Why Women Love Jane Austen's Works

Spent a delicious evening watching Emma on PBS Masterpiece Theater and tweeting on Twitter with other Austen lovers across the country. It's quite a popular version, and considering how many women were by-passing the Grammy awards to watch it made it all the more enjoyable.

So what is it exactly about Jane Austen's works that draws us in? A few thoughts....

1. It's all about the films. Austen's books make such awesome movies! Especially if done by anyone remotely connected to the BBC.
2. It's all about the clothes! We all want the dresses! 
3. It's all about Knightly vs. Darcy.... or maybe it's not, we'll just take BOTH of them!!!
4. It's all about understatement - sultry looks across ballrooms, the chance to hold a girl's gloved hand, observed decorum abounds... and we love that! Nothing blatant, nothing insulting, just manners!
5. It's all about the gorgeous houses.... even the poor live in quaint little cottagey type abodes. Yeah, we know, there's not an abundance of indoor plumbing, but hey... we can forget that if the wallpaper in the ballrooms is pretty.
6. It's all about Colin Firth... say what you will... he IS Mr. Darcy... and everyone else is compared to his standard.
7. It's all about being able to boo and hiss at the nasty people.... and there's quite a list... Mr. Elton, Frank Churchhill, Mr. Wickham.... boo boo boo!
8. It's all about the humor... subtle, witty, verbally sharp... it makes you giggle every time, even when you know the line that's coming up next!
9. It's about the happy endings... you know the protagonists will discover the love of their life by the end as will quite a few of the other characters.
10. It's all about LOVE.... and who ever has enough romance in this modern fast-paced crazy world we live in!

So find a PBS station near you and tune in. After Emma is over, there are going to be two more excellent productions - Persuasion and Northanger Abbey... don't miss out!