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
Episode 270: Its Complicated - the Highs and Lows of Relationships in Speculative Fiction
Episode 269: Making Friends and Influencing People - The Heroine's Journey in Speculative Fiction
Episode 268: He Growled, She Ejaculated - Reader Peeves and How to Avoid Them
Episode 267: The Beast Within - Exploring Characters with Darker Sides
Episode 266: That's Not Equality - When Sexism Dresses as Feminism in Speculative Fiction Part 2
Episode 265: That's Not Equality - When Sexism Dresses Up as Feminism in Speculative Fiction: Part 1
Episode 264 Challenging the System - How Magic Helps Us Deconstruct History, Politics and Social Issues
Episode 263: The Blade Itself - the Genesis of the Sword in History, Mythology and Speculative Fiction
Episode 262: Of Liking and Loathing - How to Hook Readers on your Characters
Episode 261: Reading the Classics - Hidden Meaning and Censorship in Stoker, Bronte and Shelley
Episode 260: Links and Linguistics - Why Word Choice Matters in Writing
Episode 259: Taking a Toxicity Reading - Criticism and Compromise in Speculative Fiction
Episode 258: Frills and Flirtations - What Clothing brings to Speculative Fiction
Episode 257: Peacekeepers to Punishers - The Police Force in Speculative Fiction
Episode 256: Assembling the Skeleton - Showing, Telling and Cutting Out Scenes in Speculative Fiction
Episode 255: The Trials and Triumphs of 2020
Episode 254: Blood on the Snow - The Darker Christmas Stories
Episode 253: The Good Neighbours - Festive Faeries and Winter Elves
Episode 252: Why is There Never a Happy Ending? - and Other Questions Writers Get Asked
Episode 251 To Queer or not to Queer - Including LGBTQ+ Characters in Speculative Fiction
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