Spring Tea 2023
Guest Presenters:  Nancy Gallagher and Janet Johnson
Topic: The Battle of Prague (an interactive audience performance concert)
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary

Guest presenters Nancy Gallagher (director/narrator) and Janet Johnson (piano) visited our region on Sunday, May 21st for a fun, action-filled, interactive audience performance of The Battle of Prague. Hosted by longtime members Nan Williams and her husband David at the beautiful Fairway Village Club House in Washington State. There we held our Spring Tea buffet and emporium of finely curated Jane Austen books and memorabilia of the Regency era. Filmed by another longtime JASNA member, Nelson Bridwell utilizing the iphone of our Regional Coordinator, Linda Olson.

Spring Tea 2023
Guest Presenters:  Nancy Gallagher and Janet Johnson
Topic: The Battle of Prague (an interactive audience performance concert)
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary

On May 21st, our region finally held our first in-person meeting since the pandemic. Longtime member, Marna Tisdel coordinated our Spring Tea. Once again, we gathered at the beautiful Fairway Village Club House in Washington State hosted by residents and longtime members Nan Williams and her husband David. Regional Coordinator, Linda Olson decorated our tables with floral straw hats which we donated to the Hillsboro Art Regional Theater (HART).
 
We lunched on cucumber and egg sandwiches, salads, fresh fruit, and a variety of culinary sweets, with tea and lemonade.

Our annual fundraiser provided an emporium of Jane Austen books and merchandise with proceeds towards our general fund. Regional philanthropists who donated to our emporium include current members (Linda Olson, Margaret Christmann, Johann Graham, Frank McClanahan & Mary Margaret Benson).and late Janeites: Mary Camman and Deborah (Debbie) Eley.
    
Amid our festivities, Tribute Grant creator and former Regional Coordinator, Kim Higgins and Secretary, Vonnie Alto announced our 2023 Tribute Grant recipient, Cynthia Eckersley. Each year we award a grant of     1,500 to a member who has never attended the AGM before for registration, classes, hotel room, and airline flight.  Cynthia is a new member and a retired social worker whose winning entry reminded us of our love for Jane Austen and all things British. Her favorite novel is Pride and Prejudice. Cynthia hopes to learn more about Jane Austen while sharing in celebrating her at the AGM. 

We also announced our Tribute Grand honorees: Bill Boyd and Marna Tisdel (in absentia) for their devotion to Jane Austen and nearly 20 years of service to our region. Congratulations!
 
A JASNA grant made it possible for Nancy Gallagher (California Southwest Region) and Janet Johnson (Wisconsin Region) to lead us in recreating an interactive audience performance of The Battle of Prague, regularly performed for entertainment by Jane Austen and her family. It's based on the 1757 Battle of Prague in which the Kingdom of Prussia battled the Habsburg Monarchy.
 
Nancy discussed the history of the actual battle, the connection to the Austen family, and provided biographical information about the composer, Frantisek Kotzwara (1730 - 1791) and the sonata piece (first published in 1788) which was popular in both Great Britain and America during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Janet accompanied the narration and mock battle by playing the famous piece on the piano (which is part of Jane Austen’s personal music collection) while Nancy called out performance directives for a fun action-filled audience participatory concert.

Our members battled each other with 10 types of simulated equipment: We waved red flags and purple ones to signal the arrival of the Prussian and Austrian troops, dueled each other with toy swords in the two corresponding colors, popped balloons for cannons, blew toy bugles ad trumpets, shot flying rubber pellets with Nerf guns, rode blown-up horses into battle, clapped coconut shells for horse’s hooves, wore pieces of sheets stained with dye for the wounded or waived them to signal help, waved flags again for the arrival of more troops, and then rang bells to conclude the end as we all sang “God Save the King.” A jovial time was had by all as we recreated the famous battle.

Nelson Bridwell filmed it for Youtube and Vonnie Alto photographed it taking over 145 photos of our event.

Thank you Nancy Gallagher and Janet Johnson for leading us in this fun and stirring interactive audience performance concert of The Battle of Prague!

Note: There's 146 photos uploaded from the Spring Tea so please scroll through them SLOWLY to see them all.

Bill Boyd and Marna Tisdel  
Regional Member Profile
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary

Our JASNA Oregon & SW Washington Region is thrilled that our members, Bill Boyd and Marna Tisdel are our 2023 Tribute Grant Honorees!             

William (Bill) Boyd is a retired construction litigation attorney for the state of Oregon Construction Contractor's Board and a former civil engineer for the City of Portland. Bill a devoted and enthusiastic Janeite. He discovered Jane Austen after viewing the 1995 version of Sense and Sensibility. He has been a JASNA member of our region for nearly 20 years and faithfully attended AGM's. Bill served as Regional Coordinator from 2009-2011 and Chair of Information/Registration when our region hosted the AMG in Portland in 2010. Bill hosted and led discussion group meetings and co-presented at discussion group meetings. With other regional members, Bill co-led discussion group meetings on "Jane Austen's Letters: A Contest of Wit and Satire," "Liberal or Conservative Jane," “A Jane Austen Education by William Deresiewicz,” (a favorite book of Bill’s written by a male Janeite), “What Happened in 1817: The Year Jane Austen Died," and "What Happened in 1803 and in Jane Austen's Life." Bill has such a wealth of Jane Austen knowledge and trivia that he could always be depended upon to provide enlightening comments and insights at our meetings. Bill also gave several PowerPoint presentations on Jane Austen to Multnomah County Library and its branches. Bill was always on the hunt for his beloved Jane Austen in his numerous travels to England, Europe and across the U.S. including his many Volkswalks. On his Volkswalks, he found Jane at Harvard and MIT campuses. Together with his wife, Marna Tisdel, they visited libraries/bookstores to see Jane Austen editions and photograph them. They visited Jane Austen sites in England at Chawton, Bath, Lyme, and Winchester. They even attended a Jane Austen Festival at Chatsworth where Netherfield was filmed for Pride and Prejudice. In his spare time, Bill is researching and writing a Jane Austen time travel novel.   

Marna Tisdel is a retired middle school teacher for the Community Transitional School (for at risk children of homeless families) where she worked for 20 years. She is also a former catalog librarian at Fort Vancouver Library. Marna is an avid Janeite and a patron of Jane Austen in the arts. She has always known about Jane Austen from reading her in high school and college, then becoming more interested in her through her husband, Bill Boyd. Marna has been a JASNA member of our region for nearly 20 years and attended AGM's as a companion with her husband, Bill. Marna supports our region in a myriad of ways. She unofficially assisted Bill when he served as Regional Coordinator from 2009-2011 and Chair of Information/Registration when our region hosted the AGM in Portland in 2010. Marna is exceedingly helpful  and gracious and faithfully attends our regional meetings and actively participates in discussions providing insightful comments. Marna can always be counted on to help our region flourish. Together with Bill, she hosted numerous discussion group meetings at their home. As patrons of Jane, Marna and Bill donated paid tickets to our region for attendance to Jane Austen plays and provides carpooling to regional meetings and events. Marna also provided scheduling information for group attendance at events such as Sense and Sensibility at the 2018 Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. In 2023, Marna, researched possible venues for our Battle of Prague performance. A Jane Austen fan, Marna traveled with Bill to England and Europe and across the U.S. including their many Volkswalks looking for Jane. They visited libraries/bookstores to see Jane Austen editions and photographed them. They visited Jane Austen sites in England at Chawton, Bath, Lyme, and Winchester. They even attended a Jane Austen Festival at Chatsworth where Netherfield was filmed for Pride and Prejudice. For more Jane, they rented a car and did their own tour of the Southampton sites that author, Stephanie Barron wrote about in her Jane Austen Mystery Series. On Marna's continued travels in the U.S. and abroad, she looks for Jane Austen wherever she goes.

