Persuasion by Jane Austen

I recently finished my fourth Jane Austen novel in Persuasion.  I enjoy her writing, and this was no exception, at least as a short read at 165 pages.

I'm really starting to believe that Austen and Dickens represent two sides of a similar coin, one geared mostly for women, and one for men.  Austen's appeal has faded somewhat for me now that I've been exposed to so much brilliant Dickens.

She is an amazing writer, however.  As I've written before, her command of the English languages is unparalleled in my mind.  Even beyond story and characters, her use of the language, throughout every page, is enjoyable in and of itself.

I read Persuasion on a parallel track with the audio course entitled The English Novel by Professor Timothy Spurgin of Lawrence University, which covers Austen in more detail than perhaps any other writer.

In the course I was fascinated to learn of Austen's invention of what is later called free indirect speech.  This blending of third party narration and first person thought was original at the time, and a huge influence on basically all novelists down to this day.

Austen's use of free indirect speech, now that I'm aware of it, is brilliant in its ability to convey richer story.  As the reader you're never quite aware of who is speaking (or thinking), the narrator or the character.  It allows one to experience ideas and thought processes with both the intimacy of the character, and the impartiality of the narrator, simultaneously.  Even upon close reading, it's sometimes impossible to discern the two.

The blend seems obvious to us today, but it was completely original in Austen's day.

Her stories follow a clear pattern, and perhaps that's why my interest wanes for the time being.  Professor Spurgin says that he thought almost nothing of Austen's Emma the first time he read it; but the second reading unveiled its brilliance.  After completing my fourth Austen novel, maybe it's time I start re-reading.