I LOVE Jane Austen. When I was in the Army, Austen swept me far away from my current situation and off to a different time and place. Thank you for this!
I'm so glad that Austen was able to offer you some comfort during such a traumatic time. Thank you so much for sharing this. As Qamar say, WWI soldiers would read the novels of Austen to escape from the horrors of the trenches. The Medical Corps would specifically recommend her books and stock them in hospital libraries for bibliotherapy. The term 'Janeites' also actually comes from a Kipling short story about a group of soldiers who are secret fans of Austen. He and his wife found solace in Austen when they tragically lost their son in the war. I hope you're keeping well and looking after yourself after your service 🙏
It's amazing how well that novel stands up. Even today it still feels fresh. Lizzie is SUCH a vivid character. I once heard a sweet old literature professor say "I've been in love with Lizzie Bennett for 60 years," and I can see why.
The decorum in Regency England would make a low class person to say whatever & whenever you want, just as her sister Mrs Philips & Mrs Bennet are lable "vulgar" in those days, as we see that most of the gentle rolled their eyes when these sisters are talking, & most of the time Elizabeth & Jane are very much embarrassed by their mothers behavior, but we all have these kinds of family members😂
Every year I re-read Jane Austen's novels, and every year I feel like I’m having a slightly different conversation with her, it’s a feeling I can’t put into words but it’s quite unique. I love Austen, and I love that you’ve come to love her works too!
The way I ran to my old and tattered copy of pride and prejudice after this video! I live in a small town in India and miss out on so many foreign references in books even though I have devoured them repeatedly. I have all the STEM majors in my family so internet has been my only guide to reading and appreciating literature. I’ve found your channel today and I fully intend to binge watch the rest of the videos the moment I’m through with Pride and Prejudice. It feels like I’m gonna read it in a completely new light today. Thank you so much, you’re doing god’s work out here!
Hello! Thank you so much for your amazing content. I am originally from Russia, but am planning to go to Oxford for a BA in English Language and Literature. Everything you do is very helpful and very inspiring.
Thank you so much, Kate! You've completely made my day! It's so exciting to hear your Oxford plans :) The university's English Language and Literature course is an incredible journey!
@@BenjaminMcEvoy Another reason I watch your videos is your beautiful eyes. :3 I already have two degrees in philosophy and I adore Japan, so your channel and your personality make me very happy. Thank you ❤️
THANK YOU! I recently dropped this book because I could not force myself to get interested in it but you could convince me to deeply appreciate the literary merit of “if you give a mouse a cookie” if you wanted to so I’m very glad you made this!
@@BenjaminMcEvoy It was a great year. I read each novel three times, plus biographies, essays, the complete letters of, and even some spin off novels such as Miss Austen by Gill Hornby and The Other Bennett Sister. I watched lectures by John Mullan. I watched every film adaptation I could find. I read Jane Austen and the Clergy, Time Travellers Guide to Regency Britain, Jane Austen and Her World, biographies by Claire Tomalin, Lucy Worsley, Elizabeth Jenkins and JE Austen-Leigh, you get the idea. It was a brilliant year.
I have never read a Jane Austen book and feel it's time! This video has given me the energy I need to begin! One is never too old to learn to appreciate a new genre of literature! Thank you!
I love this! And I love seeing a man appreciate Austen like this... I don't know, maybe it's just my luck but in the almost five years of me studying literature, I've never seen any of my male professors praise Austen for her work, it has always been the other way around. This made me really happy ❤
From 22:32 to 23:37, Benjamin references a conversation between Elizabeth, Darcy, and Miss Bingley. The conversation defines what a woman is supposed to be and Elizabeth rightly remarks on how it is an impossible ask. In last year’s movie “Barbie” America Ferrera’s big speech is an echo of this very conversation. It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we're always doing it wrong. You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money because that's crass. You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother, but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood. But always stand out and always be grateful. But never forget that the system is rigged. So find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line. It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault. I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know.
So passionate, so deep, so touching, so enlightening and inspiring lecture. Benjamin, thank you so much for sharing your passion for the literature. You have my eternal gratitude for influencing my soul.
I have tried to get into Austen for years, and have started and subsequently stopped Pride and Prejudice about four times now. I just could not get into it. I’m happy to say that after watching this video, I have now started Pride and Prejudice and am enjoying it and getting into it! So thank you for your work. I’ve always enjoyed your informative, passionate, and insightful videos on literature. Keep up the good work.
