|- ! Founded | 1857 |- ! Home Page | www.savageclub.com |- ! Address | 1 Whitehall Place |- ! Clubhouse occupied since | 1990 |- ! Club established for | The arts, science and law |- | colspan="2" style="font-size: smaller;" | |}
The Savage Club, founded in 1857 is a gentlemen's club in London.
:The Savage Club was formed to supply the want which Dr Samuel Johnson and his friends experienced when they founded the Literary Club. A little band of authors, journalists and artists felt the need of a place of reunion where, in their hours of leisure, they might gather together and enjoy each other’s society, apart from the publicity of that which was known in Johnson's time as the coffee house, and equally apart from the chilling splendour of the modern club.
:When about a dozen of our original members were assembled in the place selected for their meeting, it became a question what the Club should be called. Everyone in the room suggested a title. One proposed the “Addison”, another the “Johnson”, a third the “Goldsmith”, and so forth. At last, after we had run the whole gamut of famous literary names of the modern period, a modest member in the corner suggested the “Shakespeare”. This was too much for the gravity of one of the company (the late Robert Brough) whose keen sense of humour enabled him, in the midst of our enthusiasm, to perceive that we were bent on making ourselves ridiculous. “Who are we,” he said, “that we should take these great names in vain? Don’t let us be pretentious. If we must have a name, let it be a modest one - that signifies as little as possible.”
:Whereupon a member called out, in a spirit of pure wantonness, “The Savage”. Robert's sense of humour was once again tickled. “The very thing!” he exclaimed. “No one can say that there is anything pretentious in assuming that name. If we accept Richard Savage as our Godfather, it shows that there is no false pride in us.” And so, in a frolicsome humour, our little society was christened the “Savage” Club.
The history of Richard Savage gives ample proof of the lack of pretentiousness and false pride (and of “the spirit of pure wantonness”) which settled the choice of its name. For Richard Savage, a shady, satirical poet, had died, after a very chequered career, more than a century before the Savage Club was born. We read of him as a crony of Dr Johnson, and that he had occasional successes with his plays and poems. But his history also records the facts that he killed a man in a brawl, and was reprieved only by the intercession of a noble patron, that his life was mainly a story of quarrels, bitterness and vindictiveness, that he was prosecuted for libel, and finally that, after his irregular habits had reduced him to penury, he was imprisoned for debt and died in the year 1743.
This grim record will correct the assumptions that Savage was either one of the original members of the Club, or a distinguished person whose name the members wished to honour – or that they were born in some vague savage clime surrounded by assegais and tom-toms, shields and skulls, and other barbaric trophies such as those which decorate the walls.
Taken from "Brother Savages and Guests: A History of the Savage Club" by Percy Bradshaw
At the moment it is based in the National Liberal Club, at 1 Whitehall Place, London SW1. The nearest underground station is Embankment.
There are also monthly lunches, which are followed by a talk given by a member or an invited guest on a subject of which he has specific expert knowledge.
The category of membership might mirror a member's profession, though there are many members with an interest in one or more of the membership categories, but who practise none professionally.
Membership fees range from £248 to £654 per annum depending on membership category. The joining fee for 2008 for gentlemen introduced by present Savages is £200 if aged 35 or over at the date of joining, or £90 for those under 35. For those who apply for membership without introduction the fees are £500 and £150 respectively.
During the weekend, members are permitted to use either the Oxford and Cambridge Club in Pall Mall, or the East India Club in St James's Square. There are also reciprocal arrangements with more 40 other clubs worldwide, giving members a home-away-from-home when abroad.
Members of the Savage club may also use accommodation at the Savile, Lansdowne and Cavendish Clubs.
"A long cherished idea on the part of many members of the Savage Club has at length received an amount of support which justifies the accompanying application to the Most Worshipful Grand Master for a warrant for a new lodge. The Savage Club, which is “instituted for the association of gentlemen connected professionally with literature, art, the drama, or science”, now consists of 400 members, fully one-fourth of whom are masons, though many it is found are not at the present time subscribing members. From the interest evinced in the proposal there is a confident belief that if the new lodge is founded it will draw the majority of the masons in the club more closely together, and at the same time be the means of adding to the strength and prosperity of the craft by increasing its members. The petitioners are all “Savages”, but they do not bind themselves to admit none save their own members, though it will be their aim and endeavour to keep as close as possible to the principles which govern the elections to the Savage Club."
