Comments on: Spontaneous Reads: Northanger Abbey

By: Anticipatory Reads: Georgette Heyer « The Afterword

Anticipatory Reads: Georgette Heyer « The Afterword — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 17:58:21 +0000

[...] that I have suddenly discovered my affection for Jane Austen novels and moreover, had a Georgette Heyer novel (albeit a mystery, not a romance) [...]

By: Larissa

Larissa — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 14:01:25 +0000

I just watched a movie version of Mansfield Park and it definitely is true that Austen was very conscious of–and troubled by–the part that slavery in the West Indies contributed the wealth of England. I decided to wait awhile to read that novel so that the movie wouldn’t be so fresh in my mind, but Austen’s attitude toward slavery (at least as it came across in the movie) was one of the more compelling aspects of that story.

By: Ventristwo

Ventristwo — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 11:01:10 +0000

It seems to me Austen was conscious of the part slavery played in the creation of wealth in England and its effect on those involved in its operation in the West Indies.

As an undergrad I found reading her desperately boring, especially as a class assignment, and turned to other things. Actually, wish now I could remember what those things were so I might have a better idea of what I was like in my late teens.

Patrick O’Brian admired Austen and said he wanted to write like her. I’m too ignorant of her works to make comparisons.