Wow! Thank you so much :) That makes me so happy to hear! It actually took me a very long time to come around Austen too, so I completely relate to your experience. I really appreciate the kind words, and I'm thrilled you're enjoying Pride and Prejudice now!
@@MsOlikk Thanks for the comment. I finished it about 2 weeks ago and loved it. Elizabeth and Darcy was both such interesting and complex characters. I enjoyed seeing Lizzy's character arc, and her growth as she learns the truth about Darcy. I will definitely have to read it again at some point in the near future.
@@BenjaminMcEvoy Thank you! Honestly, your channel has been such a source of inspiration and knowledge. I'm now reading Joyce's Ulysses and am cherishing every moment.
Teacher! Brother Pisces! I have not watched this video, but I finished your Paradise Lost video this morning. It’s on my current Read Before Death list, and your video got me more than pumped to start it. There’s so much I wish to say to you with praise and inquiry. I will say I watched one of your Q&A’s this past week, and you offered an ostensibly off-the-cuff reading order for Austen initiates, and your first title was EMMA, so I’ve concluded to start with that one. Short story long… Among other things, I’ve have been quite sporadically tackling the Bradbury Reading Assignment, and I reread Hazlitt’s essay “The Pleasure of Hating”. It might as well have been my first reading because I was outflanked by the last three paragraphs and almost overwhelmed by the DESPAIR of hating by the essay’s end. Teacher (and anyone), is there an essay that’s the complete OPPOSITE of this one that you could recommend as an antidote? Best Wishes and Thank You! Just, Thank You! Haedyn
Struggling with this one... My heart and mind are still with Otello and Master and Margarita... Thanks for the lecture, professor, it definitely helped! 😊
I had to read this in high school overnight after partying. I read it straight through, got an hour of sleep, then went to class and wrote a decent essay. It was fun, even exhilarating. Read it subsequently in college, but that first read was much more fun.
After reading The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow, I see him in a different light . Although that dinner scene where he remarks on the excellent boiled potatoes can never be forgotten 😂
Another wonderful video Benjamin! Although I don’t consider myself nearly well-read enough to swim in the pool with you and your readers in the Hardcore Literature club, I do very much enjoy anything you have to say. I loved your video about Whitman so much! You amaze me. Thanks for your hard work here! ❤
What a coincidence, I started Pride and Prejudice a few days ago after watching your How to Read Jane Austen video! I had trouble acclimating to the environment and characters through the first hundred pages or so, but now im very immersed in the novel!
So true we recognise ourselves and our families in her novels. I’m pretty sure my family would see me as Mrs Bennet (I love her!) and my husband, Mr Bennet. I’ve always said I prefer the Brontes to Austen but this video has made me want to revisit her books. I feel converted. Thank you so much for such a wonderful video and all the care you put into it.
Aw, thank you so much, Josephine! I really appreciate that :) I think it's a really great thing if readers recognise their own family in the Bennets. I struggle to think of many literary families who love each other as fully as the Bennets! ☺️
Aw, thank you so much, Nancy!! I'm so thrilled you're joining the reading journey with us and am so excited to hear what you make of these great books! ☺️🙏
This was a great video about one of my all time favourite novels. And I was VERY excited by one part of it: I never knew that most novels were published in three volumes back in the day. This explains why 'At length, quite exhausted by the attempt to be amused with her own book, which she had only chosen because it was the second volume of his...' . Miss Bingley put down her book and asked Lizzy to walk with her... That passage always intrigued me, but is so much clearer now.
Thanks for the great video! I just re-read the book last month (I first read it when I was in middle school😂) and I absolutely fell in deep love with Austen’s portraits of the characters, and got a thorough understanding of the groundbreaking significance of the work during that period of time. Now I want to re-read all the classics I might not understand when I first touched them decades ago.
Wonderful introduction to Austen. Compared to other Austen works, there's a great deal of activity in P&P.. So, many wonderful characters. While my favorite novel of hers is Persuasion, this is understandably her most influential work.
This was wonderful! It's always such a pleasure to find content that you enjoy watching and reading as much, or more than the book itself. Thank you for making such a thoroughly enriching and rewarding video to watch. I consider my time very well spent.
Dr Octavia Cox has some interesting videos about Jane Austen novels, including breakdown of class distinctions, which actually added a lot of context to an area that is less intuitively understood nowadays. Once you realise who is being snobby, who is overcompensating (ahem, ahem, Caroline, ahem, and Mr Collins) and who is less snobby than expected (Darcy) it makes for much more interesting interactions.
