Forgotten in the mists of time
More lovely snark on the new populist editions of Jane Austen’s novels.
It is true that there is nothing more forlorn than a forgotten author, a neglected genius whom fashion and whimsy have dictated must languish in the dusty corners of ill-attended libraries and the unread footnotes of dull reference books. Poor Jane Austen! How long must her devotees petition for her return to favour?
When all Christmas has brought you is a 10th anniversary Pride and Prejudice box set complete with anamorphic widescreen and Dolby digital, you’re bound to feel a bit of nose-out-of-jointedness. And when your most famous character, Elizabeth Bennet, has only been played by Greer Garson, Madge Evans, Daphne Slater, Jane Downs, Celia Bannerman, Elizabeth Garvie, Jennifer Ehle and Keira Knightley, what you really need is a lucky break, the helping hand of fate, a push in the right direction. But why must it always fall to publishers to mop up the wider culture’s oversights?
