If Jane Austen Blogged A-Z (and a GIVEAWAY)

I "borrowed" this idea from the extremely talented S. L. Hennessy over at Pensuasion. She is one of the incredible bloggers hosting the A-Z Challenge this year and to provide participants with some inspiration, she has written two Characters Who Blog posts that are just so great: Ingo Blogtoya and Blog-ementary, My Dear Watson. I am eyeball-deep in my Master's of Arts thesis right (I actually just typed "write" there initially) which is a detailed look at Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. I think, speak, dream, and I would guess even bleed Jane Austen at this point so when I saw S. L.'s posts I couldn't help but consider how Jane Austen might blog A-Z. So, I am taking a break from thesising to write this post!

I'm only going to include first or last names of characters in Austen's six complete novels with a few added "extras" here and there. At the end, I'll leave a couple of fun questions for you to try and answer in relation to those "extras." As you read through, see how many characters you can place in their proper novels (Hint: The characters within each letter are listed in order of the publication date of the novels they appear in - but sometimes there is more than one character from each novel.)

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Original image: Holly Hayes

It will be a truth soon universally acknowledged that a reader in search of a fascinating blog need go no further than Little Bits of Ivory. After all, it's been over two hundred years since my first publication and I am more famous today than I was then! This new-fangled A-Z Challenge is rather intriguing so I cannot help but participate.

A - Anne
B - Brandon, Bingley, Bennet, Bertram
C - Cassandra, Collins, Charlotte, Crawford, Catherine
D - Dashwood, Darcy, de Bourgh
E - Elinor, Edward, Elizabeth, Elton, Edmund, Emma
F - Fitzwilliam, Ferrars, Fanny, Frederick
G - Georgiana, George
H - Henry, Harriet
I - Isabella
J - Jane
K - Kitty, Knightly
L - Longbourn, Lydia, Lucas
M - Marianne, Mary, Maria, Morland, Musgrove
N - Netherfield
O - officers
P - Pemberley, Price
Q - Quirk Books
R - Regency
S - Smith
T - Tilney
U - Udolpho, Mysteries of
V - Val McDermid
W - Willoughby, Wickham, Woodhouse, Wentworth
X - Xerxes
Y - "Yes" by McAlmont and Butler
Z - zombies, Zellweger (Renee)

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So, how did you do? Could you associate all of the characters with their novels?

Here's a little "extras" quiz:
1. Which novel has the most character names listed A-Z?
2. Which name is NOT one of Austen's character's? (Hint: The name is actually her sister's)
3. Place names are listed from only one novel. Which novel?
4. O, Q, R, U, V, X, Y, and Z have their own special significance. Any guesses?

If I get at least five participants via the comments in my little quiz by April 30th, 2015, I'll send a Jane Austen swag bag (includes: a copy of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Emma, and Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict - so far!) to the person who gets the most answers correct!

A-Z Challenge: E is for Emma

Day 5 of A-Z means we are just shy of being 1/5 of the way done. Yesterday I wrote about Downton Abbey, connecting it to my "All Things Grad School" Theme by showing you wonderful readers how the television series is similar to Jane Austen's (that's who I will be doing my grad school Master's thesis on) novel, Pride and Prejudice. It was a little bit of a stretch, but watching all three seasons of Downton Abbey got me even more excited to start my Master's so I figure it's completely relevant to my theme.

Today I'm going to discuss something a little more directly related to my upcoming studies. Austen's novel, Emma, was originally published in 1815 making it her fourth published novel. The most recent television adaptation was produced and aired by the BBC in 2009. The version that most people are likely aware of is the 1996 film starring Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma.

I don't want this post to get too extensive so I'll just say that Emma, like all of Austen's novels tells the story of a strong female character, in this case Emma Woodhouse. In brief, the novel showcases Emma's meddling as a matchmaker for her friends and has her inevitably fall in love with a man who has been a close friend of hers for the extent of her life, Mr. Knightly.

If I was ranking Emma among Austen's novels, I'd have to say place it in third, after top ranked Northanger Abbey and second place Sense and Sensibility, and followed by Pride and; Prejudice, Persuasion, and then Mansfield Park. If I was ranking Emma Woodhouse among Austen's leading female characters, I'd place her in second, after my (and most people's) favourite, Elizabeth Bennet.

People who read Emma tend to either love or hate the novel's title character. Have you read Emma? Did you love or hate Emma Woodhouse?