Enclosed with the letter was a formal petition to the Grand Master for the formation of the new lodge. The signatories were Sir Francis Wyatt Truscott, President of the Society of Artists, who was to be first Master of the new lodge, Sir John Somers Vine, the club’s secretary, who was to be the first Senior Warden, Lord Dunraven (Viscount Adair), then Provincial Grand Master of Oxfordshire, Catling, W. E. Chapman, Thomas Burnside and Archibald Neill, all described as journalists, another literary gentleman, John Paige, John Maclean, an actor, Raymond Tucker, an artist, and the actor Sir Henry Irving, who was not sufficiently experienced as a mason to take one of the more senior offices in the lodge, but agreed to act as Treasurer. Evidently Catling had been busy lobbying members of the Savage Club who were masons to assemble as imposing group of petitioners as possible. He had asked Lord Dunraven not only to support the petition but to agree if possible to take office in the new lodge. Dunraven had agreed to sign the petition, but could not take office.
The Savage Club Lodge was consecrated at Freemasons’ Hall on 18 January 1887, and Irving was invested as Treasurer of the new lodge. The lengthy report of the consecration in The Freemason refers to Irving’s presence but does not mention any speech by him. The Savage Club Lodge was enormously successful. In its first year, eleven meetings were held, and in the following year another ten. By the end of 1890, membership of the lodge had risen to 124. Many new masons had been initiated in the lodge and then passed through the various degrees in lengthy and elaborate rituals, and it was the working of these rituals which accounted for the large number of meetings. The club invited the Prince of Wales to become an honorary member, but although he refused this honour, he presented to the club for use in lodge meetings a gavel which had been used by the Queen when laying the foundation stone of the Imperial Institute at South Kensington.
Although there is no longer any formal connection between the club and the lodge, the lodge and its visitors still enjoy traditional Savage bonhomie at the club's premises in Whitehall following the quarterly lodge meetings in Covent Garden. Members of the lodge are also always invited to the frequent club events which are open to guests.
Category:London's gentlemen's clubs Category:1857 establishments
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| Playername | Bas Savage |
|---|---|
| Fullname | Basir Mohammed Savage |
| Dateofbirth | January 07, 1982 |
| Cityofbirth | Wandsworth, London |
| Countryofbirth | England |
| Height | |
| Position | Striker |
| Currentclub | Dagenham & Redbridge |
| Clubnumber | 16 |
| Youthyears1 | 2000–2002 |
| Youthclubs1 | Walton & Hersham |
| Years1 | 2002–2005 |
| Years2 | 2004 |
| Years3 | 2005 |
| Years4 | 2005–2006 |
| Years5 | 2006–2007 |
| Years6 | 2007–2008 |
| Years7 | 2008 |
| Years8 | 2008–2010 |
| Years9 | 2010– |
| Clubs1 | Reading |
| Clubs2 | → Wycombe Wanderers (loan) |
| Clubs3 | → Bury (loan) |
| Clubs4 | Bristol City |
| Clubs5 | Gillingham |
| Clubs6 | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| Clubs7 | Millwall |
| Clubs8 | Tranmere Rovers |
| Clubs9 | Dagenham & Redbridge |
| Caps1 | 16 |
| Goals1 | 0 |
| Caps2 | 4 |
| Goals2 | 0 |
| Caps3 | 5 |
| Goals3 | 0 |
| Caps4 | 23 |
| Goals4 | 1 |
| Caps5 | 14 |
| Goals5 | 1 |
| Caps6 | 36 |
| Goals6 | 9 |
| Caps7 | 11 |
| Goals7 | 2 |
| Caps8 | 55 |
| Goals8 | 9 |
| Caps9 | 10 |
| Goals9 | 2 |
| Pcupdate | 12:19, 3 October 2010 (UTC) |
His first start came in a 3-2 away win over Tranmere Rovers on 23 December. Following starts in Gillingham's following games, a Boxing Day home match against Leyton Orient where he was involved in the build up to Gillingham's first goal, an own goal scored by Brian Saah.
Having impressed Jepson during his initial three months at Gillingham, Savage signed for a further month in late December and scored his first goal on 20 January 2007, in a 1-1 draw away to the team he made his debut against, Cheltenham Town.
His career at Brighton got off to a flying start, with four goals in his first eight appearances for his new club. His goals for the club has meant he had doubled his goals tally with Brighton compared to what he achieved throughout his whole career combined.
It was his move to Brighton which was the catalyst for his newly found cult status. TV show Soccer AM picked up on his moonwalk goal celebrations and now broadcast every one of his moonwalk celebrations. The feature 'I wanna be like Bas Savage' is broadcast every weekend morning. He even had his own T-shirt made to highlight his goal celebration.
Savage started new contract talks with Brighton chairman Dick Knight during November 2007. Knight has been quoted as saying that he offered the player a new improved 18-month contract. It was revealed on Boxing Day 2007 that Savage had turned this deal down.
Ahead of the 2010–11 season, Savage was on trial with League Two side Stevenage, coming on as a substitute in the club's 0–0 draw against Norwich City. On 17 August 2010 he played as a trialist for Torquay United's reserve team, but was not signed by the club.
