Jane Austen and the Enlightenment [Hardcover]

An important contribution to the study of Jane Austen and of intellectual history at the turn of the nineteenth century.It is now widely understood that Jane Austen's writing and thought derived directly from her late eighteenth-century childhood, but astonishingly this is the first study of the influence on Jane Austen of the Enlightenment. In drawing out the Enlightenment principles and ideas which lie behind much of Austen's writing Peter Knox-Shaw brings a whole new perspective to the study of Austen's novels. Jane Austen and the Enlightement is essential reading for all those interested in Austen and her writing.It is now widely understood that Jane Austen's writing and thought derived directly from her late eighteenth-century childhood, but astonishingly this is the first study of the influence on Jane Austen of the Enlightenment. In drawing out the Enlightenment principles and ideas which lie behind much of Austen's writing Peter Knox-Shaw brings a whole new perspective to the study of Austen's novels. Jane Austen and the Enlightement is essential reading for all those interested in Austen and her writing.It is now widely understood that Jane Austen's writing and thought were derived directly from her late eighteenth-century childhood, but astonishingly, this is the first study of the influence of the Enlightenment on Jane Austen. Drawing out the Enlightenment principles and ideas which lie behind much of Austen's writing, Peter Knox-Shaw presents a new perspective on the study of Austen's novels.Part I. The Eighteenth-Century Legacy: 1. Auspices; 2. Pride and Prejudice, a politics of the picturesque; 3. Northanger Abbey and the liberal historians; 4. Sense and Sensibility and the philosophers; Part II. Engaging with the New Age: 5. Diffraction; 6. Mansfield Park: charting the religious revival; 7. Emma, and the flaws of sovereignty; 8. Persuasion: light on an old genre; 9. Sanditon and speculation; Bibliography. ...This well-researched book will be a bolC$