‘Sense and Sensibility, ‘ written in 1811, was the first of six books by legendary British author Jane Austen.
In the story, we meet Mrs. Dashwood and her three daughters, who are betrayed by a family member and left in dire financial straits. Since none of the girls will come with a dowry, the prospects of their marrying well are extremely unlikely. One day, while out for a walk in the rain, the middle daughter, Marianne, twists her ankle and is rescued by the handsome Mr. Willoughby. Though cautioned by her older sister Elinor to be wary, Marianne – blinded by love – rushes into the budding romance headlong…with grim consequences.
What follows is a thrilling and fascinating tale of romance, intrigue, disloyalty and redemption in what has become one of the most celebrated and cherished works of fiction in literary history. Jane Austen’s ‘Sense and Sensibility’ is presented here in its original and unabridged format.
Giới thiệu về tác giả
Jane Austen (1775-1817) was an English novelist known best for her six major novels: Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Persuasion, Northanger Abbey and Mansfield Park. Jane was one of eight children born to the Rev. George Austen and Cassandra Leigh Austen. The family struggled financially for much of Jane’s life but she received a varied – if brief – education both privately and at a small boarding school before the financial strain of her education precluded her continued attendance. Once she returned from school, Jane rarely left her family home. From an early age, Jane wrote poetry and short fiction. She eventually expanded her writing into full-length novels and published four of them during her lifetime, all of them anonymously (as was the fashion for female writers at the time). These were: Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1815). They generated a small amount of interest and a smattering of positive reviews, but Austen was not recognized as the celebrated and groundbreaking author she is considered today while she was alive. Jane became ill in 1816 but apparently ignored the warning signs of whatever disease had gripped her. Some speculate she had lymphoma, others believe it was Addison’s disease. Whatever the cause, Jane’s health deteriorated and she died on July 18, 1817 at the age of 41. Following her death, her final two novels – Persuasion and Northanger Abbey were published (both in 1818), but it was not until the mid-1800’s that her work began to gain in popularity. Jane Austen is now considered one of the world’s most beloved writers and her face has appeared on everything from postage stamps to British currency. In July, 2017, a statue of Jane was erected in Basingstoke, Hampshire on the 200th anniversary of her death.