I was introduced to Jane Austin about six years ago, since then I have watched Sense and Sensibility(Emma Thompson's version) Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, Emma, and Northanger Abbey. I would have to agree with Lysander that the ending to Northinger Abbey is atrocious, it goes completely the opposite direction of the book's ending. I have finally read two of her novels, Lady Susan, which I enjoyed immensely, though I was a little confused as to whether everything worked out in the end, and more recently Northanger Abbey. I've decided to tackle Emma next since she's my least favorite character with all her match making, though I adore Mr. Knightly. I found a wonderful guide to Jane Austin's works called Miniatures and Morals, written by Peter J. Leithart. He has a very good insight into her works, and I found it very helpful understanding Miss Austin's wit and themes. He made reading her works far more enjoyable with his commentary of her works then reading her alone had been. I plan on finishing the books before the begginning of April. I can't wait to get into the next book.

Glenstorm: I suppose that was rather fast. I was a senior in high school at the time with only 5 classes. I had substantial amounts of free time. And long drives to soccer games.

Fanny: Agreed!

Lys: Oh really? The last time I read Austen in school was in junior high and they called it Romantic, but at the time I had no idea why we calling a time period "Romantic," so I wouldn't be surprised if I were wrong. I'm glad you like MP better now. (Aside: Have you been watching "Merlin"? I'm surprised.)

AttolianThief: Agreed. I don't especially like the novel Emma, but Knightley is one of the best Austen heroes. If not the best.

Am I the only one who didn't care for Miss Austen Regrets? It's been a while since I've seen it, but I remember being bored and depressed.

Really, the only thing the wrong with it was that they forgot that the book was hilarious and the movie was treated as if it were supposed to be dark and gothic.

Mmmmhmmm ... that's sort of a major error in the adaptation. But are you telling me that's the only thing wrong with the movie? What about the Roman bath scene? The thing just looks too bizarre. I'm not sure I could sit through it.

I liked Miss Austen Regrets better the second time around, Kate. The first, I found it a bit depressing too - but now I tend to revel in the spine-tingling emotion of it all. And though she dies at the end and never has a happily-ever-after romance like one of her heroines, Austen is shown as having a full life. I read the title as indicating only that she regretted not being able to be independent and support her family without the help of a man -- NOT that she was lonely and wished she could have been married. The movie is best viewed as a response/alternate reading to the sentimentalized, inaccurate mush-puddle that is Becoming Jane: there's a hilarious scene in MAR in which Jane tells Fanny about her "secret love" Tom LeFroy and then reveals it was all a joke. Great pot-shot, I say!

(And yes, I'm hooked on Merlin. See my posts in the TV thread. )

I think my favorite Austen hero would probably be Henry Tilney or Captain Wentworth. The former is hilarious, the latter is epic.

I saw the '80s version of Northanger Abbey about two years ago, and while I definitely remember the parts that we skipped (read=the weird dream stuff) I am actually contemplating watching it again at some point so I can have a clearer opinion on it. However, if anyone feels like talking me out of it, you're more than welcome to try. The newer adaptation, which we watched just a few nights after the first one, was an improvement no doubt, but I wasn't happy with the things Mr. Davies felt he needed to add in. (But then, I'm never happy generally speaking with what he feels he needs to add in, so... )

Fanny had once shared a link with a soundtrack of Miss Austen Regrets (Fanny's Wedding, it was); I immediately fell in love with the piece and that's how I heard of it. I learnt was something about Jane Austen's last years? What is the basic synopsis of it, if I may ask?

*loves that particular piece of music because of its beauty* I hope you can see Miss Austen Regrets at some point, Bella! It's a movie that never fails to get me at the end, so a previous knowledge of Austen's life is probably a good thing to have before watching it. But all in all it's at least a pretty good film and I enjoyed it, so I hope you can watch it too. (And that you like it as well...)

Bother Eustace: well we are but that shouldn't be your only reason for reading them .

Ha ha, no worries, GtG. I wouldn't stoop that low, reading a book solely to attract girls... that would just be sad.

