The dragons are not adverse to breaking their own rules on occasion. Particularly when it involves looking at the craft of a master writer like Jane Austen. Known as one of the world's favourite writers, whose books have hardly ever been out of print for the last 200yrs, all of which have spawned numerous adaptations, re-imaginings, spin-offs (both modern and contemporary set to the author's own time), and which inspired an entirely new genre. But there is more to Austen's work than light, amusing, regency romance dealing with morals, money, manners and marriage. All of her books are deeply political and subversive, something not immediately apparent to the modern reader. It's a testament to Austen's ability to write on multiple levels that these deeper themes shine through and capture readers, even when they only partly understand why, removed from historical context as they are. This week Jules and Madeleine take a look at what lies beneath the romance. Fair warning but this is a bumper episode at 1hr 40mins!
Title Music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Ep 395: Weirdstones and Magic Keys - What makes a Children’s book a classic?
Ep 394: Divas Debutantes and Girls next door - the best and worst female main characters
Episode 393: Unlikely Rebels - the Moral Outlaw Trope
Episode 392: An Awful Lot of Walking - Mastering Pacing in Speculative Fiction
Episode 391: Lost in the Woods - Tracing the Origins of Hansel and Gretel
Episode 390: Let the Games Begin - Why the Competition Trope is so Popular in Speculative Fiction
Episode 389: Beautiful Misery - The Hunger for the Afflicted Woman in Fiction
Episode 388: A Conflagration of Authors - AI, Audiobooks and Infringement
Episode 387: Complicated Runes and Ineffable Power - Hard Versus Soft Magic Systems in Speculative Fiction
Episode 386: The Art of Not Fitting In - A collection of Not Like the Other Girls Trope Observations
Episode 385: Both is Good - Examining Bisexual Representation in Speculative Fiction
Episode 384: Appearances Can be Deceiving - The Hidden Power of Modern Fairytales
Episode 383: Gaslit Magic and Immortal Monsters Hunters - Incorporating Strong Historical Elements in UF
Episode 382: Part of Your World - Tracing the Origins of The Little Mermaid
Episode 381: Hard Times in Magic & Logic - Examining the Parameters of Hard Scifi and fantasy
Episode 380: Will He Escape those Dastardedly Clutches - Why Cliffhangers Are a Bad Idea
Episode 379: Exuding Menace 101 - How to Create Menacing Villains
Ep 378: Separated by a Common Language - Examining the Differences between UK and US Urban Fantasy
Episode 377: Bringing in Dessert - Serving Up Delicious Endings Against Desperate Odds
Episode 376: In that Time In that Place - the Monomyth and Other Storytelling Modes
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