To honor Bill and Marna, we photographed them at their new home in the library at Russellville Park.  Congratulations Bill and Marna! We appreciate your many years of devotion to our Oregon/SW Washington Region!      

Spring Tea 2022
Speaker: Elizabeth Raisanen
Topic:Mary Russell Mitford and Jane Austen: “Nearly Neighbors: Mary Russell Mitford and Jane Austen Through The Lens of the Digital Humanities Project.”​​
Hosted via Zoom by Marcia Hamley (Former Co-Region Coordinator)
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary
 
We held our annual Spring Tea on May 1st, 2020 via zoom. Marcia Hamley introduced our speaker and moderated the event. Our guest of honor was Elizabeth Raisanen, Ph.D, who is an Assistant Dean and instructor of literature and undergraduate research in the Robert D. Clark Honors College at the University of Oregon where she is a specialist in women writers of the British Romantic era with research interests in eighteenth and nineteenth-century British literature, Romantic drama, and Digital Humanities.
 
Digital Humanities applies computational methods and practices to the study of literature and the arts. It allows us to see connections and to ask questions about those materials that we might not know to ask without digitalization.
 
Raisanen is a founding editor of The Digital Mitford <https://digitalmitford.org/> which originated in April 2013 at the British Women’s Writer’s Conference. Digital Mitford is a free comprehensive online scholarly archive of the works of Mary Russell Mitford who was a contemporary of Jane Austen.
 
The Digital Mitford is a master site index of people, places, and things that populated Mitford’s world. . Raisanen edits Mitford’s writings and codes her texts. She teaches how to transcribe, code, and conduct research on Mitford’s writings. Raisanen is also the drama section editor for the project.
 
Raisanen presented on “Nearly Neighbors: Mary Russell Mitford and Jane Austen Through The Lens of the Digital Humanities Project.”​​  Like Jane Austen, Mitford shared the same birthday but was 12 years her junior. Although they were nearly neighbors as they shared a geographical proximity to each other, they never met or corresponded despite Mitford’s admiration of Jane.
 
Mitford defies categorization as she was a prolific writer of both the Romantic and Victorian eras--a novelist, poet, dramatist, a prose stylist of pastoral idylls, writer of short domestic fiction, a diarist, and an epistoler of over 2,000 letters (much of it which hasn’t yet been edited). Although forgotten due to her fragmented literary identity, Mitford was a literary celebrity known in her time for Our Village based upon her life in Three Mile Cross in Berkshire where readers from all over the world visited to find its many locations.   
 
We also received a crash course on XML coding with examples of XML tags as it relates to Mitford’s life to see how text becomes searchable. We learned that the British Romantic period is the start of computer coding and that it takes a digital village to bring women writers out of obscurity.

Thank you, Elizabeth Raisanen for showing us Mary Russell Mitford's life and introducing us to the Digital Mitford!

Music In Jane Austen’s World
Discussion Leader: Elaine Blatt
Moderator: Stephanie Fleming
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary

Mozart music elegantly played in the background as we gathered and readied ourselves via zoom for a virtual concert that swept us back into the 18th and 19th century world of Jane Austen. 
 
Our Maestro for the afternoon was Elaine Blatt who led our meeting. Elaine is a longtime member of our region, and of JASNA, and a lifelong Jane Austen fan and enthusiast since the age of 12. Elaine studied violin since age 8 and currently plays in two community orchestras in the Portland area. She also studied piano as a child.
 
Elaine discoursed on the context of music created in Jane Austen’s time accompanied by informative and sumptuous slides of the period.
 
Co-presenter, Stephanie Fleming moderated the event as the Master of Ceremonies. She provided the accompanying music with links to ten music samples that illustrate the music that Jane Austen would have played and heard during her life—with a focus on the piano as that was Jane’s instrument plus a history of Jane as a concert goer and her family’s involvement in music.
 
Below are the musical links to follow along with the presentation.
 
 Introduction:

• Music Sample #1: ♪ Mozart Piano Sonata No: 11 A Major, K 331 https://bit.ly/3eRfxzB

Music in Jane Austen’s Books/Movie Adaptations.

• Elaine asked us the following introductory questions:
  • Who are the best musicians in JA’s books?
    • Jane Fairfax and Mary Crawford.
  • Who was the worst musicians?
    • Mr. Collins.
  • What are your favorite musical moments in Jane Austen’s books?
  • What are your opinions of how music is portrayed in the movie adaptations of Jane Austen’s books?
  • We had a fun discussion comparing musical characters in Jane Austen’s books and favorite musical moments in Jane Austen’s writings.

 
Musical Overview:

• Elaine then provided an overview of the musical periods: Late Baroque, Classical, and Romantic.   
• Late Baroque Period.
  • The period that preceded the Classical period (Jane Austen lived pretty squarely in the classical period). Baroque music is characterized by complexity and polyphony (two or more simultaneous lines of melody -- most easily seen in the fugue).  
  • Bach (1685-1750)
    • A giant of the late Baroque Period and a central figure. Bach is the definitive Baroque composer -- incredibly prolific, and the first name that comes into most people’s mind for the period.  
  • Handel (1685-1759)
    • A German composer of the late Baroque period, who ended up in London when his patron, Prince George of Hanover, became King George I of England. His music would have been very familiar and very popular among people in Jane Austen’s time, as he was a towering musical figure in England.  

 

• The Classical Period.
  • Characterized by simplicity rather than complexity. 
  • Use of formality to achieve a "clearer," "cleaner" style that used clear divisions between parts (notably a clear, single melody accompanied by chords), brighter contrasts and "tone colors" (achieved by the use of dynamic changes and modulations to more keys).
  • Characterized by homophony, a birth of contrasts and colors with a move towards simplicity and more formality to achieve a cleaner style.
  • Brighter contrasts and tone colors achieved by dynamic and key changes with greater emphasis on instrumental music.
  •  In the classical period, music was played by small orchestras for the upper class and wealthy.
  •  By the time that Beethoven entered the music scene, the world was marked by the rise of gigantic music played in a gigantic concert hall. This led to listening to symphonic music as a public entertainment not just an opera.

