................................................................................................
................................................................................................
JANE AUSTEN
(by William Lyon Phelps) (1906)
Introduction to the
Illustrated Cabinet Edition
of 'Sense and Sensibility'
................................................................................................
................................................................................................
Very well written, circa 1900, with concise chapters, one a biography, and then one each on her books.
................................................................................................
"Wednesday, 12 September, 1900 ... "
Author writes of bicycling through Hampshire, from Salisbury to Winchester and then on to Steventon.
" ... A small, mean, dirty village is Steventon today, graced only by beautiful hedgerows. The house where Jane Austen lived has long since disappeared, an instance if any were needed —of how much more transient are the houses built with hands than those created by the imagination. ... "
" ... The oldest son, James, was born at Deane in 1765. At Oxford he had a high reputation among the undergraduates for his literary skill and his knowledge of English literature. It is to this young Oxonian that the world owes a debt of gratitude; for on his return to the rectory, his mind full of his favourite books, he took charge of the reading of his two younger sisters, and guided them at their most docile age into the green pastures of literature. ... "
"The dearest member of the family to Jane, and indeed by far the most intimate friend she had in the world, was her sister Cassandra, three years her senior. Two girls of about the same age with five brothers would naturally form an offensive and defensive alliance; and between these two sisters as they grew from childhood into maturity ripened a marvellous friendship, where each took delight in the other's gifts and pleasures. They were all in all to each other; they were never married, and they remained in the diminishing family circle while the brothers struck out into the world. It was to Cassandra that Jane wrote nearly all of the letters that have come down to us; and the very absence of literary style in these documents and their meagreness of information about Jane's literary career is a substantial proof of the complete intimacy of the two women. It was in Cassandra's arms that Jane died; and how terribly the survivor suffered we shall never know, for she thought it to be her duty to control the outward expression of her grief. She was indeed a woman of extraordinary good sense, independence, and self-reliance, who loved her younger and more impulsive sister with an affection unknown to many more demonstrative individuals. She died in 1845."
"Readers of her novels have often wondered why Jane Austen, who lived in wars and rumours of wars, showed apparently so little interest in the momentous events of her time. As a matter of fact she took her part in those world-combats vicariously, and the welfare of her brothers was more interesting to her than the fate of Napoleon. The sea-faring men in her books afford the evidence of her knowledge of the navy, though, true to her primal principle of art, she did not let them escape beyond the boundaries of her personal experience.
"Jane Austen has been regarded by many as a prim, prudish old maid, and yet the stricter women of our more liberal times would look upon her as a daughter of Belial, for she loved to drink wine and play cards, she loved to dance, and she delighted in the theatre. The very smallness of Steventon brought its inhabitants together in social intercourse; and in a house where a genial father and mother presided over seven children, and where there were often dances and social gatherings several times a week, we need not waste any pity on her desolate and lonely youth. She was so fond of society that had she lived in a large city, among brilliant men and women, she might never have written a book. In her four residences, Steventon, Bath, Southampton, and Chawton, she saw all phases of society, for Thomas Hardy has shown us that the human comedy is played in the villages as well as in great cities Her close proximity to the persons she saw m village balls and dances gave her unrivalled opportunities for observation, since the; main traits in human nature are always the same. We need not regret therefore, that the geographical limits of her bodily life were so circumscribed. She could have lived in a nutshell, and counted herself a monarch of infinite space, for she had no bad dreams like those of Hamlet. It has been well said that the happiest person is he who thinks the most interesting thoughts; and the enjoyment and entertainment that this quiet, woman got out of life can hardly be over-estimated."
" ... She had the pleasant excitement of the publication of her books, of reading them aloud to the family in manuscript, of receiving and examining bundles of proof, of actually handling money earned by her pen, and of observing the faint dawn of her great reputation. This made her peaceful environment more than interesting, and we may be sure that the days passed swiftly. Up to this tune her sole reward for her labour had been the glow of composition and the satisfaction of knowing that she had done good work; the harvest was late, but she now began to reap it. Unfortunately the time was short. It is one of the apparent perversities of the stupidity of destiny, that the only member of the family who possessed undoubted genius should have had to die so young. Jane Austen is the kind of person who ought to live forever.
"In the spring of the year 1816 her health began to fail. This is said to have been caused by worry over some family misfortunes; but may it not have been owing to the consuming flame of genius? It is impossible that she could have written such masterpieces of literature without feeling that virtue had gone out of her. The joy of artistic creation is probably one of the greatest Joys known to the sons and daughters of men; but the bodily frame pays dearly for it, and the toil of making a good book surpasses in intensity of labour almost all other forms of human exertion. Whatever was the cause, the fact was that her life began to decay at precisely the time when her mind began to reach its greatest brilliancy. ... "
................................................................................................"In the history of English fiction there are only eight writers who may be said to have an assured place in the front rank, for Stevenson and Thomas Hardy are still too near to be seen in the proper perspective. These immortal eight in order of time are Daniel De Foe, Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, Jane Austen, Walter Scott, Charles Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, and George Eliot. What are the qualities that place the novels of Jane Austen so far above those of all her contemporaries except Scott, and that class her so distinctly above a writer like Charlotte Brontë?"
