Slowly savouring the novels of Jane Austen

Frank lives in Australia but is part of an Interest Groups Online group exploring the novels of Jane Austen. He talks about why her novels still hold so much appeal after all this time.

Jane Austen is one of my favourite writers. 

I live in Australia and participate in Australian u3a groups in my hometown of Brisbane. I noticed that the u3a in the UK has Interest Groups Online and that it has a Jane Austen Reading Group. Thanks to the miracle of the Internet, I can participate.

I have always been a fan of Jane Austen's stories. However, I must humbly admit that some of her books I have watched the TV and movie versions rather than the books. For example, I have watched the BBC dramatization of Northanger Abbey and, for Sense and Sensibility, have watched a BBC dramatization and seen the Emma Thompson movie version several times, but, admittedly, had not read those books. Being part of the Jane Austen Reading Group helps discipline me to actually read these books. I find that reading the book is even better than watching the TV or movie versions because, as good as those TV and movies and versions are, Jane Austen’s prose is so great.

The Jane Austen Reading Group’s leader emphasises slow and careful reading. Our project is to read through all of Jane Austen's novels, which at our current pace, will take maybe four or more years. So one has to decide if a book is worth that large allocation of time. For me, the two authors I would say are worth it are Jane Austen and William Shakespeare. Jane Austen's prose is be so dense - in a good way - that one has to slowly consider a sentence to fully unpack its meaning.  We pause as we read to unpack complex sentences, to help us understand them. There is so much richness in even a paragraph. 

Jane Austen’s prose combines great insight into issues and characters with a light/comedic/humorous/witty and often sarcastic tone that is so special. Like great food or great wine, it is even better savoured slowly.

It is the combination of reading aloud, which is fun, with group discussion that makes this group so good. I get to hear other people's perspectives on issues raised in the book and their relation to modern times. The discussions hit the right mix between people asserting their opinions and listening to other perspectives. This group has been going on for about 15 months now. And there are members, including myself, who have been here this whole time.

One reason for Jane Austen’s sustained popularity is that the books are great literature. As Jane Austen herself says in her defense of the novel in Northanger Abbey, novels provide “the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language."  She puts this into practice in her novels about as well as anyone ever has.  People appreciate this outstanding quality in her novels. 

Another reason for the popularity is Jane Austen writes about people living their domestic life.  Her novels are about the people that we are in our daily lives, the people we are close to and the other people we spend our time with.  She is not spinning tales of spy stories, or military or political adventures. These can be very interesting, but for me are not as useful because those aren't lives that I live.  

Here I might add that I am the only male in the group other than the tutor. It is said that romance as genre of novel has a great appeal to women. Jane Austen’s novels are about the best romance novels because of their realism and, I would guess, because they have happy endings. They depict the struggles of women to find happiness.  However, Jane Austen’s realistic and insightful depiction of finding greater happiness through finding the right life partner is timeless and applies to men as well as women. The novels are a sophisticated look at romance, because central to finding a romantic partner is the importance of knowing people's deep character and not being fooled by superficial charisma of manner.  Potential partners who seem charming in conversation may actually be rogues in terms of their true inner character. 

 Furthermore, although romance appears as the central focus, I generalise her insights into human nature to broader situations. Her books teach me to be patient with people who are shy or a bit awkward; and, conversely, not to instantly be charmed by conversationalists but instead to try to pierce through their exterior manner to their inner character.

 My favourite novel by Jane Austen is a controversial choice; Mansfield Park. I know that many people despise the heroine of that novel, Fanny Price. She is extremely shy and has almost zero charm in conversation.  But I like it as a dramatic example of how one has to look deeper than superficial manner to see a person’s true character.

I also like Mansfield Park as an example of how one has to adapt to the world one lives in because there is much that is not in your power to change. I think in this way Jane Austen's philosophy of life is a bit similar to Stoicism.    

For me as an international person in this group, I get the special benefit of interacting with and hearing the views of British people, and I hope they find it enriching to hear a perspective from outside Britain, though mostly we are all just people discussing a common interest.