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Jane Austen AN UNEVENTFUL LIFE Born in 1775 at Steventon, a small village in Hampshire; Spent her life in the circle of her family and her best friend was her sister Cassandra; She never married and she always remained attached to her countryside roots; She started to write early, but her mature works were produced in the village of Chawton, where she moved after her father's death. The majority of her works were published anonymously by her brother, who, lately, revealed her identity; JANE'S LITERATURE She wrote novels, attached to the 18 th century novel tradition; She wrote what she observed from her life among the gentry in the contryside; But her work is also a parody towards the sentimental novel, guilty of being too attached to women's sensibility, and towards the stormy passions of the gothic novel. There is no political attachment, nor interest for historical events (Napoleonic wars, French revolution, the Parlamentarian life...): all Austen's novels concerned the social code and the vices of upper-middle class of her era.

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Jane Austen➔AN UNEVENTFUL LIFE●Born in 1775 at Steventon, a small village in Hampshire;●Spent her life in the circle of her family and her best friend was her sister Cassandra;●She never married and she always remained attached to her countryside roots;●She started to write early, but her mature works were produced in the village of Chawton, where she moved after her father's death.●The majority of her works were published anonymously by her brother, who, lately, revealed her identity;

➔JANE'S LITERATURE●She wrote novels, attached to the 18th century novel tradition;●She wrote what she observed from her life among the gentry in the contryside;●But her work is also a parody towards the sentimental novel, guilty of being too attached to women's sensibility, and towards the stormy passions of the gothic novel.●There is no political attachment, nor interest for historical events (Napoleonic wars, French revolution, the Parlamentarian life...): all Austen's novels concerned the social code and the vices of upper-middle class of her era.

Austen's novels“We have all a better guicein ourselves, if we would

attend to it, than every otherperson can be.”

The Novel of MannersAusten's novels are indebted to 18th century novels and she must be considered as the master of the novel of manner, whose features are:

I.Particular attention to ordinary events of ordinary upper-middle class, like teas, parties, picnics, visits to friends;

II.The setting is the countryside, where the gentry mainly live (and where Jane herself lived); this also testifies a particular interest for life among nature;

III.The study of social conventions, class distinctions, and their effects on characters;

IV.The themes of marriage and love, in relantionship with the social conventions of that age;

V.An happy ending with the marriage of the protagonist;

VI.The use of an omniscient 3rd person narrator;

VII.The centrality of dialogue, for the language and the social code;

VIII.The presence of irony

The themes of love and morality

No place for human passions (often seen in a ironical and antiromantic key)

In a system where the social code encourages marriage for money, she affirms:

●The Romantic importance of individualism;

●Those strong emotional impulses must be controlled with personal reflection and not through the abstract standard of common reason, like in the Enlightment.

Importance of common sense and moral principles (good manners, reason, marriage as a

good institution)

It is more a personal morality, since her characters think with their own brains and have a distinctive personality

Self-knowledge and discipline are more important than passion (antiromantic idea)

LOVE MORALITY

But

Psychological autonomyof the character

But

Austen's heroines●Study of the maturation of the character in her development (like in Fielding and Richardson);

●Interior path of the heroine which has some common elements:

Proof→Mistake→Awareness of the mistake→Fulfilment of the proof→Maturity and self-knowledge

●Psychological and subjective development of the character in a stream of thoughts and sensations that anticipates modern literature;

●Intellectual and psychological dominion over passions, in the name of her moral principles: no Romantic element in that.

Pride and Prejudice (plot)In a small village in Hertfordshire, the arrival of a rich bachelor, Charles Bingley, is considered As a good occasion for

Mrs Bennet (a middle-class lady who lives there with her family) to marry one of her five daughters.With the ambiguous intervention of Mr. Bennet, Charles is soon invited to a party: he presented Himself with two other

sisters and with another bachelor, Mr. Darcy, who immediately negatively impresses Elizabeth (the real protagonist of theStory) for his attitude and his pride, but he's well considered by the group for his incomes.