This was written well over a century ago, and of course refers to English literature only of england; but a glaring omission is obviously Emily Bronte, and while he puts Charlotte Bronte below Jane Austen which not every contemporary of his or theirs did, Emily Bronte certainly did not deserve that grade affixed, much less being ignored or forgotten. But then, wasn't it Thackeray who prophesied that her repute would grow to shadow that of her sister, for while Charlotte had talent, Emily, he had said, had genius?
"That much abused phrase, "Art for art's sake," so often heard in the mouths of hypocritical and unclean authors, is strictly applicable to the aims and ideals of Jane Austen. She is one of the supreme literary artists of the world, like the Russian Turgenev. She made no compromises, and never wrote a line to please anybody but herself. That is precisely why she pleases all readers of taste and intelligence. Coming before the days when the advertising of new novels had become as purely a commercial enterprise as the exploitation of breakfast foods, she knew nothing of the ways of publishers, nor did she understand how it was possible for an author to write for the market. Far from the madding crowd she wrought her books in the peaceful tranquillity of an affectionate family circle, and she refused to search for material either in huge libraries or in remote corners of the earth. ... There are those who think the flawless perfection of her books was a kind of accident; that she wrote them without in the least realising the magnitude of her success. That she did not anticipate the prodigious fame that her novels have won in the twentieth century is probably true; but that a woman of so consummate genius and good sense did not know that she had done truly great work, is simply impossible. She knew exactly what she was about; she understood her powers and in exactly what field of art they could find full play. ... "
"Not only is the structure of her stories superb in outline, not only is her style so perfect that it seems to the unskilful no style at all, but her characters have an amazing vitality. Not a single one of them passes through an extraordinary adventure; hence we are interested in them not for what they do and suffer, but wholly for what they are. No persons in the whole realm of fiction are more alive than Elizabeth Bennet, ... "
"Her books are truly great, then, because they have in them what Mrs. Browning called the "principle of life." Their apparently simple and transparently clear style contains treasures, inexhaustible; for no one reads any of her stories, only once. ... Jane Austen has outlived thousands of novelists who have been greeted with wild acclaim, is simply because she succeeded introducing to a marvellous degree the illusion that is the essence of great art, the pleasing illusion that we are gazing not on the image, but at the reality. Her books have the "principle of life," and cannot die. Her fame was slow in growth, but no slower than might have been expected, and we should not blame previous generations for not seeing instantly what we have the advantage of seeing with a proper background. She lived only six years after the publication of her first book; and during that brief time she enjoyed fully as much reputation as could reasonably have been hoped for. Some of her novels went almost immediately into second editions; and her pleasure at praise from good sources was like all her emotions, perfectly genuine, frank, and unashamed. She was very glad to have her books widely read and appreciated, as any sensible person would be; and her delight in receiving a sum of money from the publisher —the tangible mark of success —was charming in its unaffected demonstration. ... "
" ... After the publication of the Memoir by her nephew in 1870, which came at the psychological moment, the books and articles on Jane Austen began to bloom in every direction. About 1890, what was called a "revival" took place; it was really nothing but the cumulative growth of her fame. Many new editions appeared; and an instance of how she was regarded as a master of style may be seen in the fact that for some years every Harvard Freshman was required to read one of her books for rhetorical purposes. She has had sufficient vitality to survive even such treatment."
................................................................................................
"Sense and Sensibility was the first of the novels to be honoured by publication. It appeared in 1811. It may be considered as her first work, for she had written a draft called Elinor and Marianne, which is undoubtedly the first form of the later novel. ... Her nephew tells us that Sense and Sensibility was begun at Steventon in November, 1797, immediately after the completion of Pride and Prejudice; even thus early she had rejected the epistolary form for this novel, and had composed it on its present plan Then the work remained in manuscript until 1811, as the rejection of Pride and Prejudice, and the unwillingness of the Bath publisher to risk his money on Northanger Abbey —both of which works she must have thought superior to Sense and Sensibility —did not give her sufficient courage to make further overtures. During the spring of 1811, however, Jane Austen was in London, and with the assistance of her brother, the publication of her first novel became an assured fact. ... "
"Sense and Sensibility is on the whole the poorest of Jane Austen's completed novels. The contrast between the two sisters is of course interesting; but they are less individual than the persons in the other tales. The very fact that Elinor stands for Sense and Marianne for Sensibility militates against the reality and charm of their personalities; and the three leading men are less satisfactory than her other heroes. The book is the least original of all her works; and in places sounds as if it were written under the shadow of Richardson's influence. There is of course the same contrast between first impressions and the final reality that appears elsewhere; there is the same endeavour to show that those who have the most ease of manner are not necessarily of the most solid worth. There is in addition the touch of burlesque in the character of Marianne, where Jane Austen is laughing at the sentimentalists; but while all these characteristics are typical of her art, they appear with less subtlety than in the other novels, indeed one might say there is now and then a suggestion of crudity. Edward Ferrars is spineless, Willoughby is a stage villain, and Colonel Brandon is depressing. On the whole, if we had to part with any one of Jane Austen's works, I imagine that Sense and Sensibility is the one that we should most willingly let die."
