In Becoming Jane, Anne Hathaway’s Jane Austen visits Ann Radcliffe, author of The Mysteries of Udolpho, a popular novel of the time. While this visit is likely fiction, I can’t help but wonder what such a conversation might have covered. Although reading was an admirable pastime, fiction that could be considered romance—fictional escapes not based on historic figures—was frowned upon by many. ‘Romance’ described stories read purely for entertainment rather than the betterment of the mind. Shocking! Topping the list was the Gothic, unlikely to be displayed on your drawing room shelves. Hmmm. Nowadays, romance is the largest portion of the fiction market, yet still gets the ‘cut’ from serious literary readers!
Gothics
depended on wildly exaggerated tales of danger, and helpless women dependent on
brutish men. They included the supernatural and degrees of violence. I’m sure Jane
Austen read at least one of these tales, and had an opinion on Miss Radcliffe.
Was it admiration for her craft, or admiration for her timing and boldness to
write such fiction? After all, writers were often looked down upon, and a woman
writing for income? Not to be borne!