Category:1982 births Category:Living people Category:English footballers Category:Walton & Hersham F.C. players Category:Reading F.C. players Category:Wycombe Wanderers F.C. players Category:Bury F.C. players Category:Bristol City F.C. players Category:Gillingham F.C. players Category:Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Category:Millwall F.C. players Category:Tranmere Rovers F.C. players Category:Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. players Category:Black British sportspeople
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| Name | Baby Bash |
|---|---|
| Background | solo_singer |
| Birth name | Ronnie Ray Bryant |
| Born | Vallejo, California |
| Origin | Houston, Texas, United States |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Genre | Hip hop |
| Occupation | Rapper, Singer |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Label | Dope House, Universal, RCA, J, Arista |
| Associated acts | Paul Wall, South Park Mexican, Akon, Far East Movement, Lucky Luciano, Chingo Bling, Frankie J, Mac Dre, Frost, Mr. Kee, Rasheed, Russell Lee, Savage |
| Url | www.babybashmusic.com |
He has frequently contributed to other performers' works, including a spot in the song "Obsession (No Es Amor)" by 3rd Wish released in Europe and later a U.S release with a copy / re- recording of the European version, performed by Frankie J in 2005 and "Doing Too Much" by Paula DeAnda in 2006.
His third studio album, Cyclone (initially titled Ronnie Rey All Day), was released in late October 2007. So far, Baby Bash has released three singles off the album: "Mamacita" featuring Marcos Hernandez, "Na Na (The Yummy Song)", and "Cyclone" featuring Mickaël & T-Pain. The month of the album release, Baby Bash became Myspace's #1 Latin artist, but his 2007 album Cyclone was given mixed reviews, for example being panned by Rolling Stone magazine.
In December 2010, Baby Bash was offered a job as on-air personality for KYLD WILD 94.9, a Rhythmic Contemporary commercial radio station in San Francisco, California. In the same month, it was announced that Bash was endorsing a new energy drink for women named after his 2011 album's single, "Go Girl." Part of the sales proceeds from the energy drink will be donated to various charities for breast cancer and ovarian cancer research for women. His next album Bashtown is slated for release on March 1, 2011, and features guest appearances by Lloyd and E-40.
Category:1975 births Category:Date of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people Category:American musicians of English descent Category:American rappers of European descent Category:American rappers of Mexican descent Category:Electro-hop musicians Category:Hip hop singers Category:People from Vallejo, California Category:Rappers from Houston, Texas Category:Rappers from the San Francisco Bay Area Category:RCA Records artists Category:Universal Records artists
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| Name | Jerry Falwell |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Jerry Lamon Falwell |
| Birth date | August 11, 1933 |
| Birth place | Lynchburg, Virginia,United States |
| Death date | May 15, 2007 |
| Death place | Lynchburg, Virginia,United States |
| Occupation | Pastor, televangelist, commentator |
| Years active | 1956–2007 |
| Website | http://www.falwell.com/ |
He graduated from Brookville High School in Lynchburg, Va. He graduated from Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri in 1956. This Bible college was unaccredited until 2001. Falwell was eventually awarded three honorary doctoral degrees, and he sometimes used the title "doctor". The honorary doctorates were Doctor of Divinity from Tennessee Temple Theological Seminary, Doctor of Letters from California Graduate School of Theology, and Doctor of Laws from Central University in Seoul, South Korea.
In speaking of the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling, he said, in 1958:
"If Chief Justice Warren and his associates had known God's word and had desired to do the Lord's will, I am quite confident that the 1954 decision would never had been made. The facilities should be separate. When God has drawn a line of distinction, we should not attempt to cross that line."
In 1977, Falwell supported Anita Bryant's campaign, which was called by its proponents "Save Our Children", to overturn an ordinance in Dade County, Florida prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and he supported a similar movement in California.
One unusual link between Falwell and Conservative rabbi Arnold Resnicoff, a Navy chaplain, was created when President Ronald Reagan surprised the participants at Falwell's "Baptist Fundamentalism '84" convention in Washington, D.C., by choosing to read Resnicoff's on-site report of the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing as his keynote address. When Resnicoff later served as Special Assistant for Values and Vision for the Secretary and Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force, he would meet with Falwell to discuss issues linked to religious rights in the military, including the role and responsibilities of U.S. military chaplains. Resnicoff reported that Falwell supported the idea of using the Biblical verse that teaches that "God hears the words of our mouths and the meditations of our heart" as a basis for allowing Christian chaplains to offer "inclusive" prayers, because they could offer denominational words, such as "In Jesus's name," silently, as a "meditation of the heart."
Falwell supported President George W. Bush's Faith Based Initiative, but had strong reservations concerning where the funding would go and the restrictions placed on churches. "My problem is where it might go under his successors... I would not want to put any of the Jerry Falwell Ministries in a position where we might be subservient to a future Bill Clinton, God forbid... It also concerns me that once the pork barrel is filled, suddenly the Church of Scientology, the Jehovah Witnesses [sic], the various and many denominations and religious groups — and I don't say those words in a pejorative way — begin applying for money — and I don't see how any can be turned down because of their radical and unpopular views. I don't know where that would take us."
Funding for the film was provided by "Citizens for Honest Government," to which Jerry Falwell paid $200,000 in 1994 and 1995.
After comedienne and actress Ellen DeGeneres came out as a lesbian, Falwell referred to her in a sermon as "Ellen DeGenerate." DeGeneres responded by saying "Really, he called me that? Ellen DeGenerate? I've been getting that since the fourth grade. I guess I'm happy I could give him work."
At the same time, Falwell's legacy regarding homosexuality is complicated by his support for LGBT civil rights (see "civil rights" section above), as well as his efforts at reconciliation with the LGBT community in later years. In October 1999 Falwell hosted a meeting of 200 evangelicals with 200 homosexuals at Thomas Road Baptist Church for an "Anti-Violence Forum", during which he acknowledged that some American evangelicals' comments about homosexuality entered the realm of hate speech that could incite violence. At the forum, Falwell told homosexuals in attendance "I don't agree with your lifestyle, I will never agree with your lifestyle, but I love you" and added "anything that leaves the impression that we hate the sinner, we want to change that" He later commented to New York Times columnist Frank Rich that “admittedly, evangelicals have not exhibited an ability to build a bond of friendship to the gay and lesbian community. We've said ‘go somewhere else, we don't need you here [at] our churches.’”
In a televised interview with 60 Minutes, Falwell stated, "I think Muhammad was a terrorist." He added, "I concluded from reading Muslim and non-Muslim writers that Muhammad was a violent man, a man of war." Falwell later apologized to Muslims for what he said about Muhammad and affirmed that he did not necessarily intend to offend "honest and peace-loving" Muslims. However, he still refused to erase his opinions about Islam in his website and the sincerity of his apology was doubted..
Egyptian Christian intellectuals, in response, signed a statement in which they condemned and rejected what Falwell had said about Muhammad being a terrorist.
After the death of Falwell, Larry Flynt released a comment regarding his friendship over the years with Falwell.
"My mother always told me that no matter how much you dislike a person, when you meet them face to face you will find characteristics about them that you like. Jerry Falwell was a perfect example of that. I hated everything he stood for, but after meeting him in person, years after the trial, Jerry Falwell and I became good friends. He would visit me in California and we would debate together on college campuses. I always appreciated his sincerity even though I knew what he was selling and he knew what I was selling." – Larry Flynt
Based on this and other statements, Falwell has been identified as a Dispensationalist.
In 1999, Falwell declared the Antichrist would probably arrive within a decade and "Of course he'll be Jewish." After accusations of anti-Semitism Falwell apologized and explained that he was simply expressing the theological tenet that the Antichrist and Christ share many attributes.
On May 15, 2007, Falwell was found without pulse and unconscious in his office about 10:45 am after missing a morning appointment and was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital.
"I had breakfast with him, and he was fine at breakfast... He went to his office, I went to mine and they found him unresponsive" said Ron Godwin, the executive vice president of Falwell's Liberty University.
His condition was initially reported as "gravely serious"; CPR was administered unsuccessfully. As of 2:10 pm, during a live press conference, a doctor for the hospital confirmed that Falwell had died of "cardiac arrhythmia, or sudden cardiac death." A statement issued by the hospital reported he was pronounced dead at Lynchburg General Hospital at 12:40 pm, EST. Falwell's family, including his wife Macel and sons Jerry Falwell, Jr. and Jonathan Falwell, were at the hospital at the time of the pronouncement.
Falwell's funeral took place at 1:00 PM EDT on May 22, 2007 at Thomas Road Baptist Church after lying in repose at both the church and Liberty University. Falwell's burial service was private. It took place at a spot on the Liberty University campus near the Carter Glass Mansion, near his office. Buried nearby is B. R. Lakin.
After his death, his two sons succeeded him at his two posts; Jerry Falwell, Jr. took over as Chancellor of Liberty University while Jonathan Falwell became the Senior Pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church.
The last televised interview with Jerry Falwell was conducted by Christiane Amanpour for the CNN original series CNN Presents: God's Warriors. He had been interviewed on May 8, one week before his death. Falwell's last televised sermon was his May 13, 2007 message on Mother's Day.