Nonsense. It's the most natural and alive of her works. Else one has to say Emma Thompson and her screen writers wrought magic in producing so alive, so real a film based on it, it overshadows all films based on Jane Austen's best, Pride And Prejudice. Not likely. It's all there, in the book. Mariane is real, as is Elinore. So are the men.
................................................................................................
"Pride and Prejudice
"This immortal book has a curious history. She began its composition before she was twenty-one years old, in October 1796, and finished it in less than a year, during the month of August 1797. Her father —who unfortunately did not live to see a line of his daughter's in print —was so captivated by this story that he immediately set about finding a publisher. On the first of November, 1797, he wrote the following letter to Cadell ... "
"The father's suspense was of short duration, for the very next post brought a summary declination. The publisher did not even care to look at the manuscript, or to consider the question of printing it at the author's expense, probably; thinking, as someone has suggested, that it was a feeble imitation of Miss Burney. Here indeed was a case of pride and prejudice! Paternal pride and publisher's prejudice kept this work in manuscript until 1813. It is fortunate that the young girl knew the value of her work, and preserved it —for we have instances in literature where proud and angry authors have committed literary infanticide. In January 1813 this novel —which had been originally christened "First Impressions " —was published at London by Egerton, in three neat volumes, printed in large, heavy type. On the title-pages of Sense and Sensibility ran the legend, "By a Lady" for Jane Austen would not permit her name to appear with any of her publications; it was perhaps thought inconsistent with true feminine modesty. The title-pages of the second work are as follows: Pride and Prejudice: A Novel. In Three Volumes. By the Author of 'Sense and Sensibility.' ... It was undoubtedly thoroughly revised and corrected for the press. ... "
"Pride and Prejudice was a successful novel, for it went into a second edition the same year. ... I have a beautiful copy of this second edition in three neat volumes before me as I write. One winter day in 1904, as I was prowling around old book-shops in Munich, I had the rare fortune to find these three neat volumes tucked away among various curiosities in various languages. I inquired the price with a beating heart —it was one mark the volume, seventy-five cents for the whole work!"
"Pride and Prejudice is Miss Austen's master piece, and one of the few great novels of the world. Its literary style is not perhaps equal in finish to that shown in Mansfield Park or Persuasion; but Elizabeth Bennet is her author's greatest creation, and of all the delightful characters in her works, Elizabeth is the one we should most like to meet. She has the double charm of girlhood and womanhood; and to know her is indeed a liberal education. She has no particular accomplishments, and is second to one of her sisters in beauty; it is her personality that counts with us, as it did with her proud lover. Mr. Darcy, in spite of his stiffness and hauteur, is a real man, an enormous improvement on Colonel Brandon. He exhibits the exact difference between pride and conceit that Miss Austen wished to portray. The whole Bennet family are impossible to forget, in their likeness and in their individuality; and there is so astonishing a sense of reality in the characters and action of this work, that when Elizabeth hurries into the breakfast-room of her critics "with weary ankles, dirty stockings and a face glowing with warmth of exercise," no corporeal appearance could be more vivid to our eyes, and we actually tremble for the impression her dirty stockings and petticoat will make on the fastidious folk around the table. ... "
................................................................................................
"Northanger Abbey was composed in 1798, when its author was only twenty-two. ... It was not published until after its author had ceased to live, finally appearing with Persuasion and a brief Memoir —four volumes altogether —in 1818. The family neatly revenged themselves on this publisher's delay; for years later, when they were living at Chawton, the same publisher, Mr. Bull, was offered his ten pounds back for the surrender of the manuscript, which proposition he accepted with surprise and pleasure. After the precious papers were received, he was informed that the dust-covered pages were written by the author of Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice!