I have attempted to read P&P twice and DNF both times. I thought, maybe I'm not an Austenphile and was content with that. Many years have passed since my last attempt to read P&P, and just last year, I decided to give Emma a go. I adored it. I absolutely love that book. Persuasion was my next read, and I loved it as well. Maybe before, it was the wrong time in my life to reach for Jane, as now it seems I want to embrace her and give Pride and Prejudice another try. Wish me luck. Hopefully, it will be the good kind.
Another tour de force taster, sir -- thought about joining after watching your take on Jane Eyre but didn't, think I'll have to now. These are books I love but know little about their levels of historical/cultural context and there are clearly many dimensions more to explore and experience. As far as P&P is concerned, it's my personal favorite of Austen's novels -- as you alluded to, I feel as though I *know* the characters, they have long since come to live inside the same universe as I do (or I theirs). Maybe it's a function of her youth when it was written but the scathing wit and humor is in such a continuous flow there's barely a page that does not make me laugh out loud or deeply marvel at the human spirit that could see and capture our species so clearly. Looking forward to all the coming wisdom. ❤
Just a few minutes in and your info about the hierarchies is already opening up new facets of the novel I’ve read so often. Wow. I’m already learning a lot. Thank you Benjamin! -Jess
Just recently completed pride and prejudice, i had started months ago but felt it was a little difficult as english is my second language.. But this video inspired me to read the book and now i am done... I loved the book❤❤
Wow!! Congratulations on reading and finishing Pride and Prejudice! It's very impressive that you read the book in the original English. I'm so happy you loved it, Mahima! 🥰
What a fascinating video! Rephrasing Poirot, "I read my Austen" for the first time just a month ago, and it was P&P. I was captivated by it at once: all this irony, and wit, and complex characters, and narrative. During my reading I was watching the BBC adaptation with Colin Ferth, and it was marvelous! I want to reread it after some time to appreciate it more and find these perspectives of views of different characters. Thank you for your tremendous work and analysis, deep thoughts about Art as a mirror, reflecting our rejected thoughts (as in the Preface of Dorian Gray), for your passion and infusion of love to Shakespeare and all these great authors! Each video is a miraculous mixture of consolation and inflammation!)
Thank you for this lovely video, Ben. My husband - otherwise an enthusiastic and ambitious reader - can’t stand Austen. Although he says he feels like giving her another go - hope he will go for Persuasion (my favourite) and then we can watch the Ciarán Hinds / Amanda Root tv adaptation afterwards. Fingers crossed!
I listen to the Bbc radio drama adaptation of this book almost every week. Know it almost by heart. Read the novel many times. As you say it is a masterpiece. Thanks. Love your inspirational videos.
Great timing! I have been on a Jane Austen kick lately. I just read Emma for the first time, currently rereading Pride and Prejudice, and planning to reread Persuasion (my fav) later this Spring. 😊
No, the navy did not have the same cachet as the army. You had to buy your way into the officer class in the army but not in the navy - it was more classless. A naval officer like Captain Wentworth was promoted through success at sea and if they captured an enemy ship they would divide the spoils among the crew. That was how Wentworth became rich. And Harvill's sister died before her man Benwick made his fortune so he was left heartbroken (until much later when he fell for Louisa Musgrove). I can still recall how heartbroken I was when having read all of her novels I realised she had only written 5. Too few sadly.
Shocking how I'd always heard of Jane Austen, of "Pride and Prejudice", of other of her books, but never read nor connected books to author! Thank you so much for this top video. You drive to more Jane, and to other authors.
I'd love to see a video where you analyse the different translations of the Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales and then say which is your favourite.
Hey Benjamin! I have a question but it isn’t related to Pride and Prejudice or Jane Austen. However, I know Mark Twain had an interesting feud with Jane Austen but that’s beside the point. I recently read Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I thought it was one of the best things I’ve ever read (I’m not well read and haven’t gotten into much classic literature). Although I was mystified by the quality of the writing and the interworking of different dialects and of course the story itself, I thought the ending sucked. Assuming you have read it, it seems like the ending of the Adventures of Huck Finn completely changes tone. The friendship between Jim and Huck which developed throughout the novel, seems to completely become irrelevant. The moral growth of Huck, which took place throughout his journey with Jim, becomes seemingly undone once Tom Sawyer shows back up. The ending really bummed me out. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and what you think about the ending, as well as if you think that the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is great literature? Also, thank you so much for your channel. Your videos have been an invaluable tool for me as I have started to read more deeply. I recently started War and Peace and plan to spend a year or so diving into it as you recommended in your video on it. I’m only a few chapters in and am definitely intrigued. However, I don’t understand why the descriptions of Princess Helene’s beauty seem so overdone. Anywho, I am looking forward to working through it and seeing what Tolstoy has in store for me. Thanks again for everything!
