Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

What You're Not to Read 3

Foolish Assumptions 4

How This Book Is Organized 5

Part I: Getting to Know Jane Austen, Lady and Novelist 5

Part II: Austen Observes Ladies and Gentlemen 5

Part III: Living Life in Jane's World 6

Part IV: Enjoying Austen and Her Influence Today 6

Part V: The Part of Tens 6

Appendix 6

Icons Used in This Book 7

Where to Go from Here 7

Part I: Getting to Know Jane Austen, Lady and Novelist 9

Chapter 1: Introducing Jane Austen 11

Identifying the Lady Writer 12

Keeping a Personal Record 13

Getting Reviewed 13

Checking out the comments from the critics of her day 13

Glancing at later reviews 15

Listening to Austen's current readers 16

Getting Comfortable with "Jane" 16

Hearing the friendly, welcoming narrator 17

Hearing "Jane, the friend" become the witty, terse narrator 17

Delivering the Hollywood goods 18

Observing with Austen 20

Writing dialogue and conversation 20

Having an ear for a character's voice 21

Having an eye for details 21

Tracing Austen's Popularity 22

Starting the Saint Jane myth 22

Victorianizing Jane Austen 23

Taking Austen to the trenches 23

Taking Austen to school 24

Becoming Today's Janeite 25

Chapter 2: Visiting Jane Austen's Georgian World 27

Asserting Austen's Georgian-ness 27

Examining Austen's Georgian satire 29

Preferring candor over prudishness 30

Surveying the Political Landscape 31

Discerning Tories from Whigs 31

Anticipating trouble at home and across the channel 32

Sugaring tea from the slave trade 35

Understanding the Class System 37

Recognizing class 37

Defining "condescension" 42

Growing the Novel 43

Influencing the creation of the novel 44

Writing for middle-class readers and women 45

Chapter 3: Being Jane Austen (1775-1817) 47

Meeting the Austens 47

Introducing the Rev Mr and Mrs Austen 48

Getting to know Jane and her siblings 48

Growing Up Gentry: Jane's Formative Years 52

Living and learning at the rectory 53

Surviving boarding school 54

Getting bitten by the writing bug: Austen's "Juvenilia" 54

Becoming a Professional Writer 57

Beginning a life of letter writing 57

Experimenting with epistolary novels 58

Seeing the Personal Side of Jane 58

Having a sophisticated grown-up friend 59

Flirting with a new friend, Tom Lefroy 59

Remaining unmarried 60

Experiencing New Places, New Faces, New Feelings: Moving to Bath 63

Living and lulling in Bath 64

Accepting and rejecting a proposal 64

Losing a father and a friend 65

Relying on the kindness of sons and brothers 66

Exploring the Highs and Lows of Being a Writer 66

Getting published for the first time 67

Writing as a mature novelist 68

Succumbing to Illness 70

Seeking help in Winchester 71

Dying at age 41 71

Reacting to her death 72

Chapter 4: Inspiring the Aspiring Novelist 75

Growing Up in a Family of Novel Readers 75

Absorbing the style of The Book of Common Prayer 76

Jumping to Dr Johnson for instruction in morality and prose 76

Finding Shakespeare in Austen's "constitution" 77

Mining Milton 78

Learning from Drama 78

Presenting characters dramatically 79

Creating effective entrances 80

Rising Sentimentalism and Sensibility in Society 82

Austen's youthful reaction to sensibility 82

Austen's mature reaction to sensibility 83

Sensing Sensibility in Samuel Richardson 83

Developing the epistolary novel 84

Austen's inheritance from Richardson 85

Austen's departure from Richardson 85

Maturing the Novel with Henry Fielding 86

Reading Fanny Burney 87

Being Influenced By Real People 87

Meeting an exotic "French" cousin 88

Running across other memorable personalities 88

Bringing It All Together: The Genius of Jane Austen 89

Creating living, breathing characters 89

Setting her characters in society 90

Part II: Austen Observes Ladies and Gentlemen 91

Chapter 5: Practicing the Politics of Dancing 93

Looking for Love on the Dance Floor 94

Rolling up the rugs to dance at home 94

Attending formal balls 95

Facing the challenges of dancing 102

Finding a Desirable Dance Partner (Possibly for Life!) 103

Getting help from the Master of Ceremonies 103

Taking a turn with family and friends 104

Putting Those Childhood Dance Lessons to Good Use 105

