Jane Austen Research Paper

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Jane Austen was born on December 16, 1775, in Steventon, Hampshire, England. She was the seventh of eight children to Cassandra and George Austen. Laura Dabundo in Novels for Students describes them as "a close-knit family, low on financial resources but strong on education and religious principles." (Dabundo). Growing up, Austen would write her own stories in a journal. While in Steventon, she fell in love with a man named Thomas Lefroy. The romance was put to an abrupt end, however, when Lefroy's aunt became worried that her nephew's name would be ruined if he married a poor churchman's daughter. He then left Jane alone in Steventon after following his aunt's advice. She and her sister never married during their lifetime, but they relied heavily on each other for companionship, which was beneficial because they moved around England many times. The family moved to Bath, and Jane later moved to Chawton with her mother. Finally, she moved to Winchester to be near her doctor, who helped her with an illness. She died at age 41 in Winchester on March 18, 1817. Jane and Cassandra …show more content…

In the book DISCovering Authors, Elizabeth Jenkins critiques Austen's characterization of Elizabeth and Darcy. Jenkins reveres Elizabeth, saying that she "is completely human" (Jenkins). This notion is unquestionable; in fact, Elizabeth's character is very dynamic and develops throughout the story. Elizabeth is steadfast in her opinion of Darcy at the beginning of the story. After reading his letter however, "she grew absolutely ashamed of herself… [She could not think] without feeling that she had been blind, partial, prejudiced, absurd" (Austen 182). Elizabeth realizes that her anger towards him was built upon false assumptions of his character and tries to mend her wrongdoings. The readers are able to relate to her because she seems more realistic and human when she addresses her