By Garland Rieman
Starting up this summer, the Jane Austen Summer Program will offer another way to immerse local readers in the culture of Regency England: a free “Jane Austen & Co.” discussion series in partnership with Durham public libraries. The first event — titled “Austen & Co.: Games and Play in Austen’s England” — is July 15 at 6:30 p.m. at the South Regional Library, 4505 S. Alston Ave., Durham. It will include a short talk on Regency parlor games using archival materials and references to Austen’s books. Future events will focus on different texts and introduce readers to lesser-known works by Austen as well as those by other women who were writing at the time (such as Ann Radcliffe and Maria Edgeworth). The programs, held at various area libraries, will feature a discussion, followed by engagement with archival materials from the time period.
“We are really excited to start offering new programming beyond our summer symposium,” says Anne Fertig, a graduate teaching fellow at the UNC Department of English and Comparative Literature who will lead the July 15 program. “Jane Austen & Co. will increase access and engagement with important female authors and history. Hopefully through our public outreach, we can create new fans of Jane Austen and her contemporaries.”
Find more information about the program here.
תגובות