By Elizabeth Jewell
The annual festivities celebrating both the holiday season and, particularly, the 249th birthday of our beloved Jane were held at Gisele Rankin’s lovely home in Cary, with attendance both in person and by Zoom. This year, we were lucky to have the fascinating Dr. Kuldip Kuwahara present “Jane Austen and Happiness,” subtitled “Jane Austen and Frankenstein.”
Dr. Kuwahara was raised in India with a strong emphasis on British culture. She noted that when she first visited London, it was so familiar she felt as though she were coming home. She now serves as a professor of English in the Department of Language and Literature at North Carolina Central University. She is the author of Jane Austen at Play: Self-Consciousness, Beginnings, Endings (Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publishers: 1993), and she has published several articles in Persuasions.
Kuldip noted that she was rereading Northanger Abbey at the same time she was teaching Frankenstein to one of her classes; both books were published in 1818 (and both, of course, written by women). Frankenstein has become such a part of our culture that even people who have not read the book are familiar with the story, although many confuse the title name of the doctor who created the monster with the (nameless) monster himself. Dr. Kuwahara draws a parallel with Catherine Morland, who has the pleasure of reading without reflection on what she’s read. Thus, she reads Gothic thrillers and doesn’t make the distinction between their plots and the reality of the comfortable British upper-class home she’s visiting.
Dr. Kuwahara noted that we are living through an epidemic of loneliness, one exacerbated by the pandemic. Jane Austen, who is “only” looking at real life, considers family and relationships in a neighborhood. Our appreciation for her writing has grown over time, as we appreciate her comic spirit, which allows her to create characters who, ideally, find the ability to take on life—her best characters grow and change, while the unlikable or silly ones do not.
In describing the shape of each day, Austen brings up the idea of play, a word that has some complex etymologies. When applied to music, for example, playing well means much more than simply a pastime. Darcy admires Elizabeth Bennett’s playing; Colonel Brandon goes to some trouble to find a piano that he can give to Marianne Dashwood because he enjoys her playing so much (and knows it’s important to her as a means of expression). In Persuasion, Anne Elliot urges Wentworth to stay at a concert, not only because she wants to see him, but also because she wants him to appreciate the music being performed.
Dr. Kuwahara mentioned the Ode to Joy, written by the German poet and playwright Friedrich Schiller in 1785; it was set to music by Beethoven between 1822 and 1824. It represents a reach toward balance; people transcend social structures to come together as a community and “complete the circle.” She referenced Yeats, who wrote “things fall apart; the centre cannot hold.” She also mentioned Sanditon, in which characters moved around a lot and showed restlessness; the wheel of life could not come full circle.
Austen was a realist but also an idealist; there is the potential for goodness and happiness. Austen presents the shining surface of life with horror beneath it—she subtly mentions where the wealth comes from in some of the families she portrays. Henry Tilney goes off to his plantation; this is more explicit in Mansfield Park, where it’s clear that slavery is the source of the family’s wealth.
At the heart of Austen’s work is a deep spirituality, as she asks questions about “What is right? what is wrong? what is moral?” She examines these questions in the families and neighborhoods she portrays—as, for example, when Emma insults Miss Bates. It’s a seemingly small incident in their social circle, but it’s a major moral moment in Emma’s life.
Dr. Kuwahara notes that Victor Frankenstein left his happy family home to pursue science, creating and then abandoning his monster. The monster is unnatural; it has no bonds (it says, “I am alone”), and it becomes a murderer who wants the scientist to suffer. Today, we have to wonder if A.I. will become a monster.
Imagination is dangerous—but we can be frightened and amused at the same time (as we are with Halloween). Why, she asks, is Northanger Abbey not a tragedy? It’s because Henry Tilney rescues Catherine, reminding her that she lives in a civilized country, one at odds with the savage world. In the world of England, all men are created equal—this is justified by seeing slaves as less than human, as other.
Although earlier she discussed music as a version of play that can be sublime, she also notes that singing and dancing are essential parts of African culture, so Darcy says, “Every savage can dance.” But Dr. Kuwahara notes that great works of art raise us to a higher level of common humanity. She mentioned and recommended two books: The Religious Dimension of Jane Austen’s Novels by Gene Koppel (Umi Research Press, 1988) and The Beautiful Cassandra, a children’s book by Juliet McMaster (Gardners VI Books, 2006) based on a piece of Jane Austen’s juvenilia.
Finally, Karin Wiberg recapped the year on behalf of our regional coordinator Sara Tavela (who was experiencing speech issues due to Long COVID), noting that we read four books, had four speakers, and had four “other” meetings, consisting of games, tea, and conversations. Next year, for the 250th anniversary of Jane’s birth, some of the activities suggested and positively voted on by members include a picnic, a ball (possibly combined with the Jane Austen Summer Program’s ball in New Bern, NC), a Persuasion-themed beach visit, and a half-day virtual mini-conference. Our theme for the year is “Reimagining Jane.”
Karin saluted Sara’s hard work on our behalf and that done by other volunteers, while noting that more volunteers are always welcome. Finally, as always, we toasted Jane for her birthday with a few well-chosen words from our hostess, Gisele.
Up Next
2025 marks the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth, and JASNA-NC is celebrating with the theme “Reimagining Jane.” To start off the year, we’re going to share our Jane Austen stories and our favorite items from our Jane Austen collections. You can learn more about that meeting here.