Jane Austen, 1775 - 1817
Author of this webpage: Renée Goodvin

Jane Austen was a supreme English Romantic prose stylist and novelist whose writings have secured her a place in the English Literary Canon.

Born in 1775, the second daughter of a parish rector, Jane Austen lived all her life as a member of the landed gentry in the English country side. Though she was not published until she was thirty-five, Austen was a prolific writer from adolescence until her death in 1817.

As young girls, Jane and her sister, Cassandra, had what can be considered a genteel education. Between 1783 & 1786, they attended boarding school and in December of 1786, they returned to home to be educated.

Neither Jane nor Cassandra ever married. Their lives as members of the landed gentry consisted of much traveling to visit family and friends. Her observations during her travels of the intricacies of this social class serve as inspirations for her writings.

Throughout her literary career, Jane constantly revised her writings. In 1810, Sense and Sensibility was accepted for publication.

Like most female writers of her day, none of Austen's works were published under her own name in her lifetime. Instead, Sense and Sensibility was published "By a Lady," and subsequently Pride and Prejudice was published "by the Author of Sense and Sensibility."

By 1813, Jane's writings were selling out and netting her a profit.

In 1816, Jane Austen fell ill. In April of 1817, Jane, still ill, made her will, leaving nearly everything to her sister, Cassandra. In May of 1817, Jane was moved to Winchester to receive better medical care. On July 18, 1817, Jane Austen died.

Eventually, Jane Austen was recognized as the author of her existing works and other volumes were published posthumously.

Jane Austen's Principal Works:

Novels

Sense and Sensibility - pub'd. 1811

Pride and Prejudice - pub'd. 1813

Mansfield Park - pub'd. 1814

Emma - pub'd. 1816

Northanger Abbey and Persuasion - pub'd. 1818

Lady Susan - pub'd. 1871

The Watsons (unfinished) - pub'd. 1813

[Sanditon] Fragments of a Novel - pub'd. 1925

Juvenilia

Love and Friendship, and Other Early Works - pub'd. 1922

Volume the First - pub'd. 1933

Volume the Second - pub'd. 1951

Letters

Jane Austen's Letters to her Sister Cassandra and Others, edited by R.W. Chapman - pub'd. 1932

The information for Jane Austen's biography was adapted from Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism, volume 1, p. 29 and A Jane Austen Encyclopedia, by Paul Poplawski.

Jane Austen Links:

Jane Austen Society of North America

The Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) brings scholars and enthusiasts, amateurs, and professionals together on equal terms to study and celebrate the genius of Jane Austen.

Jane Austen MasterTexts (tm)

Full texts of Austen's literary masterpieces to enjoy.

Austen - Criticism

Jane Austen Criticism from the Internet Public Library.

Jane Austen: An Overview

An overview of Jane Austen from the "Pre-Victorian" section of The Victorian Web.

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Last updated January 28, 2005