He was described by atheist social commentator Christopher Hitchens in turns as a "Chaucerian fraud" and a "faith-based fraud", and "especially disgusting in exuding an almost sexless personality while railing from dawn to dusk about the sex lives of others." Hitchens took special umbrage at Falwell's outspoken philo-Semitism, his subsequent alignment with "the most thuggish and demented Israeli settlers", and his declaration that 9/11 represented God's judgement on America's sinful behaviour; deeming it "a shame that there is no hell for Falwell to go to, and [...] extraordinary that not even such a scandalous career is enough to shake our dumb addiction to the 'faith-based.'" Appearing on CNN a day after Falwell's death, Hitchens said, "The empty life of this ugly little charlatan proves only one thing: that you can get away with the most extraordinary offenses to morality and to truth in this country if you will just get yourself called 'reverend'." On C-SPAN, Hitchens made the comment that "If he had been given an enema, he could have been buried in a matchbox."
Falwell was an enemy of the notorious revenge humorist "George Hayduke", who called Falwell a "fund-grubbing electronic Bible-banger" and "pious pride-in-the-pulpit". In his book Screw Unto Others, Hayduke mentions the story of one Edward Johnson, who in the mid-1980s, programmed his Atari home computer to make thousands of repeat phone calls to Falwell's 1–800 phone number, since Johnson claimed Falwell had swindled large amounts of money from his followers, especially Johnson's own mother. Southern Bell forced Johnson to stop after he had run up Falwell's phone bill an estimated $500,000. At one point, crank callers, especially homosexual activists, made up about 25% of Falwell's total calls, until the ministry disconnected the toll-free number in 1986.
Category:1933 births Category:2007 deaths Category:20th-century Christian clergy Category:21st-century Christian clergy Category:American anti-communists Category:American evangelicals Category:American television evangelists Category:American university and college presidents Category:Anti-pornography activists Category:Baptist Bible College alumni Category:Baptist writers Category:Cardiovascular disease deaths in Virginia Category:Christian fundamentalists Category:Christian writers Category:Christian Zionists Category:Conservatism in the United States Category:Criticism of feminism Category:Criticism of Islam Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Liberty University Category:People from Lynchburg, Virginia Category:Southern Baptist ministers Category:University and college founders
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Austen lived her entire life as part of a close-knit family located on the lower fringes of the English gentry. She was educated primarily by her father and older brothers as well as through her own reading. The steadfast support of her family was critical to her development as a professional writer. Her artistic apprenticeship lasted from her teenage years until she was about 35 years old. During this period, she experimented with various literary forms, including the epistolary novel which she tried then abandoned, and wrote and extensively revised three major novels and began a fourth. From 1811 until 1816, with the release of Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1816), she achieved success as a published writer. She wrote two additional novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1818, and began a third, which was eventually titled Sanditon, but died before completing it.
Austen's works critique the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th-century realism. Her plots, though fundamentally comic, highlight the dependence of women on marriage to secure social standing and economic security. Her work brought her little personal fame and only a few positive reviews during her lifetime, but the publication in 1869 of her nephew's A Memoir of Jane Austen introduced her to a wider public, and by the 1940s she had become widely accepted in academia as a great English writer. The second half of the 20th century saw a proliferation of Austen scholarship and the emergence of a Janeite fan culture.
Biographical information concerning Jane Austen is "famously scarce", according to one biographer. Only some personal and family letters remain (by one estimate only 160 out of Austen's 3,000 letters are extant), and her sister Cassandra (to whom most of the letters were originally addressed) burned "the greater part" of the ones she kept and censored those she did not destroy. Other letters were destroyed by the heirs of Admiral Francis Austen, Jane's brother. Most of the biographical material produced for fifty years after Austen's death was written by her relatives and reflects the family's biases in favour of "good quiet Aunt Jane". Scholars have unearthed little information since. George was descended from a family of woollen manufacturers, which had risen through the professions to the lower ranks of the landed gentry. Cassandra was a member of the prominent Leigh family; they married on 26 April 1764 at Walcot Church in Bath. From 1765 until 1801, that is, for much of Jane's life, George Austen served as the rector of the Anglican parishes at Steventon, Hampshire and a nearby village. From 1773 until 1796, he supplemented this income by farming and by teaching three or four boys at a time who boarded at his home.
Austen's immediate family was large: six brothers —James (1765–1819), George (1766–1838), Edward (1767–1852), Henry Thomas (1771–1850), Francis William (Frank) (1774–1865), Charles John (1779–1852)—and one sister, Cassandra Elizabeth (Steventon, Hampshire, 9 January 1773–1845), who, like Jane, died unmarried. Cassandra Elizabeth was Austen's closest friend and confidante throughout her life. Of her brothers, Austen felt closest to Henry, who became a banker and, after his bank failed, an Anglican clergyman. Henry was also his sister's literary agent. His large circle of friends and acquaintances in London included bankers, merchants, publishers, painters, and actors: he provided Austen with a view of social worlds not normally visible from a small parish in rural Hampshire. George was sent to live with a local family at a young age because, as Austen biographer Le Faye describes it, he was "mentally abnormal and subject to fits". He may also have been deaf and mute.
