When I was reading over the questions that people wanted to ask Jane Austen I came across this one:
Why did you choose not to marry Mr. Bigglesworth?
I paused for a moment and than had to laugh. This is Mr. Bigglesworth:
| Dr. Evil’s cat from the Austin Powers movies |
I had to share the question with a few people I knew would get a kick out of it, and it turns out one of them had written the question, it wouldn’t let her type Bigg-Wither so she just let it go.
Then came this reply…
Like today, during the Regency era, inter-species marriage was generally frowned upon and considered taboo.
Jane Austen Society of North America - New Jersey Region 