March - 2019

Journalist and author

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Promising news about Emma

Mar 28, 2019

Promising news about Emma

The upcoming big-screen adaptation of Emma has acquired a complete cast list, and for those of us who delight in fine British character acting, the news is excellent. It remains to be discovered whether Anya Taylor-Joy, an interesting actor with a slightly off-center vibe, can pull off the misplaced self-confidence of the title role -- I haven't yet seen an Emma I would consider definitive, unless you count Alicia Silverstone in Clueless. But I have no doubt that the always-f

On this day in 1817. . .

Mar 25, 2019

On this day in 1817. . .

Forty-second in an occasional series of excerpts from Jane Austen's letters. Those of us who feel strongly about books sometimes subject new acquaintances or romantic prospects to a compatibility test: Recommend a favorite work and see how the newbie responds to it. It may be possible to love someone with bad taste in literature, but – well, let’s just say that I’ve never managed it. Jane Austen’s oldest niece, Fanny Knight, was particularly ruthless about administering the B

Jane Austen Purim

Mar 21, 2019

Jane Austen Purim

Today is Purim, the Jewish version of Mardi Gras, on which we eat a big meal, dress in silly costumes, read the Biblical book of Esther, bake triangular cookies, drink too much, and distribute charity to the poor – not necessarily in that order. Living as she did in a far-from-multicultural corner of Christian England, Jane Austen never mentions Purim. Probably she’d never even heard of it. But the time is ripe for an Austenian Purim spiel, the comic speech or playlet that fo

Eternally Mr. Darcy

Mar 18, 2019

Eternally Mr. Darcy

Pity poor Colin Firth. His IMDB page lists more than seventy-five film and TV credits in a career stretching back thirty-five years, and yet we mostly remember only one of them. And thus it was that last week, when the British actor and comedian Miranda Hart released the latest three-minute installment in a daily video series designed to raise money for charity, she had herself filmed sitting in front of a roaring fire, reading Pride and Prejudice aloud to . . . you know who.

Life imitates Northanger Abbey

Mar 14, 2019

Life imitates Northanger Abbey

The bitterest pill that Janeites must swallow is the knowledge that Cassandra Austen kept dozens – nay, perhaps hundreds! – of her sister Jane’s letters for decades after the novelist’s untimely death, only to burn them in 1843, two years before Cassandra herself died. We cannot forgive her. It doesn’t matter how often we remind ourselves that most of the Austen letters that have come down to us are extant only because Cassandra lovingly preserved them. It doesn’t matter that

Elizabeth Beeblebrox, anyone?

Mar 11, 2019

Elizabeth Beeblebrox, anyone?

Just a few days after my uncharitable swipe at those who promulgate Austenian misinformation, a reminder of human fallibility crossed my screen. Two years ago, it seems, a young Brit named Max Baker won a coveted slot on a British TV quiz show called Pointless. I can’t quite grasp the rules – the game seems to be some odd combination of Jeopardy! and Family Feud – but there’s little doubt about the incompetence of Baker’s play. On his first question, confronted with several s

Getting it wrong

Mar 7, 2019

Getting it wrong

Jane Austen, it seems safe to say, is one of the most famous writers who ever lived, especially in English-speaking countries. Yet out there in the internet/social media world, Austen-related mistakes and misinformation flourish, providing a near-perpetual irritant to any Janeite with a pulse. In ascending order of egregiousness, here are the latest Austenian blunders to cross my screen: 1. Brainiac blooper: Last week, the British TV quiz show The Chase – which pits a profe

Another bicentenary girl

Mar 4, 2019

Another bicentenary girl

Back when I was in elementary school, ranking one’s friends – best friend, second-best friend, third-best friend – was a popular pastime. But then I got older, and I realized that because people are individuals with different strengths and weaknesses, it doesn’t make sense to rank them on some imagined mono-dimensional scale. I love my close friends for their unique combinations of qualities – combinations that make them entirely incomparable and unrankable. I feel the same