Steger, Sara
MWF 1 :50 PM
Park Hall 0145
"He and I should not in the least agree, of course, in our ideas of novels and heroines. Pictures of Perfection, as you know, make me sick and wicked" ~ Jane Austen, in a March 23, 1817 letter to her niece, Fanny Wright
In this course, we will engage in a thorough examination of each of Jane Austen's six major novels, investigating in particular Austen's heroines and their foibles, missteps, and defects. From the prejudiced Elizabeth Bennett to the timid Fanny Price, from the meddlesome Emma Woodhouse to the overly-sentimental Marianne Dashwood, we will examine how and why Austen used her “little bit (two inches wide) of ivory” (letter to J. Edward Austen, 16 December 1816) to deliberately paint pictures of imperfection when it came to her heroines. In addition to the novels, we will be reading articles that provide cultural and historical context as well as literary criticism.
Required Textbooks
We will be using the Broadview editions of the novels, which will be available for purchase in two bundles at the UGA bookstore. In addition to the novels, the bundle includes access to an online resource - "Jane Austen in Context." Please make plans to purchase these texts so we can (literally) be on the same page and have access to the same materials.