Jane Austen, A to Z: Austen Herself

How did I decide on doing a Jane Austen theme you ask? Well, I enjoy doing trivia games. I have a lot of useless knowledge stored away, except for knowledge about Jane Austen. Every time a Ms. Austen question is asked, I fail. Since my degree is in English, this is especially embarrassing.

Stuff I could tell you before I began this challenge:

1. Jane Austen was a woman.
2. She was British.
3. Austen wrote “Emma.”
4. That’s all.

Stuff that I can tell you now:

1. Jane Austen wrote anonymously because she was a woman. Apparently, no one wanted to read books by women. Also, women could not sign legal contracts.
2. Austen never married. Marriage in England at the time was based more on money and social status. Her parents didn’t have either of those things so her choices were limited. She was probably wise to focus on her writing instead.
3. She wrote seven novels plus some of her journals and poetry were published.
4. Austen had seven siblings. Six brothers and one sister. One novel for each sibling.

Of course, there’s more to Ms. Austen than facts for trivia. She was an interesting person who had her own convictions, not to mention a way with words.

Jane Austen