 

• Beethoven (1770-1827)
  • Beethoven is also a giant -- his early compositions get classified in the Classical period, but he progresses into the Romantic period – with the transition beginning in the very early 1800s and continuing to Beethoven's death in 1827. As a musician, he is one of the great composers of all time.
  • Straddled both the classical and romantic periods, especially in Jane Austen’s later works.
  • Beethoven’s genius has immense complexity. He maximized the orchestra with variances from very soft to very loud dynamics of music with big dynamic swings.
  • Member Arnie Perlstein noted that Beethoven expanded the form from Mozart by 30 minutes.
• Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
  • A giant of the classical period, which followed the Baroque. He would have been well known to people in Jane Austen’s time.
• Haydn (31 March 1732 – 31 May 1809):
  • Also a major figure in the classical period, friend and mentor to Mozart.
  • Haydn spent time in London, so was particularly familiar to people in Jane Austen’s time.
• Pleyel (1757-1831):
  • Ignaz Pleyel was a French composer and piano builder.
  • He was a favorite student of Haydn.
  • Like Haydn, he lived in London for a time after he escaped from the French Revolution in 1791.
  • Pleyel and Haydn each had competing concert series in London. Pleyel was a particular favorite of Jane Austen. He wrote a lot of piano music that was often given to purchasers of pianos during the time of Jane Austen.
  • He focused on piano making and publishing sheet music.
  • Yet he composed 42 symphonies, 70 string quartets, and several operas. 

 

• The Romantic Period.
  • Followed the Classical Period and rejected restraint and formality of the classical period with such composers as Mozart, Hayden, Pleyel, and Beethoven (although later, Beethoven is definitely in the Romantic period).

 
Music in Jane Austen’s Books.

• The overriding question: How is music played in Jane Austen’s books?
• A favorite sound track of the BBC Chopin music illustrates the story well.
  • A visiting guest said that the composer of the soundtrack for the Emma Thompson version of Sense and Sensibility is cited online as having referenced a Chopin sonata in his soundtrack, but the website didn’t specify which one.

• Members noted that music in the current Emma film (2020) is funny and illustrates the comic scenes.

 
The Rise of the Piano.

• The harpsichord in the 1600s was the forerunner of the piano.
  • Music Sample #2: ♪Handel Air and Variations: https://binged.it/3y5627t
  • However, the rise of the piano killed off the harpsichord which disappeared in the 1800s and didn’t re-appear until the 20th century with a revival in interest in performing Baroque music on appropriate instruments.

• The piano was a big development in Jane Austen’s time.
  • The piano allowed for dynamic changes that Classical composers favored.
  • The making and selling of pianos was a big business. Often music was given away with a piano purchase.
• In the late 1700s, the Broadwood piano entered the music scene.
  • The Broadwood piano expanded the number of keys from 55 to 88 piano keys and added pedals
    • Favored by both Beethoven and Haydn.
    • A technical innovation that allowed Beethoven to achieve dynamic innovations in his symphonies.
    • Pleyel’s sheet music was given away with the purchase of a Broadwood.
  • Also late in the 1700s, the Square pianos emerged for the less wealthy or rising middle class.
    • Georgiana Darcy in Pride and Prejudice would have had a beautiful Broadwood Grand piano; less affluent families could still enjoy the music of the smaller piano pieces.
    • Jane Austen discussed purchasing a box type square piano, which was less expensive and more suitable for smaller homes. She budgeted about 30 pounds for the purchase, equal to about $2,750 in current currency. Unfortunately, the original square piano from her home no longer exists.

 
Jane Austen’s Musical Background.

• Jane Austen’s music collection and the music she would have played and enjoyed at home was discussed.
  • Jane loved music and played the piano daily.
  • Jane kept an extensive collection of sheet music.
  • Jane played and sang for her family and attended concerts.
  • However, it’s unknown which pianos Jane played.

• It was common to borrow music at the time then hand copy the music. This helped people to learn the music. This is what Jane did.

 
The Austen Family Music Collection.

• 18 volumes of Jane Austen’s family music collection survive to this day, preserved by the Knight family and given to the Jane Austen Society in Britain.
• All 18 volumes have been painstakingly cataloged and digitized by the University of Southampton and are available online so you can see every page.  Gillian Dooley recently completed the task of cataloging each playable piece in the collection.
• The total collection includes nearly 600 pieces of sheet music.
  • Two volumes are personal albums containing music hand copied by Jane.
  • Many are piano reductions.
  • Mostly songs for the keyboard and harp containing works by both well-known and lesser known composers.
  • Many works are by the famous composers: Mozart, Haydn, Handel, Clementi, Pleyel.
• Keyboard Volume.
  • First Volume: Juvenile Songs and Lessons for Young Beginners. Jane added the descriptive phrase, “Who Don’t Know Enough to Practice.”
    • Features music from 1790-1810.
    • Many are piano reductions meaning orchestral works arranged for piano playing.
    • Music Sample #3: ♪ Duke of York’s New March from The Marriage of Figaro https://bit.ly/3rvjnU6
    • Music Sample #4 by an anonymous composer: ♪ Scotch Air  https://bit.ly/3rvOPBF  
      • Illustrates the less highbrow aspects of the music Jane Austen copied, many of which were Scotch folk tunes.
  • Second Volume: “Songs and Duets.”
    • Features music from 1790-1805.
    • Vocal music (solo and ensemble) mainly with keyboard accompaniment.”
    • Many hand copied by Jane.
    • Music Sample #5: ♪ My Phillida – A Favorite Arietta: https://bit.ly/3i4cuGi
    • Printed editions of solo keyboard music published between 1785-1795.
      • Music Sample #6: ♪ Pleyel Sonatina III, in F major:   https://bit.ly/3kOpKk1

The Battle of Prague.

• Jane’s music collection included The Battle of Prague.
  • A theatrical participatory music re-enacting the engagement between the Prussians and Austrians before the battle in 1757.
  • Popular during the 18th and 19th century.

• Of course, we were all interested because The Battle of Prague musical reenactment has been rescheduled for our region to perform in December 2022.
• Memorable from the 2017 Huntington Beach AGM where it was performed.
  • A visual clip showed the relevancy of The Battle of Prague today with an example from the 2017 AGM with members Stephanie Fleming, Elaine Blatt, and Dula Baker enjoying the music that Jane Austen enjoyed. They  participated in the re-enactment with swords.
    • They all agreed that it was hysterical to re-enact it.
    • Stephanie noted that she highly recommends this activity for JASNA regions.
    •  It gave them a deeper understanding of the importance of music in Jane Austen’s life as Jane Austen’s family loved theater and performed The Battle of Prague for entertainment.

• A clip played from the Battle of Prague where the music sounds like flashing armies.
  • Music Sample #7: ♪ Battle of Prague:  https://bit.ly/3eUaUod
  • Member Karen Kinzey noted that the piece could be right out of a Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin movie.

 
Performance in Regency England.

• The Upper Assembly Rooms building in Bath hosted dances and organized card playing, but also were the site of some concerts. Concerts were commonly held in the Tea Room. See slide. 
• Jane Austen attended public performances and concerts in the tearoom at Bath (see slide).
• See Slide 14 for a visual of the Upper Assembly Rooms in Bath where Jane Austen would have heard musical performances.
• Music Sample #8: ♪ Mozart aria, Ruhe Sanft, from opera Zaide: https://binged.it/3zzWfGy

• Member Kim Higgins said that her favorite scene in Persuasion is where Captain Wentworth and Ann exchange comments about music.
• Jane Austen also attended performances of the Royal Opera at Covent Garden in London when visiting her brother.
  • The biggest venue was The Theatre Royal where there were lots of comical and serious opera performances.

• Music Sample #9:  ♪ Arne Overture to Artaxerxes https://binged.it/2VaeSC4
  • Jane Austen noted in her letters that although she found it tiresome to do, she copied an overture of it for her music collection.

