Jane Austen Mystique Captures our Grandson’s Attention

I love Jane Austen. Who doesn’t? Last year during the pandemic I enrolled in a free lecture series sponsored somewhere in England. So it was with great surprise and enthusiasm when we learned that our 17 year old grandson loved the movie Emma. When I asked his parents why he did, they weren’t certain. So I took it upon myself to ask him what he found so fascinating. He said he really liked the Mr. Knightley character. That’s all I and my husband needed to hear. We were visiting last weekend for his high school graduation after not seeing the family for 18 months. Our grandson was the salutatorian and all around nice guy - in sports, scholastics, cooking, outdoor adventures, etc. When visiting the family we always watch some kind of movie and so we thought Pride and Prejudice was in order - the one with Colin Firth. He said he was only thirty pages from finishing the novel so we watched the first segment of the series. We also mentioned that Sense and Sensibility would be a must see because of Colonel Brandon. Our grandson was then off for a week vacation with five girls and two boys. So upon his return I sent a few texts to hint at finishing watching the shows. The photos included the shirt Mr. Darcy wore that hung in the Folger Shakespeare museum in DC, and images of Jane’s house in Chawton England that we visited. It included the note I wrote with a quill pen telling Jane how happy I was to be there. So I hope these novels inspire this kid to be and do even better things. We are obviously proud of him and now we have another reason. I’m hoping we hear more about what he thought of shows. 

BritBox Pride and Prejudice, Darcy Shirt, Jane Austen House

We love all things British - especially British tv programming. We’ve seen everything on Masterpiece. We have had Acorn for over a year and most recently decided to get BritBox. Each has its own positives, and we delight in the shows we have been able to watch. Pride and Prejudice is celebrating 25 years - the series with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. It has been remastered to HD quality on BritBox. We have watched this series so many times and started watching it again. Every time we learn something new - especially when closed caption is on and you know exactly what was said. It’s just a happy story - something we can all use right now. When we were in England we visited Jane Austen’s house in Chawton, where she wrote this masterpiece. Using a quill pen and ink, I wrote a note to her when we entered the building about how happy we were to finally be there. We also saw her last home in Winchester and where she is buried in Hampshire in Winchester Cathedral. Ironically, the Folger Shakespeare Library in DC had a Jane Austen exhibit. And wouldn’t you know there was Mr. Darcy’s shirt in plain sight. We went in after a morning walk to visit it! I’ve read just about all of Jane Austen’s works and love every one of them. She has come to life for me in her books, television programs, and by visiting her homes and burial place. If you haven’t seen this wonderful series please do take the time and watch. It’s simply unforgettable. 

The Places We’ve Been

We aren’t big on travel, so being cooped up is a little easier for us, though we really miss our on a whim and planned car rides. Having a daily blog can be a bit more difficult when the subject matter is confined to small spaces. We haven’t been outdoors for over five weeks - our only trips these days are to pick up groceries at the front desk in the lobby and midnight runs to pick up mail. Luckily for us, all other packages are delivered to the door. I really miss spring in DC, but can’t do much about that. The US botanic garden puts some videos on Instagram. Relatively speaking we have nothing to complain about - it just gets a little discouraging now and again. So every once in a while I’ll pick out an image from a trip we took years ago. We never traveled overseas for the heck of it - we always had someone to greet us in the other side. Our nieces in Denmark and Sweden, and friends in England. I hate flying, but at least once we arrived, we were in good hands. So the photos bring back lovely memories and I can’t believe we were actually there. So far I’ve posted gardens, ships, and signs from Denmark; interesting Swedish architecture; and Jane Austen’s house in Chawton and Highclere Castle of Downton Abbey Fame. I’m not sure if and when we will ever go to any of these places again. Before, we didn’t want to. Now, we can’t. That makes a big difference. 

Jane Austen Futurelearn and the University of Southampton

I love Jane Austen. So when I came across a website from FutureLearn, I was compelled to dive in to the offering it had to read more about her. The University of Southampton has an on line educational course about Jane. It’s free and a nice way to spend the time. When I first signed up, I needed to identify where I live so everyone could see the worldwide appeal. There are also forums to add your comments about each specific subject matter. Of course, the first question was why you were joining the course. My simple answer was because “l love Jane Austen.”  Of course, the scholars and long winded participants added pages for their rationale - I was once told I was parsimonious by my Marquette university masters program nursing mentor. She was right. Short, and to the point. I’m not one for philosophy and detailed conversations about things that aren’t practical. Another section asked your opinion of Emily Bronte’s criticism of Jane’s work. My answer was “everyone has an opinion - but I’d rather be friends with Jane” compared to some ten page thesis. Anyway, it’s interesting to navigate the site and learn about things that pique our interest. Thank goodness for the internet - especially given our conditions today. I wonder what Jane would have thought?

Will and Jane at the Folger Shakespeare Library

I'm not that interested in Shakespeare - shock! But I really love Jane Austen. We visited her home in Chawton, the place she died, and her buriel spot in Winchester, England. And before the exhibit concludes at the end of next week, I wanted to see the collection of things Austen at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Of particular note is the shirt that Darcy wore in Pride and Prejudice - a popular culture item, which is what the exhibit is all about. It's called Will & Jane - Shakespeare, Austen and the Cult of Celebrity. It's just a couple blocks from where we live, so on the return trip from our daily walk on the mall we headed that way. It wasn't disappointing. We were going to wait for our out of town guests who are coming next week to visit, but couldn't depend on that. Also on display are some original scripts, games, and related nick nacks. We never cease to be amazed at all the interesting lectures, exhibits, galleries, and outside actitvies that surround us in our neighborhood. And as long as we are able to get out and about, we will make every effort to visit them.