Love and Marriage
In the Age of Jane Austen
By Rory Muir
why we picked it
Love and Marriage In the Age of Jane Austen by Rory Muir is a fascinating study of everything Austen’s novels don’t show. Muir followed a couple from Meet Cute through courtship, marriage, and, in some cases, divorce. He also highlights the lives of those outside the institution of marriage, such as spinsters and mistresses. This insightful study serves as a valuable resource for writers seeking to explore plots outside of a neat courtship. With numerous accounts of real couples, Muir provides a rich foundation for crafting more nuanced and authentic romantic narratives.
Summary
What happened when Jane Austen’s heroines and heroes were finally wed?
Marriage is at the centre of Jane Austen’s novels. The pursuit of husbands and wives, advantageous matches, and, of course, love itself, motivate her characters and continue to fascinate readers today. But what were love and marriage like in reality for ladies and gentlemen in Regency England?
Rory Muir uncovers the excitements and disappointments of courtship and the pains and pleasures of marriage, drawing on fascinating first-hand accounts as well as novels of the period. From the glamour of the ballroom to the pressures of careers, children, managing money, and difficult in-laws, love and marriage came in many guises: some wed happily, some dared to elope, and other relationships ended with acrimony, adultery, domestic abuse, or divorce. Muir illuminates the position of both men and women in marriage, as well as those spinsters and bachelors who chose not to marry at all.
This is a richly textured account of how love and marriage felt for people at the time—revealing their unspoken assumptions, fears, pleasures, and delights.
