Hey everyone, welcome to my continued blog on Jane Austen!
As I have written in my previous blog, Jane Austen wrote the <<Pride and Prejudice>>, which was made into movies since the novel was first published in 1813. I am actually excited for today's blog, which I will be talking more about Jane Austen's life as well as how her novels were written.
To start off, Jane Austen (1775-1817) was born in Steventon in England to a family in which she had six brothers and a sister. Like many families in those days, the family went to church regularly as her father was a rector in the town. Now, the reason why she chose her profession as a writer was that she was encouraged to write stories and poems from her childhood - her family was very supportive of it. She was like the literary one in her family - perhaps it was a natural talent, but definitely without her brother's or father's help, it would have had been very difficult to publish her novels.
So you might ask, what does her life and background has to do with her novels? After all, fictions are not really true stories. Or is it?
How I believe is a little different from here. After reading all of her six novels, I think I have come to understand Jane a little more. Perhaps you may have heard of the name Tom Lefroy from the movie <<Becoming Jane>>? Yes, that is right, it was her romance with Tom that inspired the famous Classic called <<Pride and Prejudice>>.
I may be imagining myself, but after learning about how their short-lived romance (it was only like a month) ended and how Tom named her daughter Jane, I think he must have had a large impact on her novels. Actually, I see him everywhere in her novels - Mr. Darcy, Captain Wentworth, Mr. Knightley, Edmund, Edward and Henry Tilney. Now that I think how a month of romance would have had consisted of countless flirtations, heart skips, and passion, I feel that the male protagonists in her novels were all based on her romantic relationship with Tom Lefroy. You might disagree with me, but that is how I perceive these characters at this moment.
That being said, my ultimate favourite character version of Tom would have to be Captain Wentworth from <<Persuasion>>. Considering the fact that Wentworth actually serves in the navy is very different from Tom Lefroy who studied law; however, I feel that he is the only character that is neither rich or prestigious in social standing. He worked his way up to become a captain of his ship and while he worked, he was going through many years of a bitter separation from Anne Elliot. Misunderstandings, bitterness of feelings of both parties, and the short duration of their relationship are all that was felt by Jane Austen by the time she has published her novel in 1818. This novel, in effect, had to be my favourite besides <<Pride and Prejudice>> for being a very realistic novel in comparison to all of her novels and also for portraying herself very much.
Mr. Darcy, on the other hand, is already a ready-made man. Rich, handsome, and well-educated with not lacking any single importance that was demanded by the society of all times. I love him though - his intelligence, his calm disposition, and his willingness to sacrifice to marry Elizabeth. Who wouldn't, right? Anyways, if you have read this novel, then you know Mr.Darcy is a real man.
At this point, you may not fully see that Austen's female characters reflect herself as well. However, the more I read them, the more I am convinced that every female protagonist is in fact Jane Austen. It's like trying to put puzzle pieces at the right place, but you will see that they are eventually. It's like musicians who write their own songs and their songs are really just another story of their lives. I feel that writers do the same thing, because inspirations come from your surroundings.
Hopefully, you all had a better knowledge about Jane Austen and how to approach her novels! I fully recommend you to read <<Pride and Prejudice>>, <<Persuasion>>, and <<Emma>> if you want to learn more about Jane Austen!
Thanks for reading and follow me if you like my blog posts. :)
*~*~*Next time I will talk about <<Pride and Prejudice>> and share some of my favourite quotes from the novel. Stay updated!*~*~*
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Monday, May 27, 2013
Jane Austen, the all-time favourite author in the 21st Century!
Hello fellow Classics lovers!
This is Inès again. So today I wanted to start off by saying how excited I was to be visiting the place that is like 'blueprints' on my brain and undoubtedly has given me most of my favourite childhood memories. As some of you may have had lived in different places during childhood like myself, I wanted to relate to you how awesome it felt to be seeing the place in 10 years. I can't exactly find the right word for it because that place is so special to me that made my whole face glow with joy!