So, which one should I read first? Any suggestions? Most people I know say P&P is the best.

Bother Eustace: well we are but that shouldn't be your only reason for reading them .

Ha ha, no worries, GtG. I wouldn't stoop that low, reading a book solely to attract girls... that would just be sad.

good

So, which one should I read first? Any suggestions? Most people I know say P&P is the best.

My first was Pride and Prejudice but I think I'd reccomend Emma for a first- it seemed like it was the most quick-paced and easiest to get "in to".

What about the Roman bath scene?

What about it? I thought it was less weird and contrived than the pond scene in the '95 P&P...

I'd watch it again, but then, I happen to really like the white and blue outfit Catherine wears for most of the film. I'll just fast forward through the most macabre of the dream scenes... and my guess is that that one is tame compared to what was added in the new version.

I haven't read any of her books, but I watched Pride and Prejudice...it was okay. It was kind of confusing for me though.

Did you watch the new movie with Keira Knightley in it, narnialover4? It is a bit hard to follow, even for those of us who have read the book, mostly because it was so rushed. The first time I saw it in theaters, I kept asking questions like, "What? How'd she get there?" Of course, I still really liked it at that point. (I'm not sure I do anymore. )

P&P would probably be a good place to start, Brother Eustace, mostly because almost everyone likes that one. With each of the others, there is a strong (if small) contingent that finds it weak or flawed in some way. If I had to make a second recommendation, it would be Persuasion, a short and moving read.

*decides it would be wise not to pursue an '80s NA debate with Mel, especially now that she's pulled out the Wet Shirt Scene card*

P&P would probably be a good place to start, Brother Eustace, mostly because almost everyone likes that one. With each of the others, there is a strong (if small) contingent that finds it weak or flawed in some way. If I had to make a second recommendation, it would be Persuasion, a short and moving read.

Oh, I saw Persuasion for the first time about a month or two ago... I believe it was a Masterpiece Theater version; I liked it. I think I'll probably take your advice and read Pride and Prejudice first, though.

At several points the movie plays upon Catherine's love for gothic novels; there are a few 'daydream sequences' where she is pitted as a damsel in distress.

Mm, yeah, that's what I've heard. Since your review of it is mostly positive, I think I might give it a go.

It's not that "weird," at least not compared to the 80s version, which I have yet to see. Take a gander at that version's ending ... WHAT?

=O I've seen a few clips of the 80's NA (the Roman bath scene included) and I've been very much skeptical of it, but I think that clip put me over the edge. I'm going to stay away from it. I think I will see the newest version of NA, however.

Ooo, Jane's back.

Rewinding to the discussion re:P&P versions, I must say that I quite appreciated the A&E version. While the oldest is decent, the new one is practically appalling. I felt that, in order to fit it into a two-hour format, too much that was important was cut while too much un-important stuff was added, such as the re-writing of Charlotte and Lizzy's conversation after Mr. Collin's proposal, then adding a good minute or two of Kiera twirling around in the swing thinking. I found it quite interesting that Lizzy's "I'm happy for you," was replaced with Charlotte's "don't you dare judge me." It definitely gave a different flavor to the Collins' relationship to Lizzy, much more adversarial that supportive. To me, Austen's original writing seemed to allow both Charlotte and Lizzy to support each other's values, even while disagreeing with the following actions. The entire film just seemed a little bit too choppy to make the story carry a clear theme and impact. In the spirit of tit-for-tat, however, I will say that I believe that Rupert Friend was brilliantly cast as Mr. Wickham, although he didn't look quite as related to Mr. Darcy.

but Knightley is one of the best Austen heroes.

Are you referring to Kiera Knightley's portrayal of Elizabeth Bennet, or am I blanking out on an Austen character who happens to bear the name of Knightley?

Now, I know I managed to miss the Brontë SF due to life whisking me away, but I must ask: Would you prefer a little Austen with your Brontë, or a little Brontë with your Austen? I've lately been drifting between the two--JE seems to, on the whole, be darker than the whole of Austen's works, but I feel drawn to it because of its very long and accurate depiction of feminine life. On the other hand, I tend to be drawn more to S&S than P&P because I identify much better with the former than with the latter.

