Tag Archives: Jane Austen

The Delicacy of Dealing with In-Laws

By Robin Bates | Published: June 8, 2021

Family relations regarding in-laws are almost always delicate. Austen captures some of the challenges in “Persuasion.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , | Comments closed

Austen’s Mixed Feelings about Gothics

By Robin Bates | Published: March 17, 2021

An exploration of Jane Austen’s mixed feelings about the gothic–and about lightweight lit.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

Austen Has Some of Lit’s Best Mean Girls

By Robin Bates | Published: February 4, 2021

I survey the meaning of some of my favorite literary mean girls.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

Looking for Non-Existent Voter Fraud

By Robin Bates | Published: January 4, 2021

Trump loves conspiracy theories. So, until she sees the light, does Catherine Morland in “Northanger Abbey.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , | Comments closed

Austen-Like Dating During Covid

By Robin Bates | Published: December 13, 2020

Covid is disrupting our dating lives but may as a result have an up-side. Kundera, John Fowles, and Jane Austen explain.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

Spying, in Austen and at Colleges

By Robin Bates | Published: September 24, 2020

In “Northanger Abbey,” Tilney startles us with his use of the word “spies.” Spying has become one means that universities are using to combat Covid outbreaks.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , | Comments closed

The USPS and Conspiracy Theories

By Robin Bates | Published: August 26, 2020

As controversies swirl around the postal service, Pynchon’s “Crying of Lot 49” seems relevant. So does Welty’s “Why I Live at the P.O.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

Using Novels for Sexual Assualt

By Robin Bates | Published: February 27, 2020

In Sanditon the novel, unlike the television series, the villainous Sir Edward Denham reads novels. He learns the wrong lessons from Samuel Richardson, however.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

Sanditon’s Disappointing Ending

By Robin Bates | Published: February 26, 2020

While filled with allusions to the previous novels, the televised “Sanditon” is in the end a let-down. I explore why.

Posted in Uncategorized | Also tagged , , , , , , | Comments closed