Dancing up the set 106

Knowing other popular dances 107

Observing dancing etiquette 107

Having fun under a watchful chaperone's eye 109

Amusing the Non-Dancers: Finding the Card and Tea Rooms 110

Chapter 6: Playing the Dating Game: Courtship, Austen Style 113

Defining Eligibility 113

"Coming Out" as a Young Lady 114

Identifying the eligible gentlemen 118

Getting to Know Each Other 119

The courtship do's of Austen's day 120

The don'ts (unless done on the sly) 121

Mastering the Fine Art of Flirting 124

"Looking" the feelings of love 125

Reading and misreading body language 126

Speaking the language of love 126

Getting Engaged (Finally!) 127

Making the proposal 127

Securing father's approval 128

Exchanging gifts 129

Breaking an engagement 129

Chapter 7: Marrying: A Serious Business for Jane Austen and Her Characters 131

Exploring the Main Motivations for Marrying 132

Landing a loving husband with a sizeable estate 132

Choosing a willing wife with a decent dowry 136

Understanding why some folks (including Austen) broke with tradition 138

Coming to Terms 140

Drawing up the marriage settlement or articles 141

Arranging for a jointure 142

Sealing the Deal 142

Choosing the wedding clothes and coach 142

Announcing the nuptials 143

Sharing the big day with family and friends 145

Eloping to Gretna Green and avoiding the whole thing 145

Taking the honeymoon 146

Breaching the Agreement: Facing the Shame of Divorce 147

Chapter 8: Wily Females and Seductive Males 149

Working with What You've Got to Get Your Man 150

Capturing a husband with "youth and beauty" 150

Using beauty and trickery when you don't have youth 152

Flirting Your Way to a Husband - Hopefully 152

Flirting and failing 154

Witnessing unconscious flirting 155

Mistaken flirting 156

Dealing with Dangerous Men 156

Seducing for the thrill of it 156

Seducing for money 158

Winning a Spouse with Honesty 158

Part III: Living Life in Jane's World 161

Chapter 9: Looking at Ladies' Limited Rights and Roles 163

Living as a Lady in a Gentleman's World 164

Limiting the lady's life by law 164

Belonging to daddy 165

Relying on the kindness of brothers 166

Protecting the unmarried, brotherless gentlewoman 167

Becoming an "Accomplished" Lady 167

Defining the "accomplished woman" 168

Attending a seminary in the city 168

Going to boarding school 169

Having a governess 170

Learning ad hoc at home (or not) 171

Training a lady 171

Placing Austen in the Women's Movement 172

Austen's advocating the rational female 172

Aligning Jane Austen with Mary Wollstonecraft 173

Assessing the Single Gentlewoman's Single Occupation 174

Chapter 10: Being a Man in a Man's World 177

Being a Gentleman's Son 177

Training to a be a gentleman in boyhood 178

Beginning a more formal education 179

Heading to Eton or another "public" school 179

Gaining an "OxBridge" degree 181

Taking the Grand Tour 182

Inheriting Property 183

Respecting primogeniture 183

Disentangling the entail 185

Being the Eldest Son 186

Enjoying an elder brother's "rights" 186

Training to run the estate 188

Supporting Younger Sons of Gentlemen 189

Finding a genteel profession 189

Marrying into money 191

Pinch-hitting for older brother 192

Meeting the New Gentleman in a Rising Middle Class 192

Moving up as a businessman 193

Being a gentleman through manners and education 194

Chapter 11: Experiencing Life at Home in Austen's Day 195

Living in a Country House 195

Touring country houses 196

Picking up Austen's hints about a modern-built house 200

Keeping the country house running 201

Taking on the Responsibilities of the Lady of the House 203

Overseeing the country house 204

Raising the children 205

Being a Gentleman Farmer 206

Improving the estate, or not 206

Raising the children 207

Aiding the church 207

Hosting one's guests 207

Entering Parliament 208

Participating in local government 209

Evening Entertainment 209

Dining with guests 210

Playing cards 210

Reading and writing 211

Chatting with family and friends 212

Listening to music 212

Dancing at home 213

Traveling Away from Home 213

Showing that you are what you drive 214

Austen's showing that you are what you drive 219

Chapter 12: Minding Your Manners 221