"Northanger Abbey bears the marks of youth. It is a burlesque, and has the virtues and defects of that species of literature. As an example of what Jane thought of the Mysteries of Udolpho, and of the whole school of blood and thunder, it is highly important; it contains also many remarks on novels and novel-reading which are valuable as showing how Jane Austen regarded her art. But it is not equal to such a work as Mansfield Park; it lacks the variety and subtlety; of her masterpieces. The narration of the heroine's finding the washing-bill in the old Abbey is pure fun, youthful mirth, and the description of the face and figure of the young girl is no more nor less than satire on the popular heroines of the day. Historically, however, the book is of the deepest significance; for it marks a turning-point in the history of the English novel, and it tells us more of its author's personal views than all the rest of her tales put together. It is far more subjective; in the fifth chapter there is an almost passionate defence of the novel against its detractors, who regarded such writing as merely superficial and totally lacking in serious artistic purpose; while in the sixth chapter, Sir Charles Grandison is most favourably compared with the romances of Mrs. Radcliffe and her ilk. Such a work, written in the very bloom of youth, is conclusive evidence of the self-conscious purpose of its author; it proves that she knew exactly what she wanted; that her purpose in art was fixed, definite, and unalterable. In Northanger Abbey she showed how novels ought not to be written; her other books are illustrations of what she conceived to be the true theory."
................................................................................................
"Lady Susan and The Watsons
"Of these two stories little need be said, and it is probable that Jane Austen would have forbidden their publication. They appeared together with the second edition of Mr. Austen-Leigh's Memoir, in 1871. No one knows exactly when they were written; the fact that Lady Susan is in the form of letters, as was the first draft of Sense and Sensibility, seems to set the date of its composition before that of Pride and Prejudice, at the very beginning of her career. ... "
"The date of the composition of the unfinished fragment, The Watsons, can be guessed at with more evidence. The watermarks of the years 1803 and 1804 were found on the manuscript, after a careful examination; this makes it of course certain that it was not composed before those dates, but leaves us in the dark as to its exact time. The most probable supposition seems to be that she worked at it while living in Bath, but subsequently lost interest, and was content to leave it in obscurity. ... "
................................................................................................
"Mansfield Park"
"Next to Pride and Prejudice, this novel is probably Jane Austen's greatest work. It contains an immense variety of characters, none of whom is badly drawn. Fanny Price, Henry Crawford and his brilliant sister, Mrs. Norris, Sir Thomas Bertram, his wife, and sons and daughters, Fanny's father, mother, and family, the Rev. Dr. Grant and his wife, Mr. Rushworth, —these are all strikingly individual, and all unforgettable."
................................................................................................
"Emma
"This novel, bearing on its three title-pages the date 1816, was advertised to appear in the preceding December. Since the publication of Mansfield Park, early in 1814, Miss Austen had been steadily at work on this story, and was far advanced with it by the spring of 1815. The dedication of Emma, and the circumstances that led to it, are interesting, and prove, that although the author's name never appeared with her books, her identity was fairly well known. During the autumn of 1815 her brother Henry fell seriously ill, and Jane went to London to take care of him. ... "
"Emma is unique among Jane Austen's works in that the reader's attention is almost entirely concentrated upon one character. In this respect it differs most widely of all from Mansfield Park, where the interest is more generally diffused than in any other of her stories. ... there are many who place Emma first in the list of the author's novels. ... The curious thing is, that before we finish the book we actually like her all the better for her faults, and for her numerous mistakes; because her heart is pure, sound, and good, and her sense of principle is as deeply rooted as the Rock of Gibraltar.
................................................................................................
"She finished Persuasion in August 1816, in the form in which we have it now; but she thought she had finished the book on the 18 July, for she wrote at the end of the manuscript, "Finis," and then added that date. The more she thought about the conclusion, however, the less she liked it; and in spite of failing health, she determined to have nothing published of which she could not approve. She therefore struck out Chapter X, and wrote in its place two others, which bring about the denouement in a totally different fashion. Curious readers may compare the condemned chapter, which appears in Mr. Austen Leigh's Memoir, with the book as it stands; and they will see that the flame of genius burned brightly to the last, for the substitution is a marked improvement on the first version. It affords, also, as has been said, an illustration of her conscientious devotion to her art.
"She probably spent the rest of the year 1816 in revising and correcting the whole work; and on 27 January she began the composition of a story, which she wrote at steadily, completing twelve chapters, under enormous difficulties of disease, by 17 March, when she was forced to lay aside all thoughts of book-making. No title was ever given to this narrative, nor does anyone know what course the plot was to follow; but we are assured by her nephew that in the draft which remains there is no evidence of failing strength.
"Persuasion was not published until 1818, when, as has been said, it appeared with Northanger Abbey and a Memoir, in four volumes. It thus has a melancholy interest for us, as being the last work of art that she completed. It is one of the miniature masterpieces in the English language, and its scenes at Bath and at Lyme are indelibly impressed on the reader's mind."
................................................................................................
................................................................................................
................................................
................................................
September 05, 2021 - September 05, 2021.
................................................
................................................
................................................................................................
................................................................................................
................................................................................................
................................................................................................
