Jane Austen and the novel of social consciousness

Abstract

This dissertation aims to understand the significance of Jane Austen's contributions to the novel form as a medium for expressing social consciousness. It focuses mainly on the issues of class and gender, and explores how these two concepts interconnect and provide a basis for understanding the workings of society in Austen's time. It is often claimed that each of Jane Austen's fictional communities is a microcosm of society at large, and this dissertation endeavours to evaluate the extent to which Jane Austen' s fictional characters and situations are a manifestation of the way English society functioned at the time she was writing. It focuses mainly on Austen' s perception of class, as well as on the problem of the position and role of women in relation to wealth and its significance. Other important social issues such as the notion of propriety and the importance of marriage are also analysed further. Jane Austen lived during a crucial time in English history - a time when English society was undergoing radical changes. In spite of this, critics often claim that Austen did not possess any social consciousness and there is little evidence, if any, in her works that suggest otherwise. This thesis endeavours to prove these claims wrong and attempts to show that Austen was much more aware of what was happening in society than the conventional views allow. Tony Tanner, in his book entitled Jane Austen, claims that "it is clear that Jane Austen does both expose and criticise the ideological assumptions which ground her society and which may seem to constrain her fiction." Taking this statement as a starting point, this dissertation seeks to examine the ways in which Austen' s work can be considered to be critical of her society.