Abstract:
Understanding the role of medicine in Jane Austen’s works and the healthcare system in England during the Regency period provokes a deeper comprehension and connection with Austen’s novels. My thesis dives deep into research on popular diagnoses and treatments for physical and mental health during the Regency era and applies this research to a dissection of the different medical scenarios presented in Austen’s books. My focus will be on four of Austen’s six novels: Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, and Emma. The paper analyzes the medical circumstances present in each novel: Jane Bennet’s illness at Netherfield in Pride and Prejudice, Marianne Dashwood’s depression in Sense and Sensibility, Louisa Musgrove’s coma in Persuasion, and Mr. Woodhouse’s hypochondria in Emma. The purpose of this thesis is to help the modern Jane Austen reader to forgo their modern healthcare lens and equip them with a new way to see these different situations in order to provide a higher understanding of the novel and the obstacles individuals faced during the Regency era.
