Sense and Sensibility

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. When and where did Jane Austen live? Why are her works important to the history of literature? What kinds of topics did she write about?

Teaching Suggestion: Students may be able to roughly place Austen in time, and most will know that she is an English author, but they may be hazy on the specifics of her life and literary importance. This question and the resources below are intended to lead them to a more specific understanding of what is important about Austen’s novels in both their own historical context and in ours.

• This biography of Austen is offered by JaneAusten.org, a site dedicated to the author and her works.
• This article from Stanford University features literary scholars discussing the significance of Austen’s work.
• This site, hosted by the nonprofit Jane Austen’s House, offers an overview of important characteristics of Austen’s work.
• This article from the BBC explains why Austen has lasting appeal.

2. Create a T-chart. On the left side, list points of similarity between Jane Austen’s era—Regency England—and our own time and place. On the right side, list ways in which Regency England differed from our time and place.

Teaching Suggestion: If students are unfamiliar with Regency England, you might share information from the resources listed below or similar sources before they complete their charts. If they have some familiarity, consider asking them to complete their charts first and then revise their work using the listed resources.

• This 7-minute video offers an overview of Regency culture.
• This chart explains social classes in Regency England.
• This glossary features Regency-era terms.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

For you, personally, what would be the positive and negative aspects of life in Regency England? How would gender and social class make a difference in your experience?

Teaching Suggestion: The intention of this question is to connect students’ own experiences to those of the characters in Sense and Sensibility so that the characters feel more familiar and relatable. Students may focus on responding to this question entirely based on their own social class and gender, but encourage them to answer more broadly; for example, they might develop their answers with thoughts about how they would feel about Regency England if they found themselves living in it under a variety of circumstances.