Writing What She Knew

The tone and subject matter in Austen’s letters reminded me
of several of her fictional characters. The similarities made me wonder if she
was able to so vividly write these characters because each of them draws from some
aspect of her own personality. First of all, the letters made it clear why
Austen tended to write about sisters: she obviously had a very close relationship
with her sister, Cassandra. She knew the dynamics of sisterly relationships
very well. In the first few letters, Austen almost sounds like a silly girl
whose chief concern is her next dance partner. I am tempted to see similarities
between her and Lydia, but somehow I don’t quite believe that Austen was truly gushing
over her “Irish friend” (270). I almost see more of Elizabeth’s “playfulness”
(248) in the subject and tone, as if Austen is saying these things precisely
because she knows that they will elicit an eye-roll and wry headshake from
Cassandra. Her amusement upon observing the drunken couple at tea in the letter
from May 12 and 13 definitely reminded me of Mr. Bennet; apparently she enjoyed
absurd people as well. Austen’s first piece of advice to her niece, Fanny Knight,
brought Mrs. Gardiner to mind. But in the next letter, I felt as if I were
reading a letter from Darcy to Bingley, trying to persuade the latter not to
marry Jane. The final letter, however, reminded me of Elizabeth’s joy over Jane
and Bingley’s affection for one another. Rather than making one character
exactly like herself, Austen seems to have divided up her own personality among
her characters.