The Jane Austen Guide to Dating - review

[alobear]

Many thanks to weaselbitch for a very cool Christmas present I wouldn't otherwise have read.



I don't believe in dating guides, as I don't believe you can formulate a set of rules that applies universally. Every person and every situation is different, and something that is useful to one person may have the opposite effect for someone else. Besides, I'm of the opinion that the best way to proceed in relationships is to be relaxed, open and honest, and not overthink things.

The Jane Austen Guide starts off by agreeing with me completely, saying that dating guides are a bad idea and should be totally disregarded. Unfortunately, there then follows 250 pages of instructions as to how to deal with relationships, which kind of negates the point. The rules make more sense than most dating guides (advising people to avoid playing games, etc) but still contradict themselves and clearly demonstrate that there is no hard and fast way to guarantee success when dating.

Each chapter starts with a discussion of a relationship from one of Austen's novels, goes on to cite supposedly real-life examples of similar modern day relationships, and then gives a summary of instructions for the situation.

So, my thoughts as I read the book went a little like this:

"Ooh, interesting analysis of Austen - how cool... Real-life examples - a bit silly, but mildly entertaining... Ridiculous, hypocritical and inconsistent instructions on how to date successfully - must throw book out of window... Ooh, interesting analysis of Austen - how cool..."

And so on.

Anyway, overall, it was a fun read. I'm just glad I'm not the kind of person who takes these kinds of books seriously.

Comments

Ditto

[lareinemisere.livejournal.com]

I saw this one in the shops, had a flick through, and could not put it better than you just have.

[weaselbitch.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed it :-) I was hoping it would be silly/amusing rather than just plain crap.

[alobear.livejournal.com]

The author apparently wrote her degree dissertation on Courting Rituals in Jane Austen, which I think would have been a much better read!