Being Victorian and a little bit of British Romanticism, the novels of Jane Austen can best be described as works of genius. Born in 1775 into a large family, her father was a descendent of a family of woolen manufacturers who had risen to the lower ranks of the gentry class. Growing up in a family of six brothers and one close sister in the small town of Steventon, Austen was predominantly influenced by her father’s teachings, and thus, the subject of many of her novels included her observations and commentaries on society.
Her novels center around educated, intellectual women and their complicated relationships in a Victorian English society. The central theme, almost always, is the topic of marriage. Austen intricately analyzes the role that class plays on the lives of her protagonists. The characters she develops change throughout the novel as they learn important lessons about who they are and what roles they play in society. For example, in Pride and Prejudice, the repartee between the haughty Mr. Darcy and the middle-class Elizabeth is partly based on Jane’s own relationship with a young barrister Tom Lefroy. Their own romance was discouraged by both families, almost reflective of the conflict faced by the character of Marianne Dashwood in Jane’s most famous novel, Sense and Sensibility. Incidentally, both Jane and her sister Cassandra, though well educated, remained unmarried due to the financial burdens left behind by their parents, which is reflected as the central theme in the novel Emma.
Around 1816, Jane was diagnosed with a fatal illness. Her posthumous works include her most famous novels, Mansfield Park and Persuasion. Though a prolific writer, getting published was not easy for Jane Austen. Through her brother’s contacts, Thomas Egerton agreed to publish her four most well-received novels allowing Jane a comfortable income. Her later works were published by a better known London publisher John Murray, giving Jane the means to keep writing.
Whether it’s Victorian era or modern times, the readers of Jane Austen’s novels strive to understand the establishment through the eyes of young intelligent women. The lessons they learn can still apply to today’s society as the modern day woman may find herself in a similar situation faced by Emma Woodhouse, Elizabeth Bennet or the Dashwood sisters. Only a brilliant novelist, such as Jane Austen, can paint a complex society with eloquence and grace that can be appreciated by today’s standards which is why she remains one of my most favorite authors.