Sense and Sensibility

Sense and Sensibility is a novel by Jane Austen published in 1811. It was published anonymously; By A Lady appears on the title page where the authors name might have been. It tells the story of the Dashwood sisters Elinor (age 19) and Marianne (age 16 1/2) as they come of age. They have an older half-brother John and a younger sister Margaret 13. The novel follows the three Dashwood sisters as they must move with their widowed mother from the estate on which they grew up Norland Park. Because Norland is passed down to John the product of Mr. Dashwoods first marriage and his young son the four Dashwood women need to look for a new home. They have the opportunity to rent a modest home Barton Cottage on the property of a distant relative Sir John Middleton. There they experience love romance and heartbreak. The novel is likely set in southwest England London and Sussex between 1792 and 1797. The novel which sold out its first print run of 750 copies in the middle of 1813 marked a success for its author. It had a second print run later that year. It was the first Austen title to be republished in England after her death and the first illustrated Austen produced in Britain in Richard Bentleys Standard Novels series of 1833. The novel continued in publication throughout the 19th 20th and early 21st centuries and has many times been illustrated excerpted abridged and adapted for stage and film.