Literature
I have included 3 pieces of writing from Dr. Devoney Looser's Jane Austen course. In the future, this section will be devoted to close reading a different author's work each month. The different works will each have various questions, and group participants will write about the questions and respond to each other. Classical teachers prepare for teaching a work by doing this with the teachers in their school, so it would be nice to have a forum where we could read and write about literature with a larger group.
Jane Austen's Correspondence
Transcribing one of Jane Austen's letters was a difficult and rewarding task. This activity enlivens students' interest in Regency England, and it dramatically humanizes the author!
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The letter is linked here.
Pride and Prejudice
I have included two essays that offer a close reading of the ways that characters in Pride and Prejudice change from seeking a counterfeit good to seeking a true good. Both essays offer my answer to seminar questions I use with students.
The first essay asks the question: What role does humility play in the success of Darcy and Elizabeth’s marriage in Pride and Prejudice? My answer is here. The second essay asks the question, is Elizabeth Bennet’s response to her first sight of Pemberley primarily political or aesthetic? My answer to that question is here.
Sense and Sensibility
This is a close reading that focuses on the etymology of an important word in the text. The essay argues that Elinor Dashwood is the Aristotelian mean falling perfectly between the extremes of Lucy Steele and Marianne Dashwood. In order to make the case, I focus on the concept of "delicacy" as a crucial characteristic of the virtuous person in Jane Austen's ethics.
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The essay is linked here.
Lisa Rose
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