Conclusion:

• After the presentation concluded, Stephanie Fleming invited us to ask questions and share comments.

• Everybody in attendance loved the presentation!

• It was a most charming, knowledgeable, insightful and innovative presentation!
• Seemingly a first for our region as nothing like this had been done before in a reading group for our region.  

• One of our members noted that Jane Austen enjoyed music that she played for fun, entertaining family and friends.
• Arnie Perlstein asked if Elaine mentioned that the piano given to Jane Fairfax was a Broadwood?
  • Elaine said that it’s uncertain which type of piano was given to Jane Fairfax, but that it’s probably a Broadwood piano. She said that Broadwood pianos were known to be the best pianos made in England so Jane Austen readers would have known that the gift Jane Fairfax received was very valuable.   

• Who taught Jane Austen piano?
  • Not known. Elaine said that Jane and Cassandra both studied piano at home.
• Did Jane play harp at all?
  • There’s no evidence that Jane Austen played the harp.
• Did Jane’s sister, Cassandra play the piano/harp?
  • Definitely, Cassandra studied piano as a girl.
  • Elaine thinks that she heard that Cassandra also played the harp.
  • However, Cassandra wasn’t particularly musically inclined. 
•  Arnie Perlstein said that Jane’s writing is influenced by the fact that she was a musician.
  • Jane’s writing has rhythm. Her novels are like a big piece of music.
  • There’s themes and variations observed Arnie. Elaine agreed.

• Our musical event ended with a closing song from Beethoven.

• Music Sample #10:  ♪ Beethoven Sonata #29 Op.106 https://binged.it/3iHspJv
  • A discussion continued about Jane Austen’s music.
    •  A visiting member from Sydney Australia noted that Jane Austen was “obviously very advanced musically, technically, and otherwise, but none of her heroines were accomplished in the arts, at least not to a professional level.”   
      • For example, Marianne Dashwood.
      • Jane Fairfax, while not a heroine, was also portrayed as highly accomplished.
  • Elaine noted that music was considered a leisure activity.  
  • However, Elaine noted that women in the social class portrayed in Jane Austen’s novels (at least the heroines) largely studied music as part of their education and to become more attractive marriage prospects.
  • Becoming a professional musician would generally not have been something young women in Jane Austen’s world would have thought of doing. There were female performers, but they were not common. In England at this time, it was considered proper for ladies to study only piano, harp, or voice. 

Thank you, Elaine Blatt for volunteering your musical expertise to give us a thorough and captivating look at music during Jane Austen’s time and in her writings!
 
And thank you, Stephanie Fleming for serving as Master of Ceremonies and moderating and playing the music for us!
 
Your collaboration is most appreciated! Seemingly, this was one of the most unique and technologically innovative reading group discussions we’ve had in the history of our region!

Spring Tea 2021
Speaker: Audrey Bilger
Topic:Jane Austen and Feminist Humor
Hosted via Zoom by Marcia Hamley (Co-Region Coordinator)
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary
 
Our region held its annual Spring Tea via a virtual zoom meeting on Sunday, May 25th, 2021. Fifty three of us attended. We opened our virtual tea with an online chat of where members live which included visitors from California; the East Coast of Boston and Portland, Maine; and as far away as Dublin, Ireland; Geneva Switzerland, and Germany.
 
We played “Jane Austen Categories,” a lively version that our own Marcia Hamley invented based on the online game “Scattagories.”
 
Our group separated into 5 teams of two rounds.
 
In Round 1, we named characters from Jane Austen’s novels starting with the letters of JASNA or rather JASNE (2nd letter “a” replaced with an “e.). No titles, only characters in Jane Austen’s works, and preferably full names that we used only once. If we couldn’t confirm the name in a Jane Austen book, we relied on the group wisdom.  Some of the character names we discussed were: Jane Fairfax, Anne Elliot, and Susan Price.
 
In Round 2, we named locations in Jane Austen’s novels and life. After we returned to our main group, the game prompted attenders to recommend Jane Austen books about place names: 

• The List Lover’s Guide to Jane Austen by Joan Strasbaugh.
  • Jane Austen’s Names: Riddles, Persons, Places by Margaret Doody.
  • Jane Austen’s England by Roy & Lesley Adkins.
  • Jane Austen’s England by Maggie Lane.
  • Jane Austen and Names by Maggie Lane.

 
Our Region Co-Coordinator, Marcia Hamley then introduced our presenter, Audrey Bilger. Audrey has a PhD. in English with a focus on Feminist theory, LGBTQ, gender theory, and popular culture. Since 2019, she served as the Reed College President and interestingly the first woman President of Reed College.
 
Audrey spoke about “Jane Austen and Feminist Humor,” the subject of her book, Laughing Feminism: Subversive Comedy in Frances Burney, Maria Edgeworth, and Jane Austen.
 
Audrey used many colorful and descriptive slides with quotes from Jane Austen’s books to illustrate Enlightenment, rationalism, feminist humor, and what life was like for Jane Austen and women in her time. She places Austen as falling within (and perfecting) the tradition of Enlightenment feminist humor, which began in England as writers responded in print to the misogyny and sexism in numerous satires against women from the last half of the 17th and the first half of the 18th centuries. 
 
Audrey noted that satire ridicules in order to reform the shortcomings of society.  Feminist humor took a satirical aim at notions of men’s supposed superiority to women and portrayals of women as infantile and frivolous creatures, and promoted instead the Enlightenment feminist ideal of women and men as equals.
 
Bilger pointed out that Austen’s sharpest social criticism (and satire) was frequently aimed a limitations placed on women such as idealized views of women, women who behave irrationally due to poor education, men who think they’re superior to women, and sentimentality..
 
Important Take-aways From Audrey Bilger’s Presentation:

• Cassandra Austen’s portrait of Jane Austen facilitated a group discussion of the real Jane Austen.
  • Reveals characteristics in Jane Austen’s personality.
  • The sharpness of features is not a softened up version.
  • Jane Austen frowning is more realistic than later portraits of her which are more idealized (i.e. sharpness of her features were adjusted into the popular doe-like eyes look).
  • Shows her looking like she has opinions of what’s going on and what she’s seeing (i.e. an irony compared to detachment).
    
  • Shows that Jane Austen is not passive and has agency.
  • Marcia Hamley said that Jane Austen “looks spicy and edgy with a lot to say.”
  • It was noted that the portrait illustration was looked closely at when it first started to circulate.

 

• Jane Austen’s Letter to Cassandra Austen, 1813.
  • Reveals Jane Austen’s philosophy, “I do not write for such dull elves, as have not a great deal of Ingenuity themselves.”
  • Jane Austen uses satire. Satire ridicules to reform—to change the world.

 

• Jane Austen makes us laugh at her characters.
  • Jane Austen wrote delightful comedies.
  • Her humor has a feminist slant.
  • To paraphrase her words, “It should be a truth universally acknowledged.”

 

• Quote: “Do not consider me now as an elegant female intending to plague you, but as rational creature speaking the truth from her heart.” Elizabeth Bennet, Pride and Prejudice.

• References Elizabeth’s dialogue with Mr. Collins.
• Illustrates Jane Austen’s humor.
• We root for Elizabeth and not Mr. Collins.

