My little sister gave birth to a baby girl right before Christmas. Because of covid, I won’t get to hug her and meet my new niece in the flesh for some time. It’s difficult because I’m very close to my sister, and as you can imagine, I can’t wait to see her. I like to… Read the full blog post …
I’ve long had a soft spot for Mansfield Park. I wouldn’t say it’s my favourite Austen novel, but I always enjoy reading it. The last time I opened my well-thumbed volume of Mansfield Park was during lockdown, and what struck me is how prevalent the Seven Deadly Sins are in the novel. As a good… Read the full blog post …
The Edinburgh Medical School was a top destination for medical students during the Regency. It’s a topic that has raised its head in the forums a few times, so I thought that, as an Edinburgh resident myself, I had to have a close look at it. Edinburgh is 430 miles or 700 km north of… Read the full blog post …
I am a proud Edinburgh resident. As such, I’m spoilt for choice when it comes to reminders of the Regency, from windows and house doors to family portraits in museums and art galleries. However, only a few days ago, one of such reminders disappeared forever. It was a living being, one already in existence when Jane… Read the full blog post …
Today I received an invitation to the first real-life event of the Scottish branch of the Jane Austen Society UK, and I cannot express how much I am looking forward to it. As excellent as the online events have been, being on Zoom prevents us from having those all-important chats. The meeting got me thinking… Read the full blog post …
I have recently become acquainted with the fantastical story of Princess Caraboo, the Beggar Princess of Bristol. It is so incredible, and had such an impact on Regency society, that I simply had to share it here. A mysterious woman On April 3rd, 1817, a mysterious young woman looking lost appeared in the small village… Read the full blog post …
Jane Austen’s novels are brimming with formidable and highly opinionated ladies. At a time when the female ideal was passive and even-tempered, she never shied away from creating characters that were quite the opposite. Today, we will look at some of the older women in her novels, how the author portrays them, and who amongst the… Read the full blog post …
Although (just like servants) they are often little remarked upon, dogs are everywhere in Jane Austen’s novels. In the Regency, dogs were an essential feature of countryside living: we might as well imagine their incessant barking in the background when we read Austen’s stories, particularly during hunting season or when the men head outside. Most… Read the full blog post …
It was the year 1809. The Napoleonic Wars were in full swing, but the French general had other interests besides fighting the British over Spain and Portugal. Around the time Jane Austen and her mother and sister moved to Chawton and took possession of their new home, courtesy of Jane’s brother Edward, Napoleon arrived in… Read the full blog post …
“When first Mr. Bennet had married, economy was held to be perfectly useless, for, of course, they were to have a son. The son was to join in cutting off the entail, as soon as he should be of age, and the widow and younger children would by that means be provided for. Five daughters… Read the full blog post …
Two months ago I slipped over treacherous dark ice, fell and broke my left wrist. I had never broken a bone before, so it was quite a shock. I had a distal radius fracture, one of the most common wrist injuries, and it wasn’t a pretty sight! When I fell, my skin didn’t break, but… Read the full blog post …
About year ago, on a visit to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow, I came across a delightful painting that immediately set my imagination flying. The 1887 painting, titled Two Strings to Her Bow, shows a cheerful young woman walking with her arms around two supposed suitors, neither of whom seem too pleased… Read the full blog post …
My two siblings have moved house in the last couple of months. In both cases, the change was for the better, but the upheaval of a house move is not always positive. Jane Austen had to leave her home behind several times in her lifetime, in some cases very reluctantly. Perhaps that’s why changes of… Read the full blog post …
