The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Jane Austen (Author), Charlotte Brontė (Author), Frances Beer (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 1986 | Series: Penguin Classics

Their most striking similarity was that both produced a considerable body of juvenilia. For both authors this was a period in which to experiment and to develop character and style. Their work moved in very different directions: in her first short burlesques, Jane Austen exhibits a merciless wit as she lampoons human vanities and vices, later sharpened in 'The Three Sisters' and 'Catherine' to reveal a maturer moral perspective. Charlotte Bronte's appetite was for romantic adventure and, with her brother Branwell, she created the fabulous kingdom of Angria. Yet the prevailing interests of her novels - a concern with the psychological intricacies of her characters' relationships and a desire to explore the forms of human passion - are already apparent. As Frances Beer comments in her Introduction, 'both sets of juvenilia provide us with an extraordinary opportunity to watch the growth and coalescence of the creative consciousness'.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (October 7, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140432671
• ISBN-13: 978-0140432671
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #955,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Charlotte Bronte (1816-1855) was from an English family that produced three novelists: herself, Emily, and Anne. Besides Jane Eyre, other best known works include Shirley and Villette.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Six of wonderful, half a dozen of dull, April 15, 2000

By 

pobble (Johannesburg, South Africa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

The two parts of this book differ greatly in reader appeal. While packaging the juvenilia of two loved women authors together seems like a good idea, I think the actual works are not particularly compatible. Jane Austen fans will love the sprightly, unrestrained wit of her juvenilia; 'Love and Freindship' in particular is a delightful romp, wickedly satirising the 'novels of sensibility' popular at the time. In contrast, the Bronte stories, which all form part of a series set in a fantasy world created by Charlotte together with her brother Branwell, are obscure and turgid. No doubt this peek at her early writing would be invaluable to a Bronte scholar, but the average reader is likely to lose interest. Particularly in contrast to Austen's lightness and ease of touch, the Bronte works seem clumsy and confusing. Still, the volume is worth buying only for the section on Austen, which is as far as I can tell fairly complete and an absolute must-read for any Austen fan.

5.0 out of 5 stars The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, June 29, 2009

By 

D. Jean How (W. Bloomfiield, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

This was purchased as a gift. I am a lover of the classics, so it was wonderful to be able to enjoy getting a book that dove a little more into the background of the classic authors in their youths.

2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bad news for Jane Austen fans, July 14, 2006

By 

R. Bagula "Roger L. Bagula" (Lakeside, Ca United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Juvenilia of Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Jane Austen is pretty surely damaged by this comparison : much as English novels are by comparison with French.
It would appear that Charlotte Brontė exceeds Jane Austen both in ability and sensibilities even from an early age.
The comparison of style in not in Austen's favor.Charlotte's poetry is as superior as her imagination
and characterizations.
She makes Austen's results appear more comical than realistic: cut out characterizations.
The emotional and lyrical expression of Brontė themes show a great depth of feeling
and understanding of human nature lacking in Austen.