 

• Pop Culture’s View On Feminism.
  • Represents feminists as angry.
  • Feminists need to be silenced.
  • Therefore, the history of feminism is not different from other equal rights movements. Men and women should be equal. 

 

• Pioneer books of Feminism.

• They Used to Call Me Snow White…But I Drifted: Women’s Strategic Use of Humor (published 2013).
• Comedy and the Woman Writer: Woolf, Spark, and Feminism by Judy Little (published 2015).
• A Very Serious Thing: Women’s Humor and American Culture” by Nancy Walker (published 1988).

 

• Enlightenment Feminist Humor 101.
  • Men are in inherently superior to women = Ridiculous.
  • Woman are infantile, frivolous creatures = Ridiculous.
  • Women and men are equal = Enlightenment Feminist Ideal.

 

• Misogynist Satire of the Enlightenment.
  • Writers responded to misogyny and sexism with satire.
  • Women were more than the objects of humor.
  • See An Essay in Defense of the Female Sex by Sophia Drake.

 

• Enlightenment Views on Feminism.

• Human beings are rational beings.
• The notion that men and women possess reason during Jane Austen’s time gained ground.
• The appeal to reason brought good to the world and changed how men and women interact.
• Women’s worth and status were debated.

 

• The Print Culture in 18th Century:
  • Women’s increase in print culture brought about a new culture involving feminist humor which Jane Austen took part in and perfected.
  • Enlightenment, rationalism, feminist humor, and Jane Austen are all related.

 

• Historical Literary Feminists.
  • Mary Wollstonecraft was not an isolated voice crying out for women’s justice. (See below for Other Historical Feminist Publications).
  • Jane Austen has been linked to other Feminist women writers such as Aphra Behn and Frances Burney.
  • 18th century Feminist women writers shared a sense of humor.

 

• Other Historical Feminist Publications.
  • An Essay in Defense of the Female Sex by Judith Drake (1696).
    • 17th Century Feminist humor.
    • Lists of male character types who deserve to be ridiculed (i.e. the beau, fop, squire, politician).
    • The belief in male superiority is a foolish choice.
  • Woman Not Inferior to Man by Sophia (1739).
    • Male folly is varied and pervasive.
    • Ridicules in an attempt to reform.
  • A Vindication of the Rights of Women (1789) by Mary Wollstonecraft.
    • About women’s equal Rights.
    • Wollstonecraft expanded equal rights to make the case that women are equal to men.
    • Laughs at the absurd views of Rousseau’s Emile (with a young girl writing her O’s).
    • Quotes people to show the ridiculousness of their view.

 

• Jane Austen’s Writings.

• Depicts rational women to be taken seriously.
• Celebrates marriages of mutual respect.
• Partners in marriage are companions.
• Equality of sexes.
• Feminism is one aspect of her comic vision.
• Writes both feminism and humor against the idealized view that puts women on pedestals.
• Believes in laughter in love.
• Believes in an abiding faith in rationality.

 

• Targets of Austen’s Feminist Laughter (accompanied by antique illustrations from Jane Austen’s books).
  • Idealized views of women.
  • Women who behave irrationally.
  • Men who think they’re superior to women.
  • Sentimentality.

 

• Laughing at Idealized View of Women.

        “She felt the awkwardness of having no party to join.” - Northanger Abbey

• Catherine in her girlhood likes boy pursuits. This is not strange at all.
• Jane Austen makes fun of dolls because it’s her nature.
• Catherine takes care of her siblings.
• Henry Tilney is a reasonable man. He values conversations with Catherine.

 

• Laughing at Irrational Women.

         Pride And Prejudice

• Here Jane Austen laughs at irrational women.
• Mr. Bennet is guilty of not treating his wife as a companion.
• Mr. Bennet’s behavior encourages Mrs. Bennet’s follies instead of overcoming them. She is who she is because she hasn’t been guided to better behavior.

 

• Laughing at Male Superiority.

        “Almost as soon as I entered the house, I singled you out as the companion of my future life.” –   
        Pride And Prejudice

• Jane Austen uses Mr. Collins to laugh at male superiority.
• Mr. Collins has artificial gallantry. He doesn’t know how to be genuinely gallant.
• Mr. Collins has pompous and insincere behavior with exaggerated notions of romance.

 

• Laughing at Sentimentality.

        “Come Darcy,” said he. “I must have you dance.” – Pride And Prejudice.

• Debunks the courtship system that leads to artificiality between men and women.
• Elizabeth gets rewarded for defying conduct book behavior.
• Women can take liberties with men instead of always being in awe of them.

 

• Final Conclusions.

• Happily ever after is not realistic. Marriages are not pictures of perfection.
• There’s a root of equality in the Enlightenment.
• Humor is an effective tool to show that women are rational creatures and deserve to be heard when they speak the truth of their hearts.

 
5.  Question/Answer (What Our Group Said).

• Women were sexualized = sentimentalized. A result of sentimentality.

 

• About the subversive subtext of Humor and Feminism.
  • Arnie Perlstein said that, “Jane Austen is just as bawdy as Shakespeare, but it’s more coded.”
  • Frances Burney has a lot of bawdiness and shields her characters. Artificial humor is hidden in plain sight.

 

• Courtship in Jane Austen’s Novels.
  • We idealize romantic couples in Jane Austen’s writings.
  • She has characters meet in conversation.
  • Knightly encourages Emma to be all that she can be.
  • Elizabeth encourages Darcy to be all that he can be. Therefore, there’s mutual play and mutual growth. Elizabeth sees how he treats others around him as she gets to know Pemberley.
  • Invites laughter.

 

• Catherine Moreland of Northanger Abbey.
  • A classical anti-heroine. She not bad. She’s real.
  • The courtship between Henry Tilney and Catherine is that of an avuncular, gently mocking suitor and a real heroine.
  • When Catherine and Henry begin to enter into dialogue, we can imagine that they will have an egalitarian marriage.

 

• Emma.

• Miss Bates had a lot of information. The more Emma overlooks her, the less she understands herself and others.
• Miss Bates shows what it means for a woman who doesn’t have family.
• Emma chooses wit over kindness and puts down Miss Bates.
• The satire of Miss Bates doesn’t reflect on Miss Bates as a silly woman. The satire of Miss Bates allows us to reflect on those around her and how they treat her (i.e. most especially Emma).
• We’re seeing humor at Emma’s maturation.

 

• Pride & Prejudice.

• Charlotte Lucas is pragmatic. She chooses Mr. Collins. She doesn’t marry for love.
• Charlotte organizes her house. Not a great situation for her. She’s in a situation in which she may feel out of her element and in which may feel less familiar to her.
• Elizabeth says no to Mr. Collins. She ends up getting the reward because the author waits to reward this independent thinking heroine. 

 

• Audrey Bilger’s Interest in Women Writers.

• Became interested in humor with her M.A. program when she studied Virginia Woolf who is tough and shows humor as despair. 
• Then backed her way into the 19th century.
• Noticed that there wasn’t as much comedy by 18th century women writers.
• Noticed darker humor in the 19th century.
• There are authors that came after Jane Austen who make use of comedy for criticism.
• Taught a class on Jane Austen, the Brontes, and Virginia Woolf at Claremont Colleges.

• The Brontes and Virginia Woolf had to look back to Jane Austen.  There’s a sense of admiration for Jane Austen but that it’s not what they write. They’re doing their own thing.

