Even after two centuries, Jane Austen is a literary model, especially for female writers. Her books have never gone out of fashion, with Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility’s timeless tales of courtship and troubled romances still remain relevant to 21st-century teenager readers. As the 200th anniversary of her death approaches, Trinity Literary Society did not miss the chance to celebrate her genius once more, by gathering last night, in the University Philosophical Society’s (the Phil) Conversation Room for its latest event, Lost in Austen. Wine, chocolate and witty games all contributed to create a friendly and intimate environment.
As guests began to arrive, the committee greeted them, by handing around letters from Jane Austen’s private correspondence to her sister, Cassandra. Interestingly enough, in one letter, Austen recounts her hangover the day after a high society party. More than just giving a lecture on her novels and her witty characters, Trinity Literary Society presented Austen’s inner self, by showing how modern she had been in her thirst for social events and in her desire for enjoying life.
Featuring over fifteen players, “Cards Against the Regency” was the event’s first game. Committee members and guests alike promptly sat in circle matching Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion’s quotes with 21st-century jokes to create absurdly amusing lines. Among the funniest hybrids, Emma came to learn what a vibrator is and Mr Darcy found leeches in his bedroom. This modern approach to old-fashioned literature succeeded in making the players break out in laughter several times.
Next, Lost in Austen’s attendants were invited to join another match-cards game. Again, lines hinting at Jane Austen’s main literary themes were distributed. This time though, players had to act like 19th-century gentlemen and ladies, courting each other without being vulgar or too straight. Indeed, although Darcy or John Willoughby certainly could not write ambiguous Facebook statuses or tweets, they were already masters in sending subtle messages to the naïve young girls they liked. Unsurprisingly enough, misunderstandings ran high among the players. In this context, however, not even a tear was shed and all meant-to-be couples received their fictional happy ending.
A thematic “Guess Who” roundabout was Lost in Austen’s last game. Players struggled to find the perfect words to describe Lizzie Bennet’s sassiness, John Willoughby’s ambiguity, Emma Woodhouse’s manipulating nature, Mr Fitzwilliam Darcy’s charisma, Elinor Dashwood’s rationality and her sister Marianne’s overt sensibility. All those characters were brought back to life, through the committee’s hints and guests’ acute questions. Once they had all been guessed, nobody in the room could argue they were just boring stereotypes. Trinity Literary Society had given them literary uniqueness, by emphasizing their emotional peculiarities.
While playing card games, a mixed playlist was being played in the background. Songs ranged from 19th century party ballads to the 2013 pop soundtrack of Jerusha Hess’s film Austenland. Austen’s eternal appeal was the event’s leading theme in the choice of music as well. One moment, guests frenziedly danced out like they were in a disco. The minute after, they listened to a romantic waltz, picturing in their heads an old-fashioned wedding being celebrated in the room.
Austen’s genius is undeniable, extremely witty and always timeless. She was a self-made woman in a male dominated world. Unmarried, educated and talented, she was a proto-feminist in virtue of her brilliant literary works. 21st-century readers should imitate her willpower and professional determination, because her life, though adorably vintage, it is still far from being anachronistic.
