As a fellow Jane-ite I loved this piece. As a retired account I have some knowledge of modern trust law so had enjoyed her expositions but your greater knowledge provides great depth. Thank you
As a solicitor, now retired, from a social background with no knowledge of trusts or how they may be used, I found the whole concept quite fascinating when I came to study it as part of my equity course. I’m no expert on Jane Austen, but find her uncomplicated exposition of the law to be refreshing.
The whole concept of trusts would necessarily, I suppose, have been part of the background knowledge of a certain class of person. We are though fortunate to have such an outstanding writer guide us through their human consequences. Poor Mrs Bennet.
''You learn something new ever day'' is oft said and indeed true for the curious. You do not learn something profound every day, however, even when you search in the fields of wisdom.
That's a lot of exposition direct from the narrator, rather than in dialogue. I suspect that with an opening like that the novel wouldn't find an agent (and hence a publisher) today. True of many great novels, of course, though maybe the opening of Bleak House would still get through.
It's less a comment on publishing, more a comment on culture, attention spans, and the movie industry with which Jane Austen didn't have to compete. I'm going to have to watch Clueless now to see how the movie handles exposition. Sadly all this attention span stuff has got worse in the last 30 years; at least Clueless didn't have to take second-screen demands into account.
I showed this post to a friend who is a Janeite and who asks me to ask you: ‘as the entail goes down the male line, how does Mr Collins come to have a different surname from Mr Bennett?’. (My own suggestion, of artistic licence, was not well received!)
Because - as in the case of Austen's own immediate family - surnames were often changed as parts of settlements. The notion that surnames are fixed and alterable is a fairly recent notion. Austen's own brother has his surname changed to Knight - and as a Janeite your friend may have forgotten this.
As a fellow Jane-ite I loved this piece. As a retired account I have some knowledge of modern trust law so had enjoyed her expositions but your greater knowledge provides great depth. Thank you
Thank you for your very interesting commentary.
As a solicitor, now retired, from a social background with no knowledge of trusts or how they may be used, I found the whole concept quite fascinating when I came to study it as part of my equity course. I’m no expert on Jane Austen, but find her uncomplicated exposition of the law to be refreshing.
The whole concept of trusts would necessarily, I suppose, have been part of the background knowledge of a certain class of person. We are though fortunate to have such an outstanding writer guide us through their human consequences. Poor Mrs Bennet.
''You learn something new ever day'' is oft said and indeed true for the curious. You do not learn something profound every day, however, even when you search in the fields of wisdom.
That's a lot of exposition direct from the narrator, rather than in dialogue. I suspect that with an opening like that the novel wouldn't find an agent (and hence a publisher) today. True of many great novels, of course, though maybe the opening of Bleak House would still get through.
It's less a comment on publishing, more a comment on culture, attention spans, and the movie industry with which Jane Austen didn't have to compete. I'm going to have to watch Clueless now to see how the movie handles exposition. Sadly all this attention span stuff has got worse in the last 30 years; at least Clueless didn't have to take second-screen demands into account.
I showed this post to a friend who is a Janeite and who asks me to ask you: ‘as the entail goes down the male line, how does Mr Collins come to have a different surname from Mr Bennett?’. (My own suggestion, of artistic licence, was not well received!)
Because - as in the case of Austen's own immediate family - surnames were often changed as parts of settlements. The notion that surnames are fixed and alterable is a fairly recent notion. Austen's own brother has his surname changed to Knight - and as a Janeite your friend may have forgotten this.
Many thanks!