Books and sequels with Brontë content:
Shapely Ankle Preferr'd: A History of the Lonely Hearts Ad 1695 - 2010
by Fran Beauman
Chatto & Windus
ISBN: 0701181702
Publication date: 03/02/2011
What do women look for in a man? And what do men look for in a woman? And how and why has this changed over the centuries?
Every week thousands of people advertise for love either in newspapers, magazines or online. But if you think this is a modern phenomenon, think again – the ads have been running for over three hundred years. In 1695, a popular London pamphlet published the brave plea of a young gentleman who ‘would willingly Match himself to some Good Young Gentlewoman, that has a Fortune of £3000 or thereabouts’.
This was just the beginning. In the 1730s, papers carried regular ads in which income or respectability were the most desired qualities, though some asked for a ‘shapely ankle’ or a ‘non-dancer'. By 1900 twenty-five British newspapers were dedicated solely to matrimonial ads. Shapely Ankle Preferr’d tells the story of ads of all kinds – from aristocrats and MPs, bus conductors and nurses, country squires and city swells, and even from a man who had lost a leg ‘due to the kick of an Ostrich, in the East Indies’. The reasons are strangely familiar: the size of the city makes it hard to meet people; they're busy at work; they’ve just returned from abroad. Loneliness is not new.
The surprising views of Lord Byron, Charlotte Brontë and George Orwell are revealed, and every ad is a snapshot of its age, from the criminal scams of the 1890s to the sad appeals of widows after the Second World War. In this fascinating book Fancesca Beauman uses newly uncovered evidence to answer crucial questions about how humans choose their mates. The result is a startling history of sex, marriage and society over three centures – hilarious and heartbreaking by turn.
More information on BBC Radio 4:
The Woman's Hour.
Lord Byron derided them, Charlotte Brontë mocked them, George Orwell lauded them. The first one was published in 1695. Its direct descendent features hugely on line. We’re talking about people advertising for love - lonely hearts ads in newspapers, magazines and online. Francesca Beauman has just written the first history of the subject. She joins Jane in the studio to talk about the varying stories behind the ads and what they reveal about dating, marriage and society over the last three centuries.
A sequel of
Jane Bites Back :
Jane Goes Batty. A Novel
Michael Thomas Ford
* Format: Trade Paperback, 304 pages
* On Sale: February 1, 2011
* ISBN: 978-0-345-51366-3
Life was a lot easier for Jane when she was just an unknown, undead bookstore owner in a sleepy hamlet in upstate New York. But now the world embraces her as Jane Fairfax, author of the bestselling novel Constance—and she’s having a killer time trying to keep her true identity as the Jane Austen a secret. Even the ongoing lessons in How to Be a Vampire, taught by her former lover Lord Byron, don’t seem to be helping much. Jane can barely focus on her boyfriend, Walter, while keeping him in the dark about her more sanguine tastes.
To make matters worse, Walter announces that his mother is coming for a visit—and she’s expecting Jane to be Jewish. Add in a demanding new editor, a convention of romance readers in period costume, a Hollywood camera crew following Jane’s every move, and the constant threat of a certain bloodsucking Brontë sister coming back to finish her off, and it’s enough to make even the most well-mannered heroine go batty!
Categories: Books, References
Books and sequels with Brontë content:
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