Jane Austen

Jane Austen (English: Jane Austen, also possibly spelled Austen, 16 December 1775 — 18 July 1817) was an English writer, a forerunner of realism in British literature, a satirist, and the author of the so-called novels of manners. Her books are acknowledged masterpieces, admired for their artless sincerity and simple plots against the backdrop of deep psychological insight into the souls of her characters and her ironic, gentle, truly “English” humor. Jane Austen is still justly regarded as the “First Lady” of English literature. Her works are required reading in all colleges and universities in Great Britain.

Biography

Jane Austen was born on 16 December 1775 in the town of Steventon, Hampshire. Her father, George Austen, was a parish priest. He came from an old Kent family and was an enlightened, educated man. His wife, Cassandra Leigh, also belonged to an old, though impoverished, family. Besides Jane, there were six boys and one girl in the family (Cassandra). Jane Austen was the second youngest child.

Despite the high child mortality of those years, they all survived. Her eldest brother, James (1765—1819), had a taste for literary pursuits: he wrote poetry and prose, but followed in his father’s footsteps. Of the second brother, George (1766—1838), the family preferred not to speak: he was mentally disabled and never learned to talk. For his sake, Jane learned the sign alphabet. The third brother, Edward (1767—1852), was adopted by the Austins’ wealthy childless relatives, the Knights, which opened broad opportunities for him — he moved from the gentry into the nobility.

The most vivid and romantic fate was that of the fourth, Jane Austen’s beloved brother, Henry Thomas (1771—1850). An impressionable and not very practical man, he tried many occupations in his lifetime: he served in the army, became a banker, initially prospered, but later went bankrupt and took holy orders. He was married to Eliza de Feuillide, the widow of a French nobleman who ended his days on the guillotine. Eliza had considerable influence on Jane. It was to Eliza that she owed her good knowledge of the French language