I recently read Pride and Prejudice in manga form and Mr. Collins did not come off as that odious in that version for some reason. I have always felt Mrs. Bennett got a bad rap as her main job was to get her five daughters married off and it was a monumental job.
I completely agree, Petra! Definitely a monumental job, and one that she is very good at! As for Mr Collins, I've personally always sympathised with him quite a bit. I don't think he's too odious :)
I don't think Mrs. Bennet gets enough of a bad rap. She is an extremely selfish creature who always has to be the center of attention. She wants her daughters well married so they won't be thrown into the hedgerows but she works against her own goals and shows she really doesn't care about her daughters at all.
I almost literally could not read this. A friend badgered me into it. I sullenly flipped page after page, muttering internally, The things we do for our friends. And then around page 28, I fell in love with the rhythm of the language and could not put it down. So the title of the video amused me. For me, the answer to How to Read P&P is: Just make it to page 28. lol
This video is incredible and came at just the right time as I finally decided to read Pride and Prejudice! Thanks so much, Ben - I can't wait to dive into it! 😊
Hello, Benjamin!😊 I hope you're well. I loved the video; I love Jane Austen and the way in which, through such everyday situations, she revolutionised literature and the way we understand the impact of irony and subtlety. I also love the way you express yourself, you're very clear and imaginative in the construction of your sentences, which makes (for the listener) an immersive experience. In fact, I'm finally reading Moby Dick (your video helped me a lot) and I finished Oblómov a few days ago. You're right, great literature makes us great too. Kisses from São Paulo, Brazil ❤
Hi Ben, wow - that was such a passionate and informative lecture so beautifully edited with the images you add. I have been following along with the majority of your book recommendations since January 2023 when I reread War and Peace. I’m a little ahead of schedule this year, for fear of falling behind 😊 and yes I know it’s not a race. Pride and Prejudice is still very fresh in my mind and this video has shed a lot of light on the novel. The first extensive draft written at age 20! Characters drawn from real life. Different forms of narration to name but a few. Also your perceptive illumination of the novel’s cultural and historical context. Thanks again 🙏
i came into this video kinda skeptical because it was just uploaded but it was so good!! im reading pride and prejudice for the first time and this really put it into a different perspective
27:23 You're right that "coming out" meant something different now than it did then, but as a queer person I just want to add that they are indeed related. Gay men of the 20th century had "coming outs" at gay bars (the first time they attended, that is) much like women of the 19th century did at balls. It was about introducing yourself to your local queer community. Then in the later half of the century, especially the 80s, there was a push to "come out of hiding/of the closet" to straight family members and friends as well. That was mostly a political thing, used to try and make straight people care about gay rights. And now it's a mix of political and personal expression, depending on who you ask. Anyway, I'm very impressed with this video. I haven't seen anything from you before, but this showed up in my reccomended and I'm definitely going to have a look on your other videos, because this type of in-depth discussion is something I have been looking for for a while! I especially liked the point about character voices bleeding into the narration.
Like a lot of people, I despised Jane Austen the first time I read her and pretty much put down the book after the first chapter. Maybe it's a guy thing but I found it gooey. But I read it again with an open mind and the first thing that struck me was that its unbelievably easy to read and strikingly modern for a book that came out in 1813. But when the Mr Collins scenes came in, that was when I was fully sold on Austen because my lord, she is HILARIOUS. Honoured to share a birthday with her.
I just finished this right now and it was so delightful! I'm excited for your thoughts on this vid. :) Edit: My favorite character is definitely Mr. Bennet. His wit and sarcasm is so funny every time.
Having being forced to read this book in year 7, in a country where english would not be your first language, was plain torture. Everyone in school knew Pride and Prejudice but for entirely different reasons. Safe to say most people despised it. But that's expected at an age when the only thing you maybe watch are mainstream films and tv shows, at least that's what we did. But this video has sparked an interest in me for this long forgotten novel and has provided me a different perspective, which isn't hostile. Thank you
Ah, Austen’s have been shelved for much too long so this is encouraging! Nabokov changing his mind on women writers because of Austen is an amusing little anecdote.
My preference for Jane Austen novels: Emma - Mr Knightley is lovely and nicer than Mr Darcy as he is warmer and will do anything for Emma. He's my favourite Austen hero. Pride and Prejudice Persuasion Sense and Sensibility Northagner Abbey Mansfield Park
Oh it's been less than two weeks that I satisfied my story-hunger with Pride & Prejudice! I wish I had started reading the book after watching this video, for maybe then I would have enjoyed the journey even more than what I did alone, on my own.
