Virginia Woolf famously asserts of Jane Austen that ‘of all great writers she is the most difficult to catch in the act of greatness’. This course examines the six published novels of Austen, supplemented with selections from her letters. We will read the novels in the order of their composition (not their publication), beginning with Northanger Abbey and concluding with Persuasion, published posthumously. We will investigate the cultural restraints that Austen both undermined and exploited, as well as her distinctive response to issues ranging from romance, taste, and domesticity to class, sexuality, and imperialism.
Readings
Austen, Jane, Northanger Abbey
----------Sense and Sensibility
----------Pride and Prejudice
----------Mansfield Park
----------Emma
----------Persuasion
----------Selected Letters
Assessment
1 essay (possibly in-class), a series of unannounced quizzes, class participation, a final exam.
