Of course, I hadn't thought of that (I've just relied on my JSTOR account and books till now-it's amazing how much knowledge is available for free.)

Lydia, Kitty and especially Mrs.Bennett have been characters I've always felt compassionate about precisely due to the lack of education afforded them. I know that the common tendency, especially when young, is to deride them, but really, given the

the strait jacket of the society they live in, their efforts to mold and shape their own lives to reflect their desires is admirable. Considering the fact that Austen hints at a Happy End for the scheming Mrs. Clay in 'Persuasion', it seems like she might have been on the side of her 'silly female antagonists' as well.

I've heard about the fact that Godwin's efforts to protect Wollstonecraft backfired spectacularly, it's a real shame.How would a more favourable reception have impacted Austen's own writing? It would be fascinating at least to finally know whether or not she read Mary Shelley

Maybe there is no better off in the long run-it's like we are moving in circles, progress or not.I suppose the next hot topic regarding feminism will be gender bias in AI and how technology can help stem gender discrimination. Though we'd have to tackle the religious and cultural mindset that encourages the trad wife model to get anywhere which seems like a long way in the making.

But weren't female authors of that time period constrained by their public images? Considering all the whitewashing Austen's family attempted after her death to 'protect her legacy'? I'm no fan of overtly glamourizing authors against their will, I think writers like Cormac McCarthy and Elena Ferrante had/have the right of it. But really, posing nude for a scholarly work? I hope that's a joke.

Apologies in advance, I feel like my answers are getting progressively longer-it's just nice to engage more deeply when it comes to issues of literature and social politics.