Jane Austen was born on December 16, 1775 in Steventon, a small Hampshire village in England. She was the seventh of eight siblings and was the second of only two daughters in the family. Her parents were Cassandra Leigh and George Austen. Jane’s father worked as a local preacher in the community. Her family lived comfortably, though not extravagantly. Although Jane had several courtships and was even engaged in 1802, she never married. She lived in the Parsonage House in the country village of Steventon for twenty five years and grew very close to her sister Cassandra. When her father retired in 1801, the family moved to Bath, but tragedy struck in 1805, and her father passed away. Jane and her sister were not left with large dowries. They …show more content…
Jane and Cassandra only received a few years of education at the Abbey School in Reading. She learned skills such as drawing, sewing, singing, dancing, French, and letter writing. These skills were expected for a young lady in the time period to learn, but not much other schooling was required. Jane left the school when she was nine, and later went to school for a short period in Southampton. She received most of her lessons at home in the family library. One factor that contributed to her home education was that they most likely, were not able to afford more years at school for Jane. However, the Austen’s library consisted of about five hundred books, so Jane had access to many valuable resources. At home, Jane learned French and Italian, studied music and literature, history and theater. Normally, the only careers open to women were that of a school teacher or a governess, but many married women preferred not to work. Jane often ridiculed the skills she learned at school and the women who did not desire to learn or work, in her novels. In 1817, Jane’s health began to deteriorate and she went to Winchester for medical help. Jane Austen died when she was forty one years old, on July 18, 1817 in Winchester,