Jane Austen and LeisureJane Austen's novels portray a leisured society of gentlemen and ladies who do not need to work. Even the minority of clergymen, soldiers and sailors - men with professions - are almost never seen working. Jane Austen herself, despite responsibility for some domestic tasks, wrote as a woman of leisure. Yet leisure, the distinguishing mark of a gentleman, was not meant to be an excuse for idleness. The proper use of leisure to fulfil duties, to read and to think, and above all to pursue social relations in a world where family and marriage for the propertied was of central importance, was a vital test of character. |
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User Review - ponsonby - LibraryThingExcellent survey of the activities of middle and upper class England in the time of Jane Austen. Very well tied into references in her work, but has a wider outlook as well. Written in an easygoing but scholarly style. Read full review
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Bibliographic information
| Title | Jane Austen and Leisure |
| Author | David Selwyn |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing, 1998 |
| ISBN | 0826446671, 9780826446671 |
| Length | 376 pages |
| Subjects | › History / General History / World |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |