Join us Ocober 24 for a special event with Elizabeth Steele. She will be sharing her expertise with us in her presentation titled, Re-reading Jane Austen. “One doesn’t read Jane Austen; one re-reads Jane Austen,” said William F. Buckley, Jr. How do you re-read Jane Austen? Do you read all six novels each year in no particular order? Or do you read them as they were published? Do you have a plan at all? Elizabeth Steele will suggest that you re-read an Austen novel with a particular plan in mind to better appreciate her satire, her wit, her characters, and plot construction. Take your time to savor Austen’s work. After all, there is no enjoyment like re-reading.
Elizabeth Steele has been reading anything by or about Jane Austen since the tender age of 16. She has been the “Voice of JASNA,” acting as JASNA’s 800 number operator, and has been a featured speaker at local colleges, libraries and museums, most notably at Winterthur Museum’s Jane Austen Day. She has published two articles in Persuasions, a journal dedicated to the study of Jane Austen. She served on the JASNA board of directors from 2006 to 2016 and has also held a number of offices for both the local and national organizations since 2004. Elizabeth is most proud of her role as Annual General Meeting Coordinator for the 2009 Philadelphia AGM, which played host to over 600 Janeites from all over the world.