Austen was born on 16 December 1775 at Steventon rectory and publicly christened on 5 April 1776. After a few months at home, her mother placed Austen with Elizabeth Littlewood, a woman living nearby, who nursed and raised Austen for a year or eighteen months. In 1783, according to family tradition, Jane and Cassandra were sent to Oxford to be educated by Mrs. Ann Cawley and they moved with her to Southampton later in the year. Both girls caught typhus and Jane nearly died. Austen was subsequently educated at home, until leaving for boarding school with her sister Cassandra early in 1785. The school curriculum probably included some French, spelling, needlework, dancing and music and, perhaps, drama. By December 1786, Jane and Cassandra had returned home because the Austens could not afford to send both of their daughters to school.
Austen acquired the remainder of her education by reading books, guided by her father and her brothers James and Henry. George Austen apparently gave his daughters unfettered access to his large and varied library, was tolerant of Austen's sometimes risqué experiments in writing, and provided both sisters with expensive paper and other materials for their writing and drawing. According to Park Honan, a biographer of Austen, life in the Austen home was lived in "an open, amused, easy intellectual atmosphere" where the ideas of those with whom the Austens might disagree politically or socially were considered and discussed. After returning from school in 1786, Austen "never again lived anywhere beyond the bounds of her immediate family environment".
Private theatricals were also a part of Austen's education. From when she was seven until she was thirteen, the family and close friends staged a series of plays, including Richard Sheridan's The Rivals (1775) and David Garrick's Bon Ton. While the details are unknown, Austen would certainly have joined in these activities, as a spectator at first and as a participant when she was older. Most of the plays were comedies, which suggests one way in which Austen's comedic and satirical gifts were cultivated.
Perhaps as early as 1787, Austen began to write poems, stories, and plays for her own and her family's amusement. Austen later compiled "fair copies" of 29 of these early works into three bound notebooks, now referred to as the Juvenilia, containing pieces originally written between 1787 and 1793. There is manuscript evidence that Austen continued to work on these pieces as late as the period 1809–11, and that her niece and nephew, Anna and James Edward Austen, made further additions as late as 1814. Among these works are a satirical novel in letters titled Love and Freindship [sic], in which she mocked popular novels of sensibility, and The History of England, a manuscript of 34 pages accompanied by 13 watercolour miniatures by her sister Cassandra.
Austen's History parodied popular historical writing, particularly Oliver Goldsmith's History of England (1764). Austen wrote, for example: "Henry the 4th ascended the throne of England much to his own satisfaction in the year 1399, after having prevailed on his cousin & predecessor Richard the 2nd, to resign it to him, & to retire for the rest of his Life to Pomfret Castle, where he happened to be murdered." Austen's Juvenilia are often, according to scholar Richard Jenkyns, "boisterous" and "anarchic"; he compares them to the work of 18th-century novelist Laurence Sterne and the 20th century comedy group Monty Python.
In 1793, Austen began and then abandoned a short play, later entitled Sir Charles Grandison or the happy Man, a comedy in 6 acts, which she returned to and completed around 1800. This was a short parody of various school textbook abridgments of Austen's favourite contemporary novel, The History of Sir Charles Grandison (1753), by Samuel Richardson. Honan speculates that at some point not long after writing Love and Freindship [sic] in 1789, Austen decided to "write for profit, to make stories her central effort", that is, to become a professional writer. Whenever she made that decision, beginning in about 1793, Austen began to write longer, more sophisticated works. It is unlike any of Austen's other works. Austen biographer Claire Tomalin describes the heroine of the novella as a sexual predator who uses her intelligence and charm to manipulate, betray, and abuse her victims, whether lovers, friends or family. Tomalin writes: "Told in letters, it is as neatly plotted as a play, and as cynical in tone as any of the most outrageous of the Restoration dramatists who may have provided some of her inspiration....It stands alone in Austen's work as a study of an adult woman whose intelligence and force of character are greater than those of anyone she encounters."
, Lord Chief Justice of Ireland, by W. H. Mote (1855); in old age, Lefroy admitted to a nephew that he had been in love with Jane Austen: "It was boyish love." ]] When Austen was twenty, Tom Lefroy, a nephew of neighbours, visited Steventon from December 1795 to January 1796. He had just finished a university degree and was moving to London to train as a barrister. Lefroy and Austen would have been introduced at a ball or other neighbourhood social gathering, and it is clear from Austen's letters to Cassandra that they spent considerable time together: "I am almost afraid to tell you how my Irish friend and I behaved. Imagine to yourself everything most profligate and shocking in the way of dancing and sitting down together." The Lefroy family intervened and sent him away at the end of January. Marriage was impractical, as both Lefroy and Austen must have known. Neither had any money, and he was dependent on a great-uncle in Ireland to finance his education and establish his legal career. If Tom Lefroy later visited Hampshire, he was carefully kept away from the Austens, and Jane Austen never saw him again.
