Jane Austen was a prominent English novelist known for her observations of love, marriage, and social expectations in everyday life. Her works often center on intelligent women navigating rigid social structures, offering sharp critiques of class and societal norms. Despite being deeply rooted in the customs of her time, Austen’s novels remain relevant today due to their timeless themes, compelling characters, and skillful use of romance, irony, and humor.
Austen had a rare talent for exploring moral dilemmas through the everyday experiences of ordinary people, revealing her profound understanding of human nature. Through characters like Elizabeth Bennet in Pride and Prejudice and Anne Elliot in Persuasion, she challenged conventional ideas about status, gender, and personal agency, demonstrating that true worth lies beyond wealth or social rank.
Austen had a talent for noticing and portraying the smallest aspects of everyday life, molding them into insightful critiques of social constraints. This parallels Jennifer Doudna’s aptitude for scientific observation. Her understanding of molecular biology allowed her to explore the mechanism of the bacterial immune system, eventually leading to her breakthrough in gene editing technology. Both Austen and Doudna are incredibly skilled at taking their understanding of existing systems, whether that is social or biological, and developing something new and groundbreaking out of it. They both pushed the boundaries of what was accepted and were able to create something unique.
Another obvious connection between the two women is their engagement with ethical dilemmas. Austen’s novels explore many different moral themes, including the agency of women, the impact of social class, and the power of love. She challenges things that are socially accepted, encouraging people to think for themselves and consider the implications of rigid constructs. Similarly, Doudna wrestles with the moral dilemmas revolving around CRISPR technology, considering the line between treatment and enhancement and the alteration of human embryos. Both women use their fields to consider deep ethical questions, which also encourages their audiences to do the same.
Links:
- https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d9bc45_72d8098791fa45bca6c1ed389e9d2016~mv2.jpg/v1/fill/w_980,h_981,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/d9bc45_72d8098791fa45bca6c1ed389e9d2016~mv2.jpg
- https://daily.jstor.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/jane_austen_engraving_1050x700.jpg
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jane-Austen
I really liked how many parallels you were able to find between Austen and Doudna. Both women's attention to detail and ground-breaking advancements in their respective fields are inspiring to read about. I especially liked how both women tackled ethical dilemmas that arose in their work. I think female creatives are especially attuned to moral dilemmas and contradictions and it was compelling to read about how both women tackled these issues head on.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog post, especially your point about Austen using aspects of everyday life to illustrate her points and flesh out her characters. It reminds me of Hayao Miyazaki's embrace of everyday life as a source of inspiration, which I think is a beautiful idea.
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