II—JANE AUSTEN
1. The Story of Jane Austen's Life—The county society; the material for her novels; her method of composition.
2. Emma and Mansfield Park—Analysis of the plots and the characters. Jane Austen's men and her women.
3. Jane Austen's Masterpiece: Pride and Prejudice—The story. The author's sense of humor. Readings: The ball; Mr. Collins' letter, etc.
4. The Place of Jane Austen in Modern English Literature—The pioneer novelist of modern society. Her realism. Estimates by Howells and others.
Books to Consult—Life of Jane Austen, by her nephew, J. E. Austen Leigh. Letters, edited by Lord Brabourne. Life, by Oscar Fay Adams. Life, by Walter Pollock.
Miss Austen is a charming subject, with many points of interest. The family life at Steventon is one; her letter-writing is another; her meeting with Thackeray is a third. Read from her letters, her brief unfinished comedy, and her poem. Describe her burial-place in Winchester Cathedral.
III—CHARLOTTE BRONTË
1. The Story of her Life—The home on the moors at Haworth, father and brother, the three brilliant sisters; boarding-school life; Brussels; her literary career, marriage, death.
2. The Professor and Jane Eyre—The Professor: rejection by the publishers. Estimate of it to-day. Jane Eyre: realistic and dramatic qualities. England's disapproval.