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Jane Austen

Jane Austen Among the novels that Jane Austen wrote, Pride and Prejudice was her favorite. Of Elizabeth Bennett, the main character in Pride and Prejudice, Jane wrote, "I think her as delightful a creature as ever appeared in print."

Sample the following internet sites and complete the activities for each one to learn more about the author of Emma and Sense and Sensibility.

Jane Austen
http://www.pemberley.com/janeinfo/janelife.html

  1. Where and when was Jane Austen born?
  2. How many children were in her family? Where was she in the order of children--1st, 3rd, 5th, etc?
  3. What did her father do for a living?
  4. According to this site, Jane's father made about £600 (pounds) a year. Go to the Universal Currency Converter and figure out how much money that is in today's exchange rates. How did Mr. Austen supplement his income?
  5. The childhood of which of Jane Austen's characters is thought to be similar to Jane's own childhood?
  6. Describe Jane's education outside her family. What kind of training did she have from within her family?
  7. Complete this quotation from Jane Austen where she contends that she and her family were "great ________, and not ashamed of being so".
  8. Where did Jane get the title for Pride and Prejudice?
  9. For whom did Jane write Juvenilia?
  10. Between 1795 and 1799, what 3 of her novels was Jane working on? What were the "working titles" of each of these novels? Jane's father offered these novels to a publisher in 1797. What were the results?
  11. What duties did Jane's oldest brother take over after the death of their father? How did Jane feel about this brother's 2nd wife?
  12. How did Jane's brother, Edward's life turn out?
  13. Who was Jane's favorite brother? What did he do for a living?
  14. Who was Jane's only sister? How did Jane feel about this sister? What in Jane's relationship with her sister has given readers an insight into the details of Jane's personal life? Why did Cassandra never marry?
  15. What did her brothers Frank and Charles do for a living?
  16. What did an acquaintance of the Austens, Mrs. Mitford, have to say about Jane?
  17. In 1795, with whom did Jane have a flirtation? In later life, what did this man become?
  18. Describe Jane's romantic experience while she lived in Bath.
  19. What happened with Jane's romantic relationship with Mr. Bigg-Withers?
  20. Did Jane every marry?
  21. In 1803, for how much money did Jane sell Northanger Abbey to a publisher? When did that book actually appear in print?
  22. In 1805, Jane's father died. What kind of financial position did this put his widow and Jane and Cassandra in? In 1809, where did they move to?
  23. When Sense and Sensibility was published, who was listed as the author? What profit did she make from this book?
  24. When did she sell Pride and Prejudice to a publisher? How did Jane refer to this book? For how much did she sell the copyright for this book? Did she get any additional money for the 2nd printing of this novel?
  25. Which of her books was published in 1814?
  26. Why didn't Jane want to have her creaking door fixed?
  27. Which of her novels was published in 1815?
  28. When did she die? How old was she when she died? What is the likely cause of her death? Where was she buried? Why didn't Cassandra attend the funeral?
  29. Which of Jane's novels were published after her death?

Jane Austen Page
http://www.mastertexts.com/Austen_Jane/Index.htm

  1. List Jane Austen's 6 major novels.
  2. What world events were going on during the time that Jane Austen was writing novels?

Author: LINDA MOSBACKER - Email linda.mosbacker@slc.k12.ut.us