Maybe no canonical author is more accessible than Austen. While people speak of loving Shakespeare, they often don't feel equal to the task of reading him. Not so with Austen—her charming stories of clever women, elusive love, and social mores are a delight for middle schoolers and retirees alike, for readers in the 19th century and today. Austen's magic formula typically involves a beautifully structured plot, a believable set of characters, a healthy dose of wit, a level of suspense that keeps the reader guessing, and an ending that is more or less happily-ever-after.
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I admit that Austen's appeal for me is not only the refreshing ease of her storytelling, but my fascination with the period—the tea parties, the gossip, the idleness, and the excess. And Emma is in many ways a perfect study of excess. Spoiled, rich and self-righteous, the titular Emma Woodhouse is a notorious busybody whose main labor is social leisure. While she believes herself to be an excellent matchmaker, her meddling and machinations in others' affairs result in a series of misunderstandings, social blunders, and wounded feelings. This makes for a highly engaging, albeit frivolous, read—what I imagine might have been the 19th century equivalent of reality TV.
Maybe no canonical author is more accessible than Austen. While people speak of loving Shakespeare, they often don't feel equal to the task of reading him. Not so with Austen—her charming stories of clever women, elusive love, and social mores are a delight for middle schoolers and retirees alike, for readers in the 19th century and today. Austen's magic formula typically involves a beautifully structured plot, a believable set of characters, a healthy dose of wit, a level of suspense that keeps the reader guessing, and an ending that is more or less happily-ever-after.
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I admit that Austen's appeal for me is not only the refreshing ease of her storytelling, but my fascination with the period—the tea parties, the gossip, the idleness, and the excess. And Emma is in many ways a perfect study of excess. Spoiled, rich and self-righteous, the titular Emma Woodhouse is a notorious busybody whose main labor is social leisure. While she believes herself to be an excellent matchmaker, her meddling and machinations in others' affairs result in a series of misunderstandings, social blunders, and wounded feelings. This makes for a highly engaging, albeit frivolous, read—what I imagine might have been the 19th century equivalent of reality TV.
Maybe no canonical author is more accessible than Austen. While people speak of loving Shakespeare, they often don't feel equal to the task of reading him. Not so with Austen—her charming stories of clever women, elusive love, and social mores are a delight for middle schoolers and retirees alike, for readers in the 19th century and today. Austen's magic formula typically involves a beautifully structured plot, a believable set of characters, a healthy dose of wit, a level of suspense that keeps the reader guessing, and an ending that is more or less happily-ever-after.
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I admit that Austen's appeal for me is not only the refreshing ease of her storytelling, but my fascination with the period—the tea parties, the gossip, the idleness, and the excess. And Emma is in many ways a perfect study of excess. Spoiled, rich and self-righteous, the titular Emma Woodhouse is a notorious busybody whose main labor is social leisure. While she believes herself to be an excellent matchmaker, her meddling and machinations in others' affairs result in a series of misunderstandings, social blunders, and wounded feelings. This makes for a highly engaging, albeit frivolous, read—what I imagine might have been the 19th century equivalent of reality TV.
Maybe no canonical author is more accessible than Austen. While people speak of loving Shakespeare, they often don't feel equal to the task of reading him. Not so with Austen—her charming stories of clever women, elusive love, and social mores are a delight for middle schoolers and retirees alike, for readers in the 19th century and today. Austen's magic formula typically involves a beautifully structured plot, a believable set of characters, a healthy dose of wit, a level of suspense that keeps the reader guessing, and an ending that is more or less happily-ever-after.
‍
I admit that Austen's appeal for me is not only the refreshing ease of her storytelling, but my fascination with the period—the tea parties, the gossip, the idleness, and the excess. And Emma is in many ways a perfect study of excess. Spoiled, rich and self-righteous, the titular Emma Woodhouse is a notorious busybody whose main labor is social leisure. While she believes herself to be an excellent matchmaker, her meddling and machinations in others' affairs result in a series of misunderstandings, social blunders, and wounded feelings. This makes for a highly engaging, albeit frivolous, read—what I imagine might have been the 19th century equivalent of reality TV.
Maybe no canonical author is more accessible than Austen. While people speak of loving Shakespeare, they often don't feel equal to the task of reading him. Not so with Austen—her charming stories of clever women, elusive love, and social mores are a delight for middle schoolers and retirees alike, for readers in the 19th century and today. Austen's magic formula typically involves a beautifully structured plot, a believable set of characters, a healthy dose of wit, a level of suspense that keeps the reader guessing, and an ending that is more or less happily-ever-after.
‍
I admit that Austen's appeal for me is not only the refreshing ease of her storytelling, but my fascination with the period—the tea parties, the gossip, the idleness, and the excess. And Emma is in many ways a perfect study of excess. Spoiled, rich and self-righteous, the titular Emma Woodhouse is a notorious busybody whose main labor is social leisure. While she believes herself to be an excellent matchmaker, her meddling and machinations in others' affairs result in a series of misunderstandings, social blunders, and wounded feelings. This makes for a highly engaging, albeit frivolous, read—what I imagine might have been the 19th century equivalent of reality TV.