• Jane Austen was influenced by Mary Wollstonecraft. Frances Burney would have been aware of Mary Wollstonecraft. Mary Wollstonecraft is in the mix.
• Mary Wollstonecraft’s name and ideas would have been known to Jane Austen as was the French Revolution, Thomas Paine and his democratic framework, and women’s rights.

 
Thank you, Audrey Bilger for an enlightening examination of Jane Austen’s life, her books, Enlightenment feminist humor, and what life was like for women who lived during the 17th and 18th centuries!

 The Clergy in Jane Austen’s Novels
Reading Group Discussion
Discussion Leader: Margaret Christmann
By Vonnie Alto, Secretary

In January, our Region Co-Coordinator, Margaret Christmann virtually led our reading group discussion via zoom on “The Clergy in Jane Austen’s Novels.”
 
Margaret’s fascinating presentation discussed Jane Austen’s family background with the church, the education that the clergy received, and the types of livings available. We also discussed the various clerical characters in the novels from the ridiculous Mr. Collins to the thoughtful Henry Tilney.

The Anglican Clergy.
 Jane Austen’s Relationship to The Anglican Clergy.

• The Anglican Clergy was relevant in her life.
• She was of strong faith.
• She attended an Anglican Church all her life.
• Her father, brothers and other relatives became clergy.
• The precision of her prose and lack of ornamentation owes much to the Bible and the Church of England.
• Her writings reflect the moral principles of the church.

 
The Anglican Clergy.

• Holds the belief that without the church, the moral life of the nation would fail.
• Approved that clergy live in the community in order to know the parishioner’s needs and provide an example to the people.
• Didn’t approve of clergy who tried to prescribe behavior of young women or who were kiss-ups to the establishment.
• Viewed people’s imperfections with tolerant amusement.

 
History of the Church.

• During the early 18th century, most of the population lived in villages.
• The clergy came from the lowest gentry of shopkeepers/businesses. They didn’t let spiritual duties interfere with their secular lives.
• Sermons were on church doctrine, not living a Christian life.
• Sermons judged on how well they were spoken, not the content.
• By mid-century, the focus became a need for each person to have a personal faith in God for their salvation.
• By the late century, the Industrial Revolution began to shift people from country to town life. This destabilized society.
• Younger sons needed an occupation due to primogeniture when the oldest inherits everything. The Church was favored above the law or going to war.
• The Church began to support slavery, help for the poor, and prison reform.
• The government believed that the Churches were the best at teaching outward behavior, morals, and inner principles.

 
Requirements for clergy in Jane Austen’s time.

• Gentry born.
• Be a member of the Church of England.
• Earn a degree from Oxford/Cambridge (These were schools set up to train clergymen. 60% who attended college intended to become clergymen).
• Take one class in theology. No other classes were required. Natural religion was taught based on reason, science, and morality.
• Every student was assigned a tutor.
• The most important job for a student was to make connections so that he could find people who had livings for him to gain a clergyman position.
• Age 23, the student would present a testimonial from the college to a bishop that he was morally fit. The bishop would examine the student’s fitness for ordination. At 24, the student would be ordained to perform all the rites of the church.
• Up to 40% of clergymen never found a living.
• If these young men didn’t want to fight in the war (or go into the military), then they tried to find a living or stayed on at the university as a fellow. 
• A living is a position a clergyman takes that allows him to perform the duties and rites of the church.

 
Three Classes of Clergy:

• Rector.

• Owner of a living. May or may not be ordained, for example, an estate owner. Receives the tithes.
• Most clergy owned 1 living, the highest was 6.
• Owner can give or sell the living to another.
• Gives sermons but may not spend all the time on church business, given his activity level in the community.
• Some rectors held services in various churches morning, afternoon, and evening so they could keep all the livings for themselves.

 

• Vicar.

• A clergyman who is in charge of a parish but doesn’t own the living.
• Hired by the rector. Receives 10% of the tithes.
• Performs all the duties of the church and helps the community.
• Cannot sell the position.
• Provided housing by the rector

 

• Curate.
  • Paid a salary by the rector/vicar, sometimes doing all the jobs of a rector/vicar. Very low pay.
  • Had to find their own housing.
  • Works for someone else.
  • The lowest down in the clerical hierarchy, earns the least amount of money.

 
More About The Clergy:

• A living is a position the clergyman takes.
  • Livings given by a University, bishops, The Crown, private landowners, or Public schools.
  • There were about 7,500 livings in 1790.
• The incumbent is the person in charge of the Parish. Incumbent literally means a person who lays down in the living.
• A parson is a general word (similar to a clergyman) and refers to anyone in the church in that role.
• Clergymen are appointed for life and can’t retire.
• Clergymen Wages:
  • £35 to £1,000 a year depending on position with rectors getting the most and curates the least.
  • The pay depended on who owned the living not the size of the living or the amount of work that was done.
  • Tithes of 10% were given to the clergyman from the community in the form of grains, fruit, animals, and other products of the community.
• A clergyman could increase his income two ways.
  • George Austen brought students in the house to live with him and tutor them for entry to Oxford/Cambridge.
  • “Glebe land” was assigned to the clergyman. The land attached to a parish and could be farmed by the clergyman.
• Those who didn’t get a position (a living) could become teachers in the public schools or enter another profession.
• The alter and pulpit were the most important pieces of the church and kept up by the clergy. The building was taken care of by the community.
• A clergyman could repair the parsonage and even tear it down and rebuild it if he had the money to do it.
• The parsonage of Jane’s father was torn down and rebuilt in a higher position after her death.
• In time, the parsonages were moved away from the great house and closer to the church.   
• Married clergy were preferred as they had experience with domestic life to advise the parishioners.

 
What Did Clergymen Do?

• Held 1 or more services on Sunday.
• Services included prayers, readings from the Bible, and a sermon on church doctrine.
• Read the entire book of Psalms and the New Testament each year in church.
• Sermon were available in printed books or the clergyman could write his own.
• The congregation sang prayers or psalms with no musical accompaniment.
• Held Holy Communion once a month (on Wednesday). Money collected during Holy Communion was given to the poor of the area.
• Dispensed charity in the form of food, clothing, and/or money.
• Helped parishioners find employment and supervised the poor.
• Met with bishops who examined the affairs of the parish.
• Served as Registrars for the parish, recording births, deaths, marriages. Charging for this was an extra form of income for the clergyman.
• Set a moral example for the parish.

 
The Clergyman’s Wife.

• Helped the sick, elderly, and the poor with food, medicine, and clothing.
• She must maintain a calm and proper behavior at all times and be an example to the women of the parish.
• When her husband died, she was left without a house or income.

• Danine Cozzens said that the Georgian Anglican Church was famously corrupt, which led to reformations such as those led by John Newman who eventually became Catholic.

 
The Austen Family.
George Austen.

• His living was given to him by an uncle, Thomas Knight, who gave the living of Stevenson to him.
  • Sir Thomas Knight adopted George’s son, Edward as his heir.
  • It was George’s first clergyman position.
  • He had 2 livings:  Stevenson and Deane.

• Before his retirement, he increased the tithes so that his family would have enough money to live in Bath and still support his son, James, his curate.
• He decided to retire to have some time for himself before he died.

