Gotta keep tabs on that Jane Austen, I always say. If I'm ever going to understand women, then Jane Austen is going to be one of the ones to help me do it.
Miss Austen Regrets tells the story of the last few years of Jane's life. As she nears her 40th birthday, she, unlike most of the heroines of her books, is still happily unmarried. But then her niece Fanny asks her help and advice in finding a husband, and it causes Jane to look back at her own life and choices and the could-have-beens among her many suitors. She wonders if she could have saved her family from a life of poverty if she had accepted the marriage proposal of a wealthy man - a man she did not love.
That's the plot in a nutshell, but there is more to the film than that. Specifically, I thought that it contained many interesting quotes and bits of wisdom, some of which I wrote down and now share here:
Jane: Soon as we become aware of a man's attachment, we become indifferent. (I always knew this to be true; I just never heard a woman say it until now.)
Jane: Rich is just another word for safe.
Jane (after having been told that a suitor would have made her "quite happy"): Quite happy is not enough.
Madame Bigeon: But the fuss we make about who to choose. And love still dies and money still vanishes. And, spinster, lover, wife, every woman has regrets. So we read about your heroines and feel young again. And in love. And full of hope. As if we can make that choice again.
Jane: And do it right this time.
Madame Bigeon: This is the gift which God has given you.
Since I watched this movie, it's been the issue of regrets that I have been pondering on. While Jane had regrets about her life, few (if any) were missed opportunities in her love life.
As another wise person once said:
There are two types of pain in life: the pain of discipline and the pain of regret. You’ve got to choose discipline versus regret, because discipline weighs ounces, while regret weighs tons.
Regrets? I've had a few.
But then again, too few to mention.
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