*Really likes the twirling in the swing scene* I think Charlotte's acting in that scene is just phenomenal. Are Darcy and Wickham supposed to be related? I didn't think they were.

*Gasp*
Lady Arwen, yes! I refer to the illustrious George Knightley of Donwell Abbey who figures prominently in Emma. Though the fact that Knightley the actress has the same last name has confused me in the past.

I think I, overall, enjoy C Bronte's Jane Eyre more than Austen. Jane Eyre just has so much more depth. It has so much more significance. I love how tragic it is, yet happy in the end. Or, perhaps bittersweet is a better word. I wasn't sure that I'd like it since I knew that Charlotte despised Jane's writings, but at the end, I could see how Charlotte disliked Jane and thought she was trivial, but how I can still like them both.

I do agree that the acting is phenomenal and the scene is very well put together, I just feel that it carries an overly different tone than the same segment in the book does. In the book, Lizzy's disappointment with Charlotte's choice is much more suppressed, like Elinor's reserve in S&S. In the film, there is an obvious disappointment of each girl in the other. In the book, before Charlotte explains her choice, Austen writes that Elizabeth "was able to assure her [Charlotte] with tolerable firmness that the prospect of their relationship was highly grateful to her, and that she wished her all imaginable happiness" (end of chapter 22).

Sorry, no, I didn't mean that they were related. I should have clarified that. In both of the two newest versions I kept getting the feeling that they are even though Darcy explains that Wickham was merely a favorite. Incidentally, I recently met a Mr. and Mrs. Wickham, and I can't help thinking of Lizzy's exclamation "Mister Wickham!" every time I see them.

Ah! How could I forget? Considering Emma was my introduction to Austen, and my aunt's absolute favorite piece of literature ever, I'm surprised that slipped my mind.

Considering the slightly different time periods between Brontë (b. 1816) and Austen (d. 1817), I think we girls, at least, will always be drawn more to Brontë's style of writing. I think all of us identify with the extreme emotions, which were more likely to be shown in a highly Victorian culture (Jane Eyre was published ten years after Queen Victoria ascended to the throne) than Austen's country-side view of the Industrial Revolution. Austen was still reflecting an earlier age, where such perfect reserve was a good thing, and Dickens' novels were still a thing of the future. Also, While JE is sometimes considered "Gothic Horror," Austen's works are usually referred to as "Satire" or merely "Novels." Two very different categories, I am sure. Perhaps JE's first-person, survival-instinct writing presents a very different aspect that appeals just as much, but in a different way, as JA's third-person analysis in a royal/upper-middle-class society?

I must drift off for now...that took longer to write than I thought it would....

Considering the slightly different time periods between Brontë (b. 1816) and Austen (d. 1817), I think we girls, at least, will always be drawn more to Brontë's style of writing. I think all of us identify with the extreme emotions, which were more likely to be shown in a highly Victorian culture (Jane Eyre was published ten years after Queen Victoria ascended to the throne) than Austen's country-side view of the Industrial Revolution. Austen was still reflecting an earlier age, where such perfect reserve was a good thing...

Here I think I must beg to differ. I prefer Austen's style, even if it may seem reserved and emotion-less, which it is not, of course, upon further review. Perhaps it is because personally speaking, I prefer the keep-calm-and-carry-on approach to life, which is I think some of, at least, what comes through in Austen's work and is the view of some of her heroines, and actually find myself, in many cases, turned off by extreme emotion. I'm not saying Charlotte Bronte's style was wrong or is less good, and I'm sure I'll enjoy, or at least be able to appreciate, Jane Eyre moreso when I read it again, but I really do appreciate and prefer Austen's style. She does not let emotion get in the way of telling the story, she lets the love story gently unfold naturally, as it happens, which is one of the things I like the most about her writing style. Anyways...just had to be the one to differ.