her beautiful mind and character, and though we mourn her, she used her time on Earth in such a way that it has set worthy examples that transcend eras, cultures, languages, and places. We feel just pride in her.
If you could spend a few minutes with Jane
How lovely it is to imagine ourselves at Chawton Cottage in the early 1800s. Perhaps we are out in the garden or upstairs trimming a bonnet. We open the squeaky door of a sunlit room and see the familiar figure of Jane Austen at her little writing table. We hear the scratch of her pen flying across the little scraps of paper on which she secretively writes. We do not wish to interrupt her, so we stand, for just a moment, enjoying the sight of genius at work.
Please, enjoy two minutes of such pure happiness in this video short:
Whatever your reasons for loving Jane Austen and her works, they are praiseworthy, and how good it is that this devotion connects us to so many fellow admirers. Please visit again soon for new paintings and posts!
Yorumlar