奥斯丁，1775年12月16日生于斯蒂文顿乡一教区牧师家庭。受到较好的家庭教育，主要教材就是父亲的文学藏书。奥斯丁一家爱读流行小说，多半是庸俗的消遣品。她少女时期的习作就是对这类流行小说的滑稽模仿，这样就形成了她作品中嘲讽的基调。她的六部小说《理智与感伤》(1811)《傲慢与偏见》(1813)《曼斯斐尔德花园》(1814)《爱玛》(1815)以及作者逝世以后出版的《诺桑觉修道院》(1818)和《劝导》(1818)，大半以乡镇上的中产阶级日常生活为题材，通过爱情婚姻等方面的矛盾冲突反映了18世纪末、19世纪初英国社会的风貌。作品中往往通过喜剧性的场面嘲讽人们的愚蠢、自私、势利和盲目自信等可鄙可笑的弱点。奥斯丁的小说出现在19世纪初叶，一扫风行一时的假浪漫主义潮流，继承和发展了英国18世纪优秀的现实主义传统，为19世纪现实主义小说的高潮做了准备，起到了承上启下的重要作用。

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In one of Jane Austen's most morally complex and richly drawn novels, she paints a fascinating portrait of an upper-class family and the cousin who comes to live with them. Fanny Price, the timid and poor relative of the wealthy Bertrams, finds comfort only in her gentle cousin, Edmund, with whom she gradually falls in love. But the departure of the father on business, and the arrival of the worldly Henry Crawford and his sister Mary, irrevocably change the family’s fortunes. A penetrating account both of individual motives and social mores, Mansfield Park remains as fresh today as when it was written. The world's greatest works of literature are now available in these beautiful keepsake volumes. Bound in real cloth, and featuring gilt edges and ribbon markers, these beautifully produced books are a wonderful way to build a handsome library of classic literature. These are the essential novels that belong in every home. They'll transport readers to imaginary worlds and provide excitement, entertainment, and enlightenment for years to come. All of these novels feature attractive illustrations and have an unequalled period feel that will grace the library, the bedside table or bureau.