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When was she born?
Jane Austen was born on the 16th December 1775, in Steventon, Hampshire. She is still considered one of the most important British female writers from English Literature. She grew up in a tight-knit family, and she was the seventh of eight siblings. His father was orphan, but thanks to a wealthy uncle, he could attend school and he was ordained in the Church. Jane Austen had an only sister, Cassandra, who was her closest friend too. -
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EARLY LIFE
Let's know a bit more about our witty heroine! -
Education
When Jane Austen was seven years old, she and her sister Cassandra were sent to Oxford. They came back when Jane Austen turned nine years old, both girls attended Abbey School, in Reading. After that, George Austen, their father, decided that the girls could continue their education at home. -
Her early works
Jane Austen developed her literary skills thanks to her education. When Austen was twelve years old, she was writing for herself as well as for her family. She wrote poems and several parodies of the dramatic fiction that was popular at the time (Georgian era). -
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ADOLESCENCE AND DEVELOPING HER OWN LITERATURE
A crucial period in which the artistic and literary environment helped Jane Austen to develop her skills as a writer. -
The first trilogy
In 1795, when she was 20, Austen entered a productive phase and created what was later referred to as her “First Trilogy.” She began writing Elinor and Marianne, a novel in letters, which would eventually be reworked and retitled "Sense and Sensibility". The following year, she wrote First Impressions, which was rejected by a publisher in 1797. It was the first version of "Pride and Prejudice". She began another novel in 1798, titled "Susan", which evolved into Northanger Abbey. -
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BECOMING JANE AUSTEN: THE FIRST AND SECOND TRILOGY
In this section, we will explain the most important literary works from this author as well as some biographical facts. -
Moving to Bath and her first love story
In 1801, George Austen announced that all the family had to move to Bath. Jane Austen was disappointed at the beginning. At that time, Bath was a resort town for the nearly wealthy with many gossips and social climbers. As they traveled that summer, however, she fell in love with a young clergyman who promised to meet them at the end of their journey. Several months later he fell ill and died. -
Hard times for Jane Austen
Bath was difficult for Jane Austen. She started but did not finish "The Watsons". She also accepted a marriage proposal from Harris Bigg-Wither, the son of an old family friend, although she changed her mind the next day. A few years later, in 1805, her father died, leaving Jane, Cassandra and their mother without enough money to live comfortably. As a result, the Austen women relied on the hospitality of friends and family. -
The Second Trilogy
Jane Austen, her sister Cassandra and their mother, were hosted in Chawton, Hampshire, in a cottage belonging to her brother Edward Austen-Knight. There, Austen began the most productive period of her life, publishing several books and completing her “Second Trilogy.” -
Her literary works
Austen finished the final drafts of Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice in 1811. They were published shortly after and she immediately set to work on Mansfield Park. In 1814, Mansfield Park was published and Emma was started. By this time, Austen was gaining some recognition for her writing, despite the fact that neither Sense and Sensibility or Pride and Prejudice were published under her name, something very common in female writers. -
Her last years
While writing "Persuasion", Jane Austen started with symptoms of a serious illness, called Addison's Disease. She died at the age of 41 on July 18, 1817 with her sister Cassandra at her side. Most of her novels have been adapted to BBC series or films, like "Pride and Prejudice" or "Sense and Sensibility" or the current TV series "Sanditon".