Anyways, going back to our main topic, today I want to give you my personal insights to getting into Jane Austen's novels - by the way, there are 6 published novels that are widely distributed in North America and other continents. The most renowned novel is perhaps <<Pride and Prejudice>>, followed by <<Sense and Sensibility>>, <<Emma>> and other novels. In short, here is what she wrote over the course of her life:
Sense and Sensibility (1811)
Pride and Prejudice (1813)
Mansfield Park (1814)
Emma (1815)
Northanger Abbey (1818)
Persuasion (1818)
I've recently finished reading the complete list of these novels - my last one being Persuasion. I began reading Pride and Prejudice when I was fourteen or fifteen, but I think I did not really absorb everything that Jane Austen described in the particular novel the first time I read it. Since English is not my first language, I think I was struggling through her witty, elaborate style of writing (and I may still do!) for the first five times I read it.
Yes, I do love <<Pride and Prejudice>> -Why? -Well, I've learned a great deal about the author's personal life and she portrays herself as the main protagonist - an attractive character, the famous Miss Elizabeth Bennett. Lizzy (Elizabeth's nickname) is an incredibly sensible woman, if I may add. She has dignity and self-confidence and knows how to use them when necessary. Her love of reading, playing piano and strolling are some of many things that I admire about her. Often main characters in the novel end up being someone that you want to become in the future, but yes, she is that kind of character to me.
Here is how I befriended the novel - and I have to say, I read it more than any of the novels I have ever read (and of course, I sometimes skip directly to pages about people getting into fights and other juicy stuff). Everytime I read it, I just love the feeling of being satisfied. I don't want to spoil anything for those who haven't had the chance to read it yet (and maybe that is why you are reading my blog to get yourself interested in the novel first!), so I will only add that Jane Austen uses typicial domestic affairs to make a bold statement for herself.
Just a few weeks ago, Indigo (Chapters) slashed the price of many Classic novels to just 5 dollars. Hopefully you can grab one on-the-go and more satisfactorily, choose a Jane Austen novel!
*~*~*~*In the next blog, I will continue with Jane Austen's novels, more in-depth with her other five novels. *~*~*~*
This is Inès again. So today I wanted to start off by saying how excited I was to be visiting the place that is like 'blueprints' on my brain and undoubtedly has given me most of my favourite childhood memories. As some of you may have had lived in different places during childhood like myself, I wanted to relate to you how awesome it felt to be seeing the place in 10 years. I can't exactly find the right word for it because that place is so special to me that made my whole face glow with joy!
Anyways, going back to our main topic, today I want to give you my personal insights to getting into Jane Austen's novels - by the way, there are 6 published novels that are widely distributed in North America and other continents. The most renowned novel is perhaps <<Pride and Prejudice>>, followed by <<Sense and Sensibility>>, <<Emma>> and other novels. In short, here is what she wrote over the course of her life:
Sense and Sensibility (1811)
Pride and Prejudice (1813)
Mansfield Park (1814)
Emma (1815)
Northanger Abbey (1818)
Persuasion (1818)
I've recently finished reading the complete list of these novels - my last one being Persuasion. I began reading Pride and Prejudice when I was fourteen or fifteen, but I think I did not really absorb everything that Jane Austen described in the particular novel the first time I read it. Since English is not my first language, I think I was struggling through her witty, elaborate style of writing (and I may still do!) for the first five times I read it.
Yes, I do love <<Pride and Prejudice>> -Why? -Well, I've learned a great deal about the author's personal life and she portrays herself as the main protagonist - an attractive character, the famous Miss Elizabeth Bennett. Lizzy (Elizabeth's nickname) is an incredibly sensible woman, if I may add. She has dignity and self-confidence and knows how to use them when necessary. Her love of reading, playing piano and strolling are some of many things that I admire about her. Often main characters in the novel end up being someone that you want to become in the future, but yes, she is that kind of character to me.
Here is how I befriended the novel - and I have to say, I read it more than any of the novels I have ever read (and of course, I sometimes skip directly to pages about people getting into fights and other juicy stuff). Everytime I read it, I just love the feeling of being satisfied. I don't want to spoil anything for those who haven't had the chance to read it yet (and maybe that is why you are reading my blog to get yourself interested in the novel first!), so I will only add that Jane Austen uses typicial domestic affairs to make a bold statement for herself.
Just a few weeks ago, Indigo (Chapters) slashed the price of many Classic novels to just 5 dollars. Hopefully you can grab one on-the-go and more satisfactorily, choose a Jane Austen novel!
*~*~*~*In the next blog, I will continue with Jane Austen's novels, more in-depth with her other five novels. *~*~*~*
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Welcome to the wonderful world of Classics!