At first, Darcy rejects the idea to marry Elizabeth Bennet and attracts Mrs Bennet's wrath who considers him as aPretentious person. Then, Mr. Bingley starts to date Jane Bennet and this makes Mrs Bennet really happy, whereas

Mr. Darcy starts to consider Elizabeth in a different way and to have feelings for her.

After some weeks, Mr.Bennet announces the arrival of Mr. Collins, a relative who would inherit the property if no womenDidn't marry any other man. Mr. Collins declares his idea to marry one of the Bennets also to repair and balance hisOwnership of the house. Since Jane is dating Mr. Bingley, he proposes to Elizabeth, but she refuses, provoking her

Mother's wrath. Mr. Collins, so, decides to marry Elizabeth's best friend, Charlotte Lucas, who accepts.In one of these parties, we make the acquaintance of Mr. Wickham, a naval officer, who immediately attracts the

Minor and the most insolent of the Bennets, Lydia and Kitty, and, in a second moment, Elizabeth. Afterwards, also for theBad Feedback of Wickham about him, she starts to scorn Mr. Darcy..

Soon, Mr. Bingley leaves the countryside to reach London and this brings to the cancellation of his marriage with Jane:Elizabeth is mad with Mr. Darcy, guilty to have dissuaded the friend from this marriage to marry one of his relatives.

With the help of her aunt, Elizabeth, then, decides not to marry Mr. Wickham, who, later would flirt with a rich heiress.Then, after they have accidentally met in some walks in the countryside, Mr. Darcy declares his love for her: Elizabeth,

Angry And astonished at the same time, refuses. She can't stand that Mr. Darcy has been the responsible for theUnhappyness Of her sister Jane. Mr. Darcy, in a long letter, admits it and declares that he has noticed that

Jane doesn't really love Mr. Bingley.

After some months, in a trip to Derbyshire, in the propriety of Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth unexpectedly meets him (since he isSupposed to be away for business) and he behaves gently and differently. But suddenly, unexpected news: Lydia has fledWith Mr. Wickham: Elizabeth is upset both for Lydia, both for her family's prestige. But soon the fugitives are found, thanksTo Mr. Darcy who organizes the marriage between them. And Elizabeth will accept Mr. Darcy's courtship and Mr. Bingley

Will make his proposal to Jane again.

Pride and Prejudice (plot analysis)●INITIAL SITUATION

●CENTRAL PART

Scorns Pursues

Breaks with

Refuses

Flirts with

Mr. Bingley Jane

Mr. Bingley Jane

Elizabeth Mr. Darcy

Mr. Darcy

ElizabethMr. Wickham

Mr. Collins

Pride and Prejudice (plot analysis 2)●ENDING

Marries

Marries

Marries

Mr. Wickham

Mr. Bingley Jane

Elizabeth Mr. Darcy

Lydia

Pride and Prejudice (plot analysis 3)

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE PLOT:http://www.jausten.it/jarcpap.html

Pride and Prejudice (characters)

ElizabethBennet

●Unconventional heroine: she is independent, since she●refuses the role that her family and society want to impose;●She is witty, intelligent, smart and attractive but she has the●tendency to judge on first impressions (prejudice);●Chapter by chapter, she will acknowledge her fault.

Mr. FitzwilliamDarcy

●Unconventional hero: he is selfish and unsociable, though●he knows the principles of social conduct for his high range;●On the other hand, he is smart and his intervention is very●important along the story to save Lizzie with his advice to●Mr Bingley.

JaneBennet

●Beautiful and sweet;●Inclined to see the good●in the others;●At first, too shy to express●her love for Bingley;●Not a round character

Mr. CharlesBingley

●Handsome and with good manners;●Feeble personality: he is always

●influenced by his sisters and DarcyMr. GeorgeWickham

●Superficially charming;●Contrast with Darcy for an●ancient debt not paid;●When escapes with Lizzy,●he doesn't want to marry●her but he will be obliged to.

