Aug 28, 2019 02:32 PM
https://www.historyextra.com/period/geor...n-england/
EXCERPT: Jane Austen's novels, which are set predominantly in rural England in the late Georgian period, provide a fascinating picture of life at that time – but how much is fact and how much fiction? Here, historian and author Helen Amy considers Austen's depictions of rural life, social etiquette and more...
There are two good reasons to expect the novels of Jane Austen to be factually accurate. Firstly, Austen wrote only about what she knew and what was probable, for fear of giving “false representations”. She drew directly from her own experience and observations of the people around her; her works are full of the groups and types of people with whom she was familiar. Secondly, Austen was concerned with detail and accuracy. She did not, for example, describe men alone because she did not know how they talked without a woman present. However, it’s important to remember that Austen was first and foremost a novelist, and creative considerations sometimes overrode her factual correctness. [...]
The wider backdrop to the novels is well depicted. England is accurately shown as a hierarchical and patriarchal society in which everyone knows their place and in which women are considered second-class citizens, largely confined to the private domestic sphere. Men run the country, public institutions, the professions and own the land and the authenticity of the world Austen presents is enhanced by rounded and convincing characters.
When considering a selection of aspects of Austen’s novels, how factually accurate are they within the narrow confines she set herself? (MORE - details)
EXCERPT: Jane Austen's novels, which are set predominantly in rural England in the late Georgian period, provide a fascinating picture of life at that time – but how much is fact and how much fiction? Here, historian and author Helen Amy considers Austen's depictions of rural life, social etiquette and more...
There are two good reasons to expect the novels of Jane Austen to be factually accurate. Firstly, Austen wrote only about what she knew and what was probable, for fear of giving “false representations”. She drew directly from her own experience and observations of the people around her; her works are full of the groups and types of people with whom she was familiar. Secondly, Austen was concerned with detail and accuracy. She did not, for example, describe men alone because she did not know how they talked without a woman present. However, it’s important to remember that Austen was first and foremost a novelist, and creative considerations sometimes overrode her factual correctness. [...]
The wider backdrop to the novels is well depicted. England is accurately shown as a hierarchical and patriarchal society in which everyone knows their place and in which women are considered second-class citizens, largely confined to the private domestic sphere. Men run the country, public institutions, the professions and own the land and the authenticity of the world Austen presents is enhanced by rounded and convincing characters.
When considering a selection of aspects of Austen’s novels, how factually accurate are they within the narrow confines she set herself? (MORE - details)