Reigns as the Most All-inclusive and Well-researched EditionĪs with all of Austen’s characters, this new annotated edition of Pride and Prejudice has its own charms, “frailties, foibles and follies.” Weighing in at over three pounds, and encompassing 464 pages of unabridged text and fine print margin notes, this book easily reigns as the most all-inclusive and well-researched editions of Jane Austen’s masterpiece that I have ever encountered. In a nut shell, she has vetted great resources, gathered nuggets of knowledge and placed them at our feet.
From shoe roses to Fordyces Sermons to military floggings to the 19th-century meaning of condescension, readers will be informed and enlightened on every aspect related to the novel, the author and her times. Personal Insights and Observations from an Austen ScholarĮditor Patricia Meyer Spacks has not only added extensive notes on plot, characters, events, history, culture and critical analysis from a vast array of Austen and literary scholars, but added her own personal insights and observations from years of reading Austen and her experience as a college professor.
However, after close to two hundred years words have changed their meaning, insinuations and subtle asides have become fuzzy, and cultural differences from Regency to twenty-first century are worlds apart. Anyone can read Pride and Prejudice and follow the narrative, but it is so much more enjoyable if you can read it on an expanded level understanding it in social, cultural and historical context. When Pride and Prejudice was originally published in 1813, this brevity was accessible to her contemporary readers who assumed the inferences. Austen is renowned for her witty dialogue and finely drawn characters, but not for her elaborate physical descriptions or historical context. This new annotated edition appeals to modern readers on many levels beyond being a pretty package of a beloved classic. After all, what Janeite could resist this tempting package? An unabridged first edition text, annotations by an Austen scholar, color illustrations, over-sized coffee table format, extensive introduction, and, supplemental material – all pulled together in a beautifully designed interior and stunning cover. Just when I thought I had more editions of Pride and Prejudice than I should ever own up to, I will freely admit to just one more.
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