Did Jane Austen truly care about romance?

Deidre Lynch believes that everyone ought to read “Mansfield Park.”

Although Jane Austen is widely recognized for the romantic and humorous “Pride and Prejudice,” Lynch, the Ernest Bernbaum Professor of Literature in the English Department, desires readers to view the 19th-century author as more than merely a “rom-com creator.”

“The marriage narrative isn’t Austen’s primary focus,” Lynch stated. “She’s intrigued by the challenges of being a virtuous individual. She’s concerned with inequality and oppression, as well as power. She explores how individuals with limited power manage to uphold their ideals. What constitutes independence of thought when one lacks financial or political freedom?”

This year commemorates the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth — and for a woman who had to release all her works pseudonymously, she is now more prominent than ever. Alongside newly published editions of her novels, an influx of film and television adaptations have recently emerged or are in development, including “Miss Austen,” “Jane Austen: Rise of a Genius,” and “The Other Bennet Sister” (all BBC), as well as a Netflix adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice.”

Lynch, who instructs “Jane Austen’s Fictions and Fans,” noted that the novelist’s work remains relevant partly due to her straightforward style, which facilitates modernization of her fiction. “Clueless” (1995) and “Fire Island” (2022) serve as contemporary interpretations.

“Her narratives are relatively simple, and unlike many other authors from the 19th century, she doesn’t dedicate excessive time detailing her characters or environments, making it easier for readers from the 21st century to insert themselves into her stories,” Lynch elaborated. “The characters are so striking and lifelike that we all feel as if we are acquainted with a Mrs. Bennet, a Mr. Woodhouse, or a Mr. Collins.”

Samantha Matherne, a philosophy professor, developed an interest in the moral, aesthetic, and epistemic themes of Austen’s writing after revisiting “Sense and Sensibility” a few years back — a rediscovery that motivated her course titled “The Philosophy of Jane Austen.”

Is Austen a philosopher? Not precisely, Matherne replied (though it’s a topic her students discuss in her course). Austen primarily regarded herself as a novelist, yet she delved into philosophical concepts through her storytelling rather than formal discourse.

“If you contemplate ‘Pride and Prejudice’ or ‘Sense and Sensibility,’ both novels examine the ideas encapsulated in their titles and pose the question, ‘Should these concepts play a role in one’s life?’” Matherne articulated. “Austen seems to suggest that pride and prejudice are shortcomings that obstruct morality and knowledge — and romance! You find Austen advocating for an ideal of the good life in which one finds a balance between sense and sensibility, as the characters Elinor and Marianne develop throughout the narrative.”

The course taught by Matherne also challenges students to consider whether Austen has any genuine interest in romance. As Matherne highlighted, each novel might adhere to a marriage plot, yet the ceremonies themselves receive scant narrative focus, if Austen even provides descriptions of them.

“Austen shows little interest in these romantic symbols of proposals and weddings,” Matherne stated. “She focuses on the affectionate connections between partners, among friends, and within communities; this embodies Austen’s vision of romance. This distinguishes reading her novels from watching adaptations, as one gains insights into the interiority of love and romance. It is the written word that conveys the torrent of emotions and the complexities tied to them — doubt, hope, anger, and fear.”

“She’s interested in loving relationships between couples, between friends, between communities; that’s the romance of Austen.”

Samantha Matherne

That is precisely why “Mansfield Park,” as both Matherne and Lynch concur, serves as an ideal text for exploring Austen’s more profound themes. Composed shortly after “Pride and Prejudice,” the novel features a less charismatic protagonist and addresses darker matters often not linked to Austen: class, inequality, power, and the slave trade, which is alluded to through the sugar plantation in Antigua that underpins the Bertram family’s wealth.

“Students become genuinely captivated by Austen’s commentary on the legacies of empire, slavery, and race,” Lynch remarked. “A significant number conclude with statements like, ‘“Mansfield Park” is undoubtedly my favorite,’ due to its engagement with questions of power.”

“Students get really interested in the ways in which Austen is commenting on the history of empire and slavery and race.”

Deidre Lynch

“The scope of ‘Mansfield Park’ is genuinely broad. It navigates the different characters and dynamics,” Matherne concurred. “Austen strives to provide us with a narrative of a social environment instead of concentrating solely on a single character or one romantic pairing.”

For those new to her works, Lynch advised beginning with “Pride and Prejudice” as the most accessible starting point before transitioning to her other novels, without overlooking the “Juvenilia,” a collection of writings she composed as a young adult.

“I truly hope that anyone who starts with ‘Pride and Prejudice’ continues to explore all her other works as well,” stated Lynch, who encourages students to read all six of Austen’s novels annually. “She’s the author who convincingly delineated what the novel form could achieve and continuously worked to refine it. She is an absolutely brilliant novelist.”