Category: writing

Jane Austen (/ˈɒstɪn, ˈɔːstɪn/ OST-in, AW-stin; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen’s plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage for the pursuit of favorable social standing and economic security. Her works are implicit critiques of the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th-century literary realism.

Her use of social commentary, realism, wit, and irony have earned her acclaim amongst critics and scholars.

Born
16 December 1775
Steventon, Hampshire, England
Died
18 July 1817 (aged 41)
Winchester, Hampshire, England
Resting place
Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire
Occupation
Novelist
Alma mater
Reading Abbey Girls’ School (1785–1786)
Period
Georgian (Regency era)
Genre

Literary Realistic Romantic Fiction Satire

Years active
1787–1817
Notable works

• Sense and Sensibility
• Pride and Prejudice
• Mansfield Park
• Emma
• Northanger Abbey
• Persuasion
• The anonymously published Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1816) were modest successes, but they brought her little fame in her lifetime. She wrote two other novels—Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1817—and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but it was left unfinished on her death. She also left behind three volumes of juvenile writings in manuscript, the short epistolary novel Lady Susan, and the unfinished novel The Watsons.