Ah, Jane Austen. I got a whirlwind tour of Hampshire and Winchester today. Following the morning lecture on Marriage and Victorian Fiction (very interesting), we few but proud Jane-ites loaded a bus bound for Hampshire, where Austen did the majority of her writing. We visited her house at Chawton (a cottage home her brother set up for her, their mother, and their sister to live after their father died). It’s a very pretty area with lovely gardens and great exhibits in each room. I got to see her writing table and the “creaking door” she wouldn’t allow to have fixed because she liked advanced notice of people’s entrance so she could hide her manuscripts.
On special display is the only existing manuscript of one of Austen’s novels. Only the last few chapters of Persuasion remain; all the other manuscripts have been lost or destroyed over the years. I liked seeing her notes on her text and how she crossed through sentences and phrases and then re-worded. To see an artist’s process is such a special insight. I was encouraged that she had to re-write, re-phrase, and re-structure, too.
Following the visit to the cottage home, we went down the street to the brother’s estate (one of several) called Chawton House. It’s a grand building with fascinating architectural distinctions. First: the home is not a traditional “E” shape like all the other homes of the time– no one knows why. Maybe they ran out of money? Maybe the builder died? So many conjectures… no one knows for sure. What they DO know is that the house looks a little lopsided. =) But it is still an impressive estate.
The great-great-great relative of Austen’s brother still owns the place and has granted it to be used as a library and center for early English women’s writing. The library is impressive; it is a massive collection of women’s writing – and the books of their male contemporaries – mostly represented in first, or early, editions of the works. We couldn’t take pictures in the library, but believe me when I say the collection of books on the shelves was incredible!
Another point of interest is the “hanging staircase” with no central support – very impressive for the time period. Honestly, as long as the stairs don’t collapse under me, I really don’t notice how they are supported. =)
We drove from Chawton to Winchester and had just a short time to visit Jane Austen’s grave in Winchester Cathedral. Her memorial stone lies in the floor next to several others, but hers is the only one noted on the cathedral’s pamphlet. There is a large window dedicated to her that was put in place after her death.
She was only 41 years old when she died. In the Chawton Cottage, there is a framed letter from Austen’s only sister, Cassandra, to their niece Fanny. I got choked up at the emotion with which Cassandra wrote about Jane’s death and how much she loved her sister. Though we do not know that much about Jane’s life, it is clear she was quite beloved and perhaps that is part of why she is still such a popular author today. A note: there is a movie coming out soon about Jane Austen’s life. My professor and all the curators at the two homes said not to take it too much to heart; the writers were very liberal in their interpretation of her life – but the curators were grateful for the movie’s donation of period costumes and money to their foundations! =)
Date: 13 July 2007Location: Oxford and Hampshire
Highlights:
- visiting Jane Austen’s home at Chawton
- seeing a real estate (finally! I’ve been in England for 2 weeks and had not seen a large manor yet!)
- touching an old book that was one of Jane’s favourites and knowing that she, 200 years ago, would have held the same novel!
- a picnic lunch in Jane Austen’s garden with my friend Erin
Thought of the Day (taken from Pride and Prejudice): “When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.”
