En esta novela se reúnen los tres cuadernos que Jane Austen escribió a muy temprana edad (13-14 años), y que ella misma llamó «volúmenes» y numeró colectivamente del I al III. Hay textos que no corrigió nunca, pero otros son piezas muy evolucionadas que la autora revisó justo antes de la publicación de «Juicio y sentimiento». En los textos prevalece un humor más desatado en inventiva de lo que será normal en la autora, pero muy parecida al resto de su obra en los aspectos irónicos e incisivos.

Beware of fainting-fits… Though at the time they may be refreshing and agreable yet beleive me they will in the end, if too often repeated and at improper seasons, prove destructive to your Constitution.

This very early work of Austen anticipates her mature works, including the epistolary Lady Susan, Northanger Abbey’s satirization of the gothic novels popular in Austen’s youth, and Sense and Sensibility’s Marianne. Austen apparently was a literary critic from an early age (but not, apparently, a good speller). ( )

Del 1800 ( )

"When I had reached my eighteenth Year I was recalled by my Parents to my paternal roof in Wales. Our mansion was situated in one of the most romantic parts of the Vale of Uske. Tho' my Charms are now considerably softened and somewhat impaired by the Misfortunes I have undergone, I was once beautiful. But lovely as I was the Graces of my Person were the least of my Perfections. Of every accomplishment accustomary to my sex, I was Mistress. When in the Convent, my progress had always exceeded my instructions, my Acquirements had been wonderfull for my age, and I had shortly surpassed my Masters.
In my Mind, every Virtue that could adorn it was centered; it was the Rendez-vous of every good Quality and of every noble sentiment."

This short story was recommended to me by an LT friend the other day when I was wanting some comfort reading. It is evidently the work of an immature writer, if anything because of the complete absurdity of the story, but this is hardly a criticism because of the sheer energy and the obvious joy the writer had in telling of it. Narrated in epistolary form, a young girl marries the first young man she sees merely minutes after first meeting him (with her own father officiating the ceremony), then takes to the road with her new husband, whom she is separated from shortly after (he eventually perishes amidst a pool of blood when a carriage topples over). She and a new friend travel together in search of lodgings, though making it clear that food and drink are far from being their first concern, for they are kept alive because of their intense sensitivity, romanticism and lust for life. They encourage young girls to disobey their fathers and marry unsuitable men, faint at the first provocation; alternately, or while one runs around in a deliberate state of frenzy, and are incensed that anyone could accuse them of bad behaviour when they are caught stealing. A real riot, and not a little surprising coming from the daughter of a clergyman.

As my aforementioned friend commented to me: "Austen was mocking the kind of over-the-top sentimental novel that was popular at the end of the 18th century. L&F is funny enough in its own right, but if you've read any of those novels, it's completely hysterical." I haven't read any of those novels she mentions, but I was giggling and laughing throughout, and tried very hard to imagine what portions of the story were responses to things the young Jane might have read about. I'll definitely want to revisit it again for more comforting eventually. ( )

(The last word in the title should be "Freindship" actually.) The story takes all sorts of crazy turns, as if the young author's restlessness and intoxication with invention were showing through. It was certainly fun to experience how fearlessly she would dispatch characters left and right as if on a whim. If her writing career didn't progress any further than this nobody would give a second thought to this bit of fluff, but it serves as a useful starting place to see the development of Austen's style and themes. ( )