Happy New Year! Over the course of 2023, JASNA-NJ will focus on Jane Austen’s most controversial novel–Mansfield Park. Love it or hate it, it’s sure to be a year of spirited discussion and debate. Is Edmund Bertram the absolute worst? Is Mrs. Norris Austen’s most dastardly villain? What is the deal with Tom? And what of Fanny Price? Is she a moral, put-upon paragon or killjoy and hater of amateur dramatics?
All of this and more we will debate as we kick off 2023 with a discussion of the novel. If you are able to join us on Saturday, January 21st at 2pm over Zoom, you can register here.
Some more information about Mansfield Park from Goodreads:
Taken from the poverty of her parents’ home in Portsmouth, Fanny Price is brought up with her rich cousins at Mansfield Park, acutely aware of her humble rank and with her cousin Edmund as her sole ally. During her uncle’s absence in Antigua, the Crawford’s arrive in the neighbourhood bringing with them the glamour of London life and a reckless taste for flirtation. Mansfield Park is considered Jane Austen’s first mature work and, with its quiet heroine and subtle examination of social position and moral integrity, one of her most profound.
Other Goodreads reviewers take a slightly different view:
“Fanny is an introvert, like Persuasion’s Anne Elliot, and I like introverted characters. But she’s also a prig. The plot of Mansfield Park kicks in when all the characters converge to put on a play, while she and Edmund cluck their tongues over the fact that play acting is for sluts.” –Alex
“What a very disturbing book I find this!”-Roman Clodia
We look forward to seeing you via Zoom for your take on The Great Fanny Debate.
Jane Austen Society of North America - New Jersey Region 