The Life of Jane Austen

Abstract

This biography reveals a robust, vigorous, and at times difficult woman with a large and diverse circle of family and acquaintances. The book documents her troubled relationship with a hypochondriacal mother and her frank dislike of the sister-in-law who usurped her childhood home; sheds light on the shadowy existence of a retarded older brother; and sets forth in detail the number and nature of Austen's relations to her suitors; the romantic passages of her life; and her attitude towards childbearing. Making use of Austen's correspondence, the author illustrates the cost exacted on a sensitive and critical personality by a society - and, frequently, a family - that paid too little attention to the predicament of unmarried women, especially those with adequate financial means.

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