HENB0T211U Engelsk - Valgfag 2 - Emne i britiske studier B: Sense and Sensibility. Novels (etc.) about and by women ca. 1800-1860

The early 19th century saw an increase in the production of novels, particularly such as described the everyday experience of middle class women. At the same time, notions of 'sensi­bility' or what we would now call Romanticism did not pass the mainly female writers by - in their work we see a mixture of 18th century reason and 19th century feeling. This goes hand in hand with a fluctu­ation between fairly accurate descriptions of contemporary con­ditions for women and the quest for emotional fulfilment in an ideal relation­ship. Among the novelists discussed will be Jane Austen, the Brontës, and Mrs. Gaskell. As parallels and contrasts, a few examples of narrative verse and a play will also be included.