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Sunday, August 15

Jane Austen Throwdown

The settings that Jane Austen chose for her characters were important to her plot. Much of Northanger Abbey was set in Bath, Elizabeth and the Gardiners traveled to Derbyshire where Pemberley lay, Lydia got into trouble in Brighton, and Box Hill, where Emma was so rude to Miss Bates, is set in Surrey.

We now ask you to choose two of your favorite Jane Austen locations. Bath or London? Steventon Rectory or Chawton Cottage?

Two of Your Favorite Jane Austen Locations


Bath, an ancient city, whose Roman Baths and drinking waters attracted rich and poor alike. It was said that more doctors and apothecaries were licensed in Bath than any other city in Great Britain.


London, the largest city in Europe in Jane's day. She would visit her brother, Henry, who lived in town and acted as her agent. Jane most particularly liked London's parks and gardens, and would frequent the shops, bringing back items for her family.


pollcode.com free polls
Bath or London?
Bath London


Steventon Rectory. Jane spent most of her childhood in Steventon Rectory. Here is where she learned to write, and where her close-knit family nurtured her talent. When she learned that her parents had made plans to move to Bath and from a home she loved, Jane fainted.


Chawton Cottage was refurbished by Jane's rich brother Edward, who invited her, Cassandra, and Mrs. Austen to live there. Jane spent her most productive writing years during her time in Chawton, revising Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Northanger Abbey, and writing Emma, Persuasion, and Mansfield Park. She began Sanditon there, completing 11 chapters before succumbing to her fatal illness.


pollcode.com free polls
Steventon Rectory or Chawton Cottage?
Steventon Rectory Chawton Cottage


5 comments:

Anna said...

I voted for Bath. Love the period feel of the place and prefer it to London any day! Have just posted about the locations in London and will post about the Bath locations next week.

It was harder to vote on Chawton/Steventon, as Steventon Rectory no longer exists on the site...

Anna said...

I voted for Bath. Love the period feel of the place and prefer it to London any day! Have just posted about the locations in London and will post about the Bath locations next week.

It was harder to vote on Chawton/Steventon, as Steventon Rectory no longer exists on the site...

Eliza Martin said...

London is the place for me. :)

Raquel said...

I voted Bath!

Mark Mc said...

Steventon is the only one of these sites I've yet to visit, but I would recommend Google Street View for a look at the Rectory site and its environs. It's quite strange to look at a corner of a normal English field and realise that three famous novels were written on that spot!