Introduction: Jane Austen’s Legacy

Abstract

In 2017, a wide-eyed, youthful image of Jane Austen is to appear on the reverse of all newly-minted, Bank of England £10 banknotes. It is an appropriate gesture, as no one, except perhaps the Queen on the other side of the banknote, is more quintessentially English. The mere mention of Jane Austen’s name conjures up images of Georgian manor houses, such as Godsmersham, Austen’s brother’s estate in Kent, which will also feature on the new banknote. The banknote’s depiction of the author’s world is calm and prosperous, a safe haven unaltered by time, war, and economic upheaval, exactly the way the Bank’s Board of Directors would like the public to think of their financial institution — solid as the Bank of England. The decision to feature Jane Austen on the currency of the realm could not have been better timed nor the denomination more aptly chosen.