DOMINANT QUALITIES
Jane Austen's abiding freshnessâWhy she has not more readersâCharacteristics of her workâAbsence of passionâBalzac, Jane Austen, and Charlotte BrontĂŤâJane in her home circleâHer tranquil natureâHer unselfishnessâCompared with Dorothy OsborneâPrudent heroinesâThoughtless admiration
EQUIPMENT AND METHOD
Literary influencesâJane Austen's defence of novelistsâThe old essayistsâHer favourite authorsâSome novels of her timeâCriticism of her niece's novelâSense of her own limitationsâHer methodâHumourâFamiliar namesâSome characteristics of styleâSuggested emendationsâA new "problem" of authorshipâA "forbidding" writerâ"Commonplace" and "superficial"âThomas Love PeacockâSapient suggestions
CONTACT WITH LIFE
Origins of charactersâMatchmakingâSecond marriagesâNegative qualities of the novelsâClose knowledge of one classâDislike of "lionizing"âMadame de StaĂŤlâThe "lower orders"âTradesmenâSocial positionâQuality of Jane's lettersâBalls and parties
ETHICS AND OPTIMISM
Dr. Whately on Jane Austenâ"Moral lessons" of her novelsâCharge of "Indelicacy"âMarriage as a professionâA "problem" novelâ"The Nostalgia of the Infinite"âThe "whitewashing" of WilloughbyâLady Susan condemned by its authorâThe WatsonsâChange in mannersâNo "heroes"âWoman's loveâThe Prince RegentâThe Quarterly Review
THE IMPARTIAL SATIRIST
What has woman done?â"Nature's Salic law"âWomen deficient in satireâSome types in the novelsâThe female snobâThe valetudinarianâThe fopâThe too agreeable manâ"Personal size and mental sorrow"âKnightley's opinion of EmmaâAshamed of relationsâMrs. BennetâThe clergy and their opinionsâWorldly lifeâAbsence of dogmaâAuthors confused with their creations
PERSONAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL
The novelist and her charactersâHer sense of their realityâAccessories rarely describedâHer ideas on dressâHer own millinery and gownsâThin clothes and consumptionâDomestic economyâJane as housekeeperâ"A very clever essay"âMr.