Pride and Prejudice (characters)

ElizabethBennet

●Unconventional heroine: she is independent, since she●refuses the role that her family and society want to impose;●She is witty, intelligent, smart and attractive but she has the●tendency to judge on first impressions (prejudice);●Chapter by chapter, she will acknowledge her fault.

Mr. FitzwilliamDarcy

●Unconventional hero: he is selfish and unsociable, though●he knows the principles of social conduct for his high range;●On the other hand, he is smart and his intervention is very●important along the story to save Lizzie with his advice to●Mr Bingley.

JaneBennet

●Beautiful and sweet;●Inclined to see the good●in the others;●At first, too shy to express●her love for Bingley;●Not a round character

Mr. CharlesBingley

●Handsome and with good manners;●Feeble personality: he is always

●influenced by his sisters and DarcyMr. GeorgeWickham

●Superficially charming;●Contrast with Darcy for an●ancient debt not paid;●When escapes with Lizzy,●he doesn't want to marry●her but he will be obliged to.

Pride and Prejudice (analysis)➔The titleThe title mainly refers to what are considered the faults of the heroes at the beginning: Elizabeth is considered to have the guilt of having prejudice (in her premature judgement of Darcy) and he is accused to be too proud.

But, this could work at reverse too. Mr. Darcy demonstrated to have prejudice against Elizabeth's sisters (remember the episode of Jane and Mr. Bingley), while Elizabeth's pride conducts Darcy to discover her virtues.

➔Narrative tecniques and style●The wide use of the dialogue and of the epistolary technique testify Austen's debt to 18th century novels.

●In this way, third-person narration is mixed with first-person of the letters: in both cases, Austen is able to enter the mind of the character and re-build their consciousness.●Large use of irony, especially from the viewpoint of the character of Elizabeth Bennet.

➔Themes●Self-awareness and self-knowledge are the main themes, since all the plot turns around these two topics and the path of the protagonists to reach them: only when Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy complete this way, the plot is solved with the happy ending.●Marriage is presented in all its facets, in terms of:a)economic security (Collins and Charlotte Lucas);b)physical passion (Mr. Wickham and Lydia);c)convenience and importance of social rank (the ideal of Mrs Bennet);d)Feelings and prudence (Elizabeth and Darcy).●Wealth plays a key role in the marriage market, not only for the young ladies (whose marriage to a rich man was almost the only route to security), but also for men who wish to marry a woman of means (remember the case of Mr. Wickham with the old heiress).

It is a truth universallyacknowledged that a

single man inpossession of a good

fortune must be inwant of a wife.”

Austen and Romanticism: overview

●FINAL CONSIDERATIONS●It is very dangerous to consider Jane Austen as a Romantic writer: the fact that human passion must be ruled by a personal morality is a vision which is too far from Romantic ideals. The importance given to the social rank and the institution of marriage make her attached to a different kind of literature, too, which is rooted in the rise of novel (18th

century).

●In spite of that, it is undeniable that the influence of Romantic vision is evident in her individualisticcharacteriazation of the characters, but this doesn't make her a Romantic writer.

Do we have toconsidered

Jane Austen asa Romanticnovelist?

WhyYes?

➢The individualism of her characters is a Romantic element:➢they don't represent a class itself but just themselves, in➢order to underline their individual vices and virtues;➢The freedom of the heroes from any costraint imposed➢by society: her characters behave not according to a➢social standard but following a Personal morality.

WhyNot?

➢No centrality of human passion, which is inferior to reason and Especiallyto morality. Though, it is not a general morality, but a Personal morality,so, different from Enlightment;➢Society is not an evil force, such as for Romantics. In Austen's Opinion,➢it is not something to be fought, but a value that should be reformed,➢especially in topics as marriage and rank;➢Absence of the power of imagination.