Austen began work on a second novel, First Impressions, in 1796. She completed the initial draft in August 1797 when she was only 21 (it later became Pride and Prejudice); as with all of her novels, Austen read the work aloud to her family as she was working on it and it became an "established favourite". At this time, her father made the first attempt to publish one of her novels. In November 1797, George Austen wrote to Thomas Cadell, an established publisher in London, to ask if he would consider publishing "a Manuscript Novel, comprised in three Vols. about the length of Miss Burney's Evelina" (First Impressions) at the author's financial risk. Cadell quickly returned Mr. Austen's letter, marked "Declined by Return of Post". Austen may not have known of her father's efforts. Following the completion of First Impressions, Austen returned to Elinor and Marianne and from November 1797 until mid-1798, revised it heavily; she eliminated the epistolary format in favour of third-person narration and produced something close to Sense and Sensibility.
During the middle of 1798, after finishing revisions of Elinor and Marianne, Austen began writing a third novel with the working title Susan—later Northanger Abbey—a satire on the popular Gothic novel. Austen completed her work about a year later. In early 1803, Henry Austen offered Susan to Benjamin Crosby, a London publisher, who paid £10 for the copyright. Crosby promised early publication and went so far as to advertise the book publicly as being "in the press", but did nothing more. The manuscript remained in Crosby's hands, unpublished, until Austen repurchased the copyright from him in 1816.
In December 1802, Austen received her only proposal of marriage. She and her sister visited Alethea and Catherine Bigg, old friends who lived near Basingstoke. Their younger brother, Harris Bigg-Wither, had recently finished his education at Oxford and was also at home. Bigg-Wither proposed and Austen accepted. As described by Caroline Austen, Jane's niece, and Reginald Bigg-Wither, a descendant, Harris was not attractive—he was a large, plain-looking man who spoke little, stuttered when he did speak, was aggressive in conversation, and almost completely tactless. However, Austen had known him since both were young and the marriage offered many practical advantages to Austen and her family. He was the heir to extensive family estates located in the area where the sisters had grown up. With these resources, Austen could provide her parents a comfortable old age, give Cassandra a permanent home and, perhaps, assist her brothers in their careers. By the next morning, Austen realised she had made a mistake and withdrew her acceptance. No contemporary letters or diaries describe how Austen felt about this proposal. In 1814, Austen wrote a letter to her niece, Fanny Knight, who had asked for advice about a serious relationship, telling her that "having written so much on one side of the question, I shall now turn around & entreat you not to commit yourself farther, & not to think of accepting him unless you really do like him. Anything is to be preferred or endured rather than marrying without Affection".
In 1804, while living in Bath, Austen started but did not complete a new novel, The Watsons. The story centres on an invalid clergyman with little money and his four unmarried daughters. Sutherland describes the novel as "a study in the harsh economic realities of dependent women's lives". Honan suggests, and Tomalin agrees, that Austen chose to stop work on the novel after her father died on 21 January 1805 and her personal circumstances resembled those of her characters too closely for her comfort.
Rev. Austen's final illness had struck suddenly, leaving him, as Austen reported to her brother Francis, "quite insensible of his own state", and he died quickly. Jane, Cassandra, and their mother were left in a precarious financial situation. Edward, James, Henry, and Francis Austen pledged to make annual contributions to support their mother and sisters. For the next four years, the family's living arrangements reflected their financial insecurity. They lived part of the time in rented quarters in Bath and then, beginning in 1806, in Southampton, where they shared a house with Frank Austen and his new wife. A large part of this time they spent visiting various branches of the family.
On 5 April 1809, about three months before the family's move to Chawton, Austen wrote an angry letter to Richard Crosby, offering him a new manuscript of Susan if that was needed to secure immediate publication of the novel, and otherwise requesting the return of the original so she could find another publisher. Crosby replied he had not agreed to publish the book by any particular time, or at all, and that Austen could repurchase the manuscript for the £10 he had paid her and find another publisher. However, Austen did not have the resources to repurchase the book.
Austen learned that the Prince Regent admired her novels and kept a set at each of his residences. In November 1815, the Prince Regent's librarian invited Austen to visit the Prince's London residence and hinted Austen should dedicate the forthcoming Emma to the Prince. Though Austen disliked the Prince, she could scarcely refuse the request. She later wrote Plan of a Novel, according to hints from various quarters, a satiric outline of the "perfect novel" based on the librarian's many suggestions for a future Austen novel.
