A Celebration Is in Order!

Happy 200th Anniversary to one of my favorite novels of all time! Congratulations, Miss Austen. Your work is still very much appreciated, even after all these years. If we fanatics have anything to say about it, we'll keep on reading and discussing and admiring for another two hundred years as well. And another two hundred after that.

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

Those words are immortal, and also one of the best and briefest proofs that Pride and Prejudice is not simply another mushy romance novel. The opening line is not about twu wuv, or how lonely hearts are destined to find each other some day, or some similar drivel. If Elizabeth Bennet's story was a romance, the first words would reflect that. They would promise sugar and spice and everything nice, drowned in saccharine feelings. Instead, Miss Austen provides us with a wry spin on life's quirks. If anything, it's a (somewhat gentle) parody of romance. She gives us the promise of a witty caper in manners, social commentary, and the way impressions and perceptions alter over time.

One more point, and I'll give it a rest. The title is Pride and Prejudice, not Love and Romance.