Hello Ben! Another absolutely marvelous video! I just had a question totally unrelated that has been itching at me for the past while. I was wondering if you are planning on doing more Pynchon novels in the future? I understand that your priorities lie with hlbc and its schedule, but I would love to hear your opinions on his other works. Although Gravity's Rainbow is perhaps his most (or second most) recognized, I do believe he has better in his collection. Just thought I would ask out of personal interest. Regardless, love the work that you do and the insight you provide, and look forward to whatever you have in store for the rest of this year and years to come!
Thank you so much for your kind words, my friend. I really appreciate that :) It's so amazing that you ask that because I've been planning a podcast on The Crying of Lot 49. I'd definitely love to discuss more of Pynchon's works, like Mason & Dixon and V, in the future. I'd be very interested to hear which ones are your personal favourites!
Hey there, Benjamin! I would like some tips on great but easier literature for English students, specially those at beginning levels. Your work is a blessing. Thanks!
I always comment that 5000 a year isn’t really equivalent to 500k because back then you could live a frugal life on 100 pounds, so that might be equivalent to say 25k in this time period, so 5000 back then is more like 1.25M
Loved P&P, enjoyed S&S and Emma; but I could not finish Mansfield Park, it was so dull. I wonder if many other Austen readers feel the same way about Mansfield Park?
This might be a strange question so I apologize if it's confusing, but how do you think Jane Austin would converse with Margaret Mitchell? I ask this because you often talk about having the great works of literature talk with one another during your readings, so I'm wondering how would Austin's "Pride and Prejudice" converse with Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind". Both books are similar in being about landowning families with strong heroines who, in their love lives, start out hating their true love but end up marrying them. However, Darcy and Elizabeth stay together while Rhett Butler leaves Scarlett. Both books discuss themes of economic and social classes, love, family relations, and feminism. However, "Pride and Prejudice" takes place at a time of peace while "Gone with The Wind" takes place during and after war. I haven't read any Austin yet so I was just curious what you would think. Love the video!
I just finished reading Pride and Prejudice and have started on Mansfield Park, so I am going to enjoy this, I think. I was never a fan of what I called "girly books", even though I am a bookworm. I bought the collection years ago in my forties simply because I could not find books at the bookstore that I did not already own. I've learned to love them. My daughter gifts me books on my birthday or randomly, and this way, I now own a small collection of Collins Classics. Amongst them is Wuthering Heights which I am not a fan of. I have some very strong feelings on the book which I will not share here for fear of being lynched by you English!
@@Casutama This would be my third reading of the book. I first read it over ten years ago, when I first bought the collection and the second was only during the Covid lockdowns. That reading was inspired by an Intelligence Squared debate with a Professor of English literature arguing for Austen and an English novelist arguing for Brontë. The Professor's presentation was so funny (very witty and engaging) and that warranted another read of her books! I like Mansfield Park well enough. Obviously there's great discomfort with Fanny and Edmund being first cousins! Have to chalk that down to the scene being set in another time entirely when such marriages were normal and not frowned upon. That however, does not erase the moral questions that arise.
Enjoyed, beginning sentence does seem more like Mrs. Bennet. Pride and Prejudice is my favorite, Persuasion is my least favorite. It rritated me, someone please speak.
I read Pride & Prejudice just two weeks ago at the age of 27 - this is my first Jean Austin. But the funny part is, which is rather hilarious if you think about it, that I knew the entire story through and through. I knew all the characters and their conflicts and had the exact idea of their future choices and reactions. Do you know how? Because of our TV daily soaps! Reading P&P I realised that I was practically reading the Bible of our daily soaps. For context, I'm from Kolkata, a metropolitan city of India and first capital of British India. So you see, I already knew the story; and yet I found my reading of P&P thoroughly entertaining and essential. I'm so happy that I decided to pick up Pride and Prejudice. P.S. What should I read next? I've got Crime & Punishment, David Copperfield and Kafka On The Shore - which one should I pick?
Looking for your opinion I have never read any Jane Austen. I have seen the 95 pride and prejudice, but I have no knowledge of sense and sensibility. For my first read of Jane, which do you recommend? Asking everyone in hard-core literature, please.
Nothing would please me more than if you would do a six video series of her six novels. And maybe even cover the smaller unfinished ones. ❤ this video was lovely.
