Zusammenfassung
Zusammenfassung von Lady Susan
Für wen es gedacht ist
For readers who love Austen's sharp wit, clever villains who speak for themselves, and comedies of manners where private letters reveal what public charm conceals.
Worum es in diesem Buch geht
Lady Susan is a short novel told almost entirely in letters. Jane Austen wrote it in the 1790s, when she was a young woman, and never published it in her lifetime. It first appeared in print in 1871, long after her death in 1817. Its heroine is unlike any later Austen heroine. Lady Susan Vernon is a beautiful widow of about thirty-five, clever, charming and without a trace of conscience.
The book follows her as she moves from one great house to another, leaving scandal behind her and looking for a husband for herself and another for her daughter. We read her own letters to her friend Alicia, and we read the letters of the family who watch her with alarm. The two sets of voices rarely agree. You get a sharp comedy of manners, a study of a woman who uses talk as a weapon, and an early look at the wit that fills Austen's later books. First, let us meet Lady Susan as she leaves her latest trouble behind.
In dieser Zusammenfassung
- 1A charming widow leaves in disgraceFree
- 2Churchill welcomes her with suspicion
- 3A daughter becomes a pawn
- 4Reginald De Courcy comes to judge her
- 5What the story is really about
- 6How the letters build the story
Punkt 1 von 6
A charming widow leaves in disgrace
The story opens with a letter from Lady Susan to her brother-in-law, Charles Vernon. She asks to stay at his home, Churchill, and she writes as a gentle woman wounded by cruel gossip. She says she wants only quiet and the company of family. The tone is so sweet that the reader almost believes her.
Then we read her letters to Alicia Johnson, her close friend in London, and the picture changes. Lady Susan has been staying at Langford with the Manwaring family. While there, she has flirted with Mr Manwaring, who is married, and she has also won the attention of a young man who was courting Miss Manwaring. The household has become a battlefield, and she says the jealousy and hostility there make it impossible for her to stay. She tells all this to Alicia with amusement, as though it were a game she has played well.
Alicia is her partner in mischief. She is married to Mr Johnson, a man who disapproves of Lady Susan and has the power to forbid her from visiting his house. Alicia must therefore plot behind his back, and her letters show a woman who admires her friend's daring while living more cautiously herself. Through these letters we learn how Lady Susan sees the world. People are pieces to be moved, and a good conversation is a form of conquest.
The contrast between her public sweetness and her private cunning sets the pattern for the whole book. Every polite phrase she writes to the Vernons has a second meaning in her letters to Alicia. A listener soon learns to hear both at once, and that double hearing is much of the pleasure.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
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Who’s who
- Lady Susan Vernon
- A charming widow, she seeks advantageous marriages for herself and her daughter while relying on relatives and friends.
- Frederica Vernon
- Lady Susan's shy daughter fears her mother's marriage plans and looks for kindness from her relatives.
- Catherine Vernon
- Charles Vernon's sensible wife distrusts her sister-in-law Lady Susan and worries about her influence over Reginald.
- Charles Vernon
- Lady Susan's good-natured brother-in-law welcomes her to Churchill, where he lives with Catherine and their children.
- Reginald De Courcy
- Catherine's confident younger brother visits Churchill determined to judge Lady Susan despite her reputation for captivating men.
- Alicia Johnson
- Lady Susan's trusted friend receives her candid letters and supports her schemes despite her husband's disapproval.
- Sir James Martin
- A wealthy and foolish young man, he is Lady Susan's preferred prospective husband for her daughter Frederica.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 23,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 1 h 35 min
- Listening time2 h 35 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Lady Susan
What is Lady Susan about?
It follows a clever, charming widow who moves between country houses looking for a husband for herself and another for her daughter. The story is told in letters between her, her friend Alicia, and the relatives who distrust her.
When did Jane Austen write Lady Susan?
Austen is thought to have written it in the 1790s, when she was young. It was not published in her lifetime and first appeared in print in 1871, many years after her death in 1817.
Why is Lady Susan written as letters?
Austen chose the epistolary form, popular in the eighteenth century, so that each character could speak in her own voice. It lets us compare what Lady Susan says in public with what she writes privately.
Is Lady Susan a good character or a villain?
She is the book's manipulator, selfish and cold toward her daughter, but also witty and daring. Austen makes her entertaining while still showing the harm she causes, which is why readers argue about her.
Is Lady Susan hard to read?
No. It is short and moves quickly, and the letters are lively. The plot is easy to follow.