In mid-1815, Austen moved her work from Egerton to John Murray, a better known London publisher, who published Emma in December 1815 and a second edition of Mansfield Park in February 1816. Emma sold well but the new edition of Mansfield Park did not, and this failure offset most of the profits Austen earned on Emma. These were the last of Austen's novels to be published during her lifetime.
While Murray prepared Emma for publication, Austen began to write a new novel she titled The Elliots, later published as Persuasion. She completed her first draft in July 1816. In addition, shortly after the publication of Emma, Henry Austen repurchased the copyright for Susan from Crosby. Austen was forced to postpone publishing either of these completed novels by family financial troubles. Henry Austen's bank failed in March 1816, depriving him of all of his assets, leaving him deeply in debt and losing Edward, James, and Frank Austen large sums. Henry and Frank could no longer afford the contributions they had made to support their mother and sisters.
Austen continued to work in spite of her illness. She became dissatisfied with the ending of The Elliots and rewrote the final two chapters, finishing them on 6 August 1816. In January 1817, Austen began work on a new novel she called The Brothers, later titled Sanditon upon its first publication in 1925, and completed twelve chapters before stopping work in mid-March 1817, probably because her illness prevented her from continuing. Austen made light of her condition to others, describing it as "Bile" and rheumatism, but as her disease progressed she experienced increasing difficulty walking or finding the energy for other activities. By mid-April, Austen was confined to her bed. In May, their brother Henry escorted Jane and Cassandra to Winchester for medical treatment. Austen died in Winchester on 18 July 1817, at the age of 41. Through his clerical connections, Henry arranged for his sister to be buried in the north aisle of the nave of Winchester Cathedral. The epitaph composed by her brother James praises Austen's personal qualities, expresses hope for her salvation, mentions the "extraordinary endowments of her mind", but does not explicitly mention her achievements as a writer.
edition. Caption reads: "She then told him [Mr Bennett] what Mr Darcy had voluntarily done for Lydia. He heard her with astonishment."]] Austen had many admiring readers in the 19th century who considered themselves part of a literary elite: they viewed their appreciation of Austen's works as a mark of their cultural taste. Philosopher and literary critic George Henry Lewes expressed this viewpoint in a series of enthusiastic articles published in the 1840s and 1850s. This theme continued later in the century with novelist Henry James, who referred to Austen several times with approval and on one occasion ranked her with Shakespeare, Cervantes, and Henry Fielding as among "the fine painters of life".
The publication of James Edward Austen-Leigh's A Memoir of Jane Austen in 1869 introduced Austen to a wider public as "dear aunt Jane", the respectable maiden aunt. Publication of the Memoir spurred the reissue of Austen's novels—the first popular editions were released in 1883 and fancy illustrated editions and collectors' sets quickly followed. Author and critic Leslie Stephen described the popular mania that started to develop for Austen in the 1880s as "Austenolatry". Around the turn of the century, members of the literary elite reacted against the popularization of Austen. They referred to themselves as Janeites in order to distinguish themselves from the masses who did not properly understand her works. For example, James responded negatively to what he described as "a beguiled infatuation" with Austen, a rising tide of public interest that exceeded Austen's "intrinsic merit and interest".
During the last quarter of the 19th century, the first books of criticism on Austen were published. In fact, after the publication of the Memoir, more criticism was published on Austen in two years than had appeared in the previous fifty.
Sequels, prequels, and adaptations of almost every sort have been based on the novels of Jane Austen, from soft-core pornography to fantasy. Beginning in the middle of the 19th century, Austen family members published conclusions to her incomplete novels, and by 2000 there were over 100 printed adaptations. The first film adaptation was the 1940 MGM production of Pride and Prejudice starring Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson. BBC television dramatisations, which were first produced in the 1970s, attempted to adhere meticulously to Austen's plots, characterisations, and settings. In 1995 a great wave of Austen adaptations began to appear, with Ang Lee's film of Sense and Sensibility, for which screenwriter and star Emma Thompson won an Academy Award, and the BBC's immensely popular TV mini-series Pride and Prejudice, starring Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth.
Books and scripts that use the general storyline of Austen's novels but change or otherwise modernise the story also became popular at the end of the 20th century. For example, Clueless (1995), Amy Heckerling's updated version of Emma, which takes place in Beverly Hills, became a cultural phenomenon and spawned its own television series. In a 2002 vote to determine whom the UK public considers the greatest British people in history, Austen was ranked number 70 in the list of the "100 Greatest Britons". In 2003, Austen's Pride and Prejudice came second in the BBC's Big Read, a national poll to find the "Nation's best-loved book."
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