Hello fellow bloggers and curious explorers,
Today I want to introduce you to Classics - a truly marvelous, ingenious world, if you look closely that is.
Before I go on, I need to ask you, have you ever read a Jane Austen novel like <<Pride and Prejudice>> or a Charles Dickens novel such as << Oliver Twist>>? By the way, those two are my all-time favourites - if you haven't yet, then this is a blog for you!
Now, you may have seen this movie poster somewhere before:
The first poster for <<Pride and Prejudice>> by Jane Austen (left) represents the mini series made in 1995 that is about 3 hrs or longer. The right poster shows the most recent adapted version in 2005. Both movies were huge hits, but in terms of accuracy and realistic imitation of the novel, I would say the older version portrayed it better (Mostly owing to the fact that the 2005 one features incredibly hot actor and actress, and focuses on key facts of the story). <<Becoming Jane>> is another favourite movie of mine, because it is all about Jane Austen - not her characters. Plus, James McAvoy is a hottie.
Anyways, getting back to my initial point, Jane Austen was a female British writer who was active in late 1700s to early 1800s. Many people think that Classics belongs to a certain century or an era which is limited to specific time and place. However, Ernest Hemingway's novels are also considered Classics who was born as American and died in 1961. That being said, Classics can be a broad subject - it has so many writers that it might take several years (or my whole life) to finish every single book that was ever written by those countless, amazing writers in the world!
What I want to do in this blog is to share what I feel about Classics and to talk in-depth about several writers and their novels. I particularly am inspired by Jane Austen, a female writer who literally mastered the art of writing, and Charles Dickens who happens to have had great vigour to write all of those thick, 1000-paged novels as well as others including Emily Bronte, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Hermann Hesse and Leo Tolstoy.
I would also talk about non-classic writers who has struck me most definitely and shaped me during my teenage years such as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Bernard Werber, Harper Lee, Joachim de Posada and José Saramago.
I'll be updating my blog on a regular basis (once every 2 days), so feel free to leave me a comment or suggestion below! I am open to your suggested authors or novels that you may have in mind. I'll try to keep this as interactive as possible. I look forward to the next blog we will sharing together! :) Oh, and if you like my blog, follow me ;)
Have a happy Saturday!
Today I want to introduce you to Classics - a truly marvelous, ingenious world, if you look closely that is.
Before I go on, I need to ask you, have you ever read a Jane Austen novel like <<Pride and Prejudice>> or a Charles Dickens novel such as << Oliver Twist>>? By the way, those two are my all-time favourites - if you haven't yet, then this is a blog for you!
Now, you may have seen this movie poster somewhere before:
The first poster for <<Pride and Prejudice>> by Jane Austen (left) represents the mini series made in 1995 that is about 3 hrs or longer. The right poster shows the most recent adapted version in 2005. Both movies were huge hits, but in terms of accuracy and realistic imitation of the novel, I would say the older version portrayed it better (Mostly owing to the fact that the 2005 one features incredibly hot actor and actress, and focuses on key facts of the story). <<Becoming Jane>> is another favourite movie of mine, because it is all about Jane Austen - not her characters. Plus, James McAvoy is a hottie.
Anyways, getting back to my initial point, Jane Austen was a female British writer who was active in late 1700s to early 1800s. Many people think that Classics belongs to a certain century or an era which is limited to specific time and place. However, Ernest Hemingway's novels are also considered Classics who was born as American and died in 1961. That being said, Classics can be a broad subject - it has so many writers that it might take several years (or my whole life) to finish every single book that was ever written by those countless, amazing writers in the world!
What I want to do in this blog is to share what I feel about Classics and to talk in-depth about several writers and their novels. I particularly am inspired by Jane Austen, a female writer who literally mastered the art of writing, and Charles Dickens who happens to have had great vigour to write all of those thick, 1000-paged novels as well as others including Emily Bronte, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Hermann Hesse and Leo Tolstoy.
I would also talk about non-classic writers who has struck me most definitely and shaped me during my teenage years such as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Bernard Werber, Harper Lee, Joachim de Posada and José Saramago.
I'll be updating my blog on a regular basis (once every 2 days), so feel free to leave me a comment or suggestion below! I am open to your suggested authors or novels that you may have in mind. I'll try to keep this as interactive as possible. I look forward to the next blog we will sharing together! :) Oh, and if you like my blog, follow me ;)
Have a happy Saturday!
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