 
Is there a limit to a number or living rectors that a clergy man could hold? No, although excessive numbers were looked down upon.
 
The Clergy in Jane Austen’s Novels.
(How involved the clergymen are in the novels):
 
Sense And Sensibility:
Edward Ferrars

• The only clergyman in Sense And Sensibility.

• He becomes a clergyman at the end of the book. Delaford (small rural area) is given to him by Colonel Brandon.
• Received £200 in tithes.
• Not defined as a rector.
• Earned a divinity degree at college.

 
Note:

• The holder of a living can’t dismiss a vicar/curate without just cause. The vicar/curate would have had to agree to leave their position before Colonel Brandon could give it to someone else.

 
Pride And Prejudice:

• Mr. Collins is vicar of Rosings Park Church.
  • Clownish, toadying, a joke, pompous, and silly.
  • No sense of Christian-like humility, no forgiveness, narrow-minded.
  • Lack of social skills. Constantly discussing the worth of things.
  • Good at collecting the tithes and prescribing the behavior of others.
  • Performs the duties of a clergyman without understanding them.
  • Never changes throughout the novel.
  • Sees his job as praising Lady Catherine, not shepherding souls to heaven.

 
Persuasion:

• Dr. Shirley in Uppercross owns a living.
• Charles Hagar is a curate for a living which is being held for a child.
• Mr. Wentworth (Captain Wentworth’s brother) is the curate at the Elliot’s church when Anne and Captain Wentworth meet.

 
Note:

• If you own a living, you can give the  2nd son a living, then hire a curate to do all the work of the church until the son is grown up and able to take over the church

• Did not include the clergymen actively in the book.

 
Northanger Abbey:
1st book written when Jane Austen was very young at the age of 18.

• Catherine’s father was a rector who owned a living.
• Catherine’s brother James would become his father’s curate when his father retires, then become rector at his father’s death.
• Henry Tilney is a rector. His Father gave him the living in Winston to support himself and so he could marry.
• Performs all the duties of a clergyman such as give services, and attends parish meetings.
• Acts his beliefs rather than talking about them.
• He educates Catherine, rather than showing off his knowledge.
• Strong sense of duty to his parish.

 
How was Henry Tilney as a clergyman? Did he do his job?

• Arnie Perlstein said that we don’t see him doing his duties.
• Henry has hired a curate so his pulpit is filled when he is away.
• Henry confronts Catherine who is snooping around in his mother’s bedroom. He points out that these things couldn’t happen in a Christian country. This was Jane Austen cynical of the Anglican church.
• We’re supposed to read between the lines and question how closely the church is living up to the words of the Bible.
• Margaret said that one job of the clergy is to teach good manners/good morals. Henry Tilney explains the moral issues involved.

 
Note:

•  Marcia Hamley noted that Jane Austen was both sickly and church going.
• Margaret said that Jane wrote to her nieces jokingly that perhaps we all should be evangelicals.

 
Henry Tilney:

• Often absent from his parish.
• Spent a lot of time away from it. What does that say about his dedication to his parish?
• We don’t see Henry doing any of his vicar work, Stephanie Fleming said. Arnie agreed that it is noteworthy.
• Kirk said, “Boo” to Henry Tilney.
• Margaret said he was overly romanticized as a perfect person.
• Therefore, look at his relationships to tease out his character:

• His kindness towards Catherine.
• His protection of his sister.

 
Catherine:

• Like Jane Austen, Catherine is the daughter of a clergyman.
• She has a strong morality and Christian manners expected of church families.

 
Member comments:

• Connie Brown said that Mr. Collins is necessary to contrast Charlotte Lucas’s choice with Elizabeth’s choice of a husband.
• Arnie said that Jane Austen could spot the phonies in the clergy who are pretenders. At one point, Jane Austen indicated that, “He is the last one I will go to for Christian morality….”
• Margaret Christmann said that someone of Mr. Collin’s position was able to get a position from Lady Catherine so soon after graduation makes him extremely lucky.

• Elaine Blatt said that there’s clergy in Jane Austen’s novels for the comfort/social status. Mr. Collins was biding his time waiting to inherit.
• Margaret said that Mr. Collins does every job to the fullest. He tells everyone what they should be doing. But, he constantly talks about money and is focused on monetary worth.
• Stephanie Fleming said that Jane Austen is so unfiltered in her early works that she’ll have to go back and look to see if she can see the seeds of Mr. Collins and others like him.

• Arnie said that the Wynne sisters who were so close to Catherine in Catherine Or the Bower were the daughters of a clergyman.
• Margaret said that if you were not married, you had no income. Charlotte was able to arrange her marriage to Mr. Collins in such a way as he doesn’t infringe on her space. Elizabeth wouldn’t have been able to have done that.
• Marcia Hamley noted that it was a prudent move for Charlotte to marry Mr. Collins.
• Margaret said that Mr. Collins’ focus on money is more about his character than his behavior.
• Margaret said that status is important to Mr. Collins. He said that clergy are the highest in the land.

 
What was Mr. Collins like in college?

• He would waylaid others, introduce himself, and suck up to others while in college. Not really make friend.
• Since Mr. Collins is focused on money, when he was in college he would have researched how much living he could get from each parish, maybe from talking to others.
• Dula Baker noted that Mr. Collins studied. He had some imagination because he liked to garden and had his bees, but he was one of those people who gets on others nerves.
• Margaret said he didn’t develop his social skills.
• Dianine Cozzens said that Mr Collins was browbeaten by an illiterate and miserly father, attended university but made no good friends — to paraphrase Ch XV paragraph 1.  
• Margaret said the only required class to be a clergyman was a theology class then a conversation with the bishop (about the Bible and the 39 articles that the Church was based on).
• Mr. Collins is the same at the beginning of the novel as at the end. He never grows even though he gets married.
•  Some film versions have portrayed him as buffoonish.
• Stephanie Fleming noted that Mr. Collins was in fact vicariously doing Lady Catherine’s work. He was a real "vicar" indeed! Stephanie said she loved it.
• Joan Reynolds said she wondered if Mr. Collins having children would change his character.

 
The Anti-Clergymen of Jane Austen’s Novels
(Examples of people who should never be clergymen):

• Henry Crawford in Mansfield Park.

 
Mr. Elton in Emma:

• Mr. Elton is a vicar, not a rector, doesn’t get many tithes which is why he was looking to marry a rich woman.
• Like Mr. Collins, Mr. Elton has a very high opinion of himself, he dresses well, and he wants his vicarage to look well. He is all show, no substance.
• He improves his vicarage for looks, not for livability.
• He is a respected and efficient clergyman. He attends parish meetings and is good to the poor.
• He tries to increase his social standing by marrying Emma but instead marries a social climber with a fortune.
• Mr. Elton is charming so long as you’re nice to him.
• Mr. Elton is more interested in the social activities of the community and lacks a sense of vocation.
• Mr. Knightley described Mr. Elton to Emma as having a littleness about him.
• Mr. Elton is supposed to be an example of morals and manners.
• Mr. Elton performs marriages. He marries at least 2 couples in the novels. 

 
 Note:

• It was noted that Jane Austen did not take us into the churches and hear the sermons. We should thank Jane Austen for that.
• Mrs. Bates and Miss Bates (wife and daughter) of the clergymen. When their husband/father die suddenly, they don’t have much money and must rely on others to help them.

