READING SCHEDULE:

It is always best to finish the novel before the first day we discuss it. But if you can't here are some reading suggestions:

Some relevant links:

• The Jane Austen Information Page
• The Republic of Pemberley
• Persuasions (on-line journal)
• A Dictionary of Sensibility
• E-TEXT: Sense & Sensibility

Class materials:

• Definition of the Novel of Manners
• Jane Austen Chronology
• Pound to dollar conversion table
• Excerpt from Pope's Rape of the Lock

Opening Thoughts on Sense & Sensibility

• "Many of my feminist friends don't like Austen because the plots center around finding husbands. They claim she's frivolous. This is definitely not true. I especially love how all her unmarried men are so enigmatic. Their characters change from one extreme to the other so quickly. Her married men are mostly depicted in a very two dimensional way." (Julia)
• "I like that instead of deadening interest, re-reading dialogue is absolutely fascinating. I often read through a chunk of conversation before realizing the mood was completely off from what I initially thought. Reading through again with the emphasis on a different phrase or emotion gives the text a brand-new feeling ... but yes, it does take at least twice as long. :) I guess the flipside is that I wonder if I should re-read the narrative as well." (Germaine)
• "Unlike Pride and Prejudice, S & S actually conveys the imperfection in love, and also provides a more realistic presentation of the affair, which, as a result, presents some really powerful scenes of perplexity and disppointed love e.g. when Willoughby went away and finally betrayed Marianne Dashwood." (Carmen)
• "I have read quite a bit of the book so far, and the question that keeps popping up in my mind is, "Did they really talk like this?" It can just seem that the dialogue is a bit more formal than I imagine real conversations would have been, so I've been wondering about it." (Kim)
• "I haven't ever read any Jane Austen before, but so far, I really am enjoying this book. I like how Austen writes, and I think I also enjoy how nothing really happens while things are always happening." (Shannon)

• How are sense & sensibility defined and differentiated in the novel? Do the two sisters represent pure examples of each quality? What is Austen's message about each one?
• Which sister is the central protagonist of the novel? Does the plot reinforce her role as the central protagonist? If not, what function does she serve?
• Do you see any doubling of characters or plots at work in the text? At what key points are there substitutions or surrogates?
• Consider the male protagonists. How are they introduced into the text? How do they fulfill -- or frustrate -- our expectations as readers?
• How is this a novel about "reading" and "misreading?"
• What role do secrets play in the text? Is Austen arguing for full disclosure?
• At what points in the narrative do you see Austen indulging in a critique of Romanticism and the Romance?
• Consider how money dictates the action of the text. How does gender intersect with financial concerns and control? How is social class portrayed?
• What models of marriage does Austen propose in this novel? What is the ideal? How are we supposed to read Marianne's prejudices against "Second Attachments"?
• How are powerful women characterized in the text?
• Why does Austen include the Elizas in her text? What purpose do they serve?
• Is there any place in this text for female desire? How is it coded?
• Consider Marianne's illness. What are its implications for her character and for the plot as a whole?
• How satisfactory is the ending? Do you sense it would strike a contemporary audience the same way that it struck you?