The Jane Austen Centre ~ 18 July 2007

Visiting the Jane Austen Centre was a lifetime landmark for me and so much more than just an academic experience. The Centre is located in a house in Bath that is similar in style to the home in which Jane Austen and her family lived while in Bath from 1801 to 1806. The Centre's exhibitions focus on Jane Austen's life and works as well as historical information about Bath during the Georgian and Regency periods. Some of the Jane Austen Centre's features include: Regency tea rooms; a gift shop of Austen-related gifts and books; an annual Jane Austen Festival; and walking tours of Jane Austen's Bath. The Centre also produces a magazine entitled Jane Austen's Regency World.

We were welcomed into the Centre by a gentleman dressed in Regency clothing, and we were immediately transported back to the end of the 18th century. Our visit began with an introductory talk about Jane Austen's history, her family and her career, with a special emphasis on her time spent in Bath. The guide was very informative and gave me a deeper glimpse into Jane Austen's life than I had received from any other biographical source. I learned more about her personality and her relationships-- to see her as more than just a writer, she was a kind and clever young woman, beloved to many. An interesting fact I learned is that when she was originally published, she did not use her real name. Instead, her books were ambiguously authored "by a lady."

There was a temporary exhibition called The Costumes of ITV's Persuasion. It displayed costumes from the recent film productions of Persuasion and Mansfield Park. And, there was an accompanying short film on how the costume designer was inspired to produce the costumes, based on the historical context. In the permanent exhibition, some examples include: a few portraits of Jane Austen (all based on the original in the National Portrait Gallery); Regency artifacts, circa 1800-1820; a sample of a letter Jane wrote to her sister, Cassandra; a representation of a Georgian garden; information on social life in Bath during Jane Austen's time period; and the influence of the Navy in her works. The artifacts and displays worked together to paint a picture of what life was like for Jane Austen while she lived in Bath, what inspired her and what was important to her, and how her experiences influenced her writing. I appreciated the design of the exhibit; it was small, pleasant and well-organized, with music from the time period in the background. The only aspect that I did not like as much was the abundance of pictures from the movie representations of her novels. I wanted to stay immersed in the year 1800, but those pictures distracted me and brought me back to the present day. I would rather have focused more on her books than on the movies that attempt to portray what she expressed so well in words.

The Jane Austen Centre seems to be a fairly small organization with a small staff (for example, our tour guide was also working in the gift shop). However, it is operated very efficiently, run by competent, knowledgeable staff members. And, it seems to have quite a far reach, as its Jane Austen Festival in September is an internationally popular event, and fans from all over the world make pilgrimages there year-round (myself included).