Jane Austen's Letters to Her Sister Cassandra and Others
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Author Description
It has been said that Jane Austen the woman and Jane Austen the author are all of a piece, and nowhere is this more evident to the lovers of her novels than in the pages of her letters. This new celebration of these letters is illustrated with portraits, facsimile letters, topographical engravings and fashion plates, and aims to bring to life the world Jane Austen inhabited. Although the book follows a broadly chronological scheme, the letters are arranged round visual themes considered particularly suitable for illustration, such as the Hampshire countryside, social life in Bath and London, domestic pursuits, paying visits and travelling by carriage. The author, who was born in Jane Austen's Hampshire village, lectures on English Literature for the Open University and the Oxford University Department of External Studies. Her special interest is 19th-century children's literature and she has compiled an anthology, "Childhood".
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This collection investigates the intersection of Jane Austen's personal life and her literary output through the primary source material of her surviving correspondence. The editor, R. W. Chapman, utilizes these letters to construct a biographical framework that bridges the gap between the private woman and the public author. By organizing the documents around specific visual and social themes, the work argues that Austen's domestic environment and social interactions directly informed the thematic concerns of her novels.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- A chronological arrangement of Jane Austen's personal correspondence.
- Visual documentation including portraits, facsimile letters, and topographical engravings.
- Contextual analysis of 19th-century social life in Bath, London, and Hampshire.
Scope Limits
- The collection is limited to surviving letters and does not include lost correspondence.
- The analysis focuses primarily on the social and domestic context rather than exhaustive literary critique.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Experts recognize this collection as a foundational resource for scholars and enthusiasts seeking to understand the historical reality behind Austen's fiction. Readers frequently note that the inclusion of visual materials provides a helpful, immersive layer to the otherwise dense academic presentation of the letters.
Page Count:
729
Publication Date:
1952-01-01
Publisher:
Oxford University Press
ISBN-10:
0192121022
ISBN-13:
9780192121028
History
Biography
Letters
Literary Criticism
19th Century
Authors correspondence
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