 
Mansfield Park:
Three Clergymen in Mansfield Park:

1.  Edward Bertram:

• An Ideal clergyman. He is the most religious of all the clergymen.  He is the most believable of the clergy in Austen’s novels. He will fulfill his duties every day of the week.
• Edward is strong in his vocation, has solid principles and deep convictions.
• He’s supposed to get the living of Mansfield Park that his father set aside for him. His brother, Tom, ran up excessive debt so his father was forced to sell the living to Dr. Grant.
• Sir Thomas has a second living at Thornton Lacy’s which becomes Edward’s on his ordination.
• Edward becomes the curate at Mansfield Park when Dr. Grant retires.
• It was against the law to sell a living after someone’s death. It reverted to the original owner.
• Rector of Thornton Lacey because his father gave the living it to him. 
  • He’s the most serious of all of Jane Austen’s clergy.
  • Lives the life/expectations of a clergyman even before he is ordained.

• Edward’s guidance of Fanny shows that he will be a good teacher for his congregation.
• Mary Crawford expects him to hire a curate and go live in London with her.
• On the death of the vicar, the living goes back to the landholder. Sir Thomas could then give the living at Mansfield Park to Edward when Dr. Grant dies.

2.  Mrs. Norris.

• Dies early in the book.
• Mrs. Norris is required to pay Mr. Grant for repairing the parsonage.
• Mrs. Norris likes to sponge off from others. She’s a horrible wife for a clergyman. Jane makes a point here about the clergy. Mrs. Norris scraped and saved and has a lot of money of her own that she refused to spend, preferring others to pay for her.

 
3.  Dr. Grant.

• Dr. Grant is a doctor of divinity earned while he was in college.

• Dr. Grant, not a real good clergyman either.  He’s more interested in his food than his preaching.
• He travels to London and is killed by his gluttony, a commentary that Jane Austen makes of his lack of dedication to his vocation. He is more interested in food than in the duties of a clergyman.

 
The Clergy Wives.

• Stephanie Fleming asked who is best suited and those who aren’t as clergy wives?
• Fanny was the most moral, religious of all the wives.
• Mrs. Norris a selfish wife, looked out for herself above all.
• Mrs. Elton vs Fanny: Appearance versus reality.
• Catherine Tilney: Clergy daughters make the best clergy wives.
• Charlotte Collins: Smart and adaptable
• Elinor said that Mary Crawford knows she isn’t suited.
• Kirk said he loves the idea of Catherine and Elinor as clergy wives.

 
More on the Clergy in Mansfield Park:

• Arnie Perlstein said that Jane Austen wrote a poem in her letters about the clergy:

 
Happy the lab’rer in his Sunday clothes!
In light-drab coat, smart waistcoat, well-darn'd hose,
And hat upon his head, to church he goes;
As oft with conscious pride, he downward throws
A glance upon the ample cabbage rose
Which, stuck in button-hole, regales his nose,
He envies not the gaiest London beaux.
In church he takes his seat among the rows,
Pays to the place the reverence he owes,
LIKES BEST THE PRAYERS WHOSE MEANING LEAST HE KNOWS.
Lists to the sermon in a softening doze.

• Danine Cozzens said that there’s comments on attractiveness in Mansfield Park and that even Mrs. Price comments about it.

 
Slavery:

• Another consideration on Jane Austen’s clergy commentary in Mansfield Park is the church’s role in slavery-- and owning slaves in the West Indies (See the book, Jane Austen: Secret Radical for more information on the subject).
• Mansfield Park is the only novel in which Jane brings up the issue of slavery.
• The Church didn’t have a stand on slavery until the late 1700s when the public wanted reform. 
• Stephanie Fleming said that the Church owned slaves in the West Indies and used their labor to finance the church.
• Margaret said that there were wealthy people in England who had plantations with slaves. The upper church hierarchy would probably be the same.
• Arnie said that the Mansfield family that Fanny grows up in made their money from slavery in Antigua. Edmond (represents the clergy in the novel) turns a blind eye because he’s on the take.
• The Central Church 1820s supported the attempts to abolish slavery in Parliament.
• Margaret said that Fanny grows up as a semi-servant like a slave which is what Jane Austen is trying to say as a commentary.
• Marcia noted that there’s a strong focus on slavery in Mansfield Park. Read between the lines to see it.
•  William Wilberforce (1757-1833) was a Member of Parliament who advocated for abolition of slavery.He lived during Jane Austen’s lifetime.

 
Recommendations for Further Reading:

• Jane Austen and the Clergy by Irene Collins
• The Parson’s Daughter by Irene Collins
• Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune: How Younger Sons Made Their Way in Jane Austen’s England by Rory Muir.

 
For more information on the subject:

• There's an upcoming talk by Irene Collins on “Jane Austen and the Clergy” at the Pacific Northwest Super-Regional Gathering on Feb 6th with 7 JASNA regions hosting! The event title is “Reading Jane Austen in the Pacific Northwest: ‘Perfect Happiness.’” https://jasnaewanid.org/pacific-northwest-gathering/

 
Thank you, Margaret Christmann, for presenting a detailed and thorough study on the clergymen in Jane Austen’s time, her family, and novels. So very insightful!
 

Due to the generous support of donors across the globe, the Jane Austen House has survived the COVID-19 pandemic and REOPENED on August 8th, 2020! 

According to the website, visiting there will be "a different experience" and "a far more intimate one."  The number of visitors are now limited each day and to timed hourly visits with face coverings required.

Immerse yourself in the world of Jane Austen with a new multi-sensory experience. Those visiting the Jane Austen House will step back in time to 1816 and experience the Austen family's daily life--including a leisurely family breakfast and Jane's early morning piano practice.

New exhibits are also displayed, including a newly dressed Historic Kitchen. There's now audio throughout the house in which visitors listen to recordings from Jane's novels, her letters, and the recipes from Martha Lloyd's Household Book.

All tickets for general admission must be booked in advance. Now, for the very first time, exclusive access is also offered with a special group ticket for up to 15 people for one hour of private viewing which must also be pre-booked.

For more information, please visit the Jane Austen House website: janeaustens.house/reopening/

This year’s panel of judges for the JASNA Southwest Region's Young Filmmakers Contest is stupendous! Entrants will receive comments and commendations from the likes of:

• Ashley Clements, star of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries and a writer/producer, including an upcoming modern adaptation of Macbeth 
• Laurie Viera Rigler, author of Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict and its sequel and creator of the Babelgum Original web series Sex and the Austen Girl
• Thomas Rigler, Emmy-winning director, executive producer, and nonfiction showrunner 
• Robin Swicord, director and screenwriter of the film based on The Jane Austen Book Club (among other credits)
• Kenneth Turan, longtime (recently retired) film critic for the Los Angeles Times
• Aydrea Walden, writer/producer/actor and creator of the Webby-nominated Black Girl in a Big Dress 

The Jane Austen Centre is a for-profit business (not a charity), but it does provide a wonderful Jane Austen experience to visitors in Bath, England. While JASNA doesn't sponsor the Jane Austen Centre, we share this information for anyone who may be interested:

www.crowdfunder.co.uk/jane-austen-centre-fundraiser