The fame of Jane IN the 19th century the novel came into its own. Thousands upon thousands of novels were published. Of those novels, very few are remembered today. However, there are exceptions  ; the works of Jane Austen - Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility - for example. They achieved only modest success at first but grew and grew in fame  and reputation. How did Jane Austen become so popular? Of course, the novels are romantic. Everyone knows the love story of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett (in Pride and Prejudice), and how they overcome their own pride and prejudice to live happily ever after. The lovers are almost as famous today as Romeo and Juliet. But there is more to Austen's popularity than the fact that she wrote about love. The books are very witty   and ironic  , and show a great understanding of society and of people. Pride and Prejudice opens with what must be the most famous sentence in the English novel: "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." The truth, of course, is the opposite: wealthy, unmarried young men are extremely attractive to young women. And women - especially penniless or near-penniless ones - are the subjects of Austen's tales. Women nowadays may be more equal to men than they were in Jane Austen's day. However, a sense that women still basically live in a world dominated   by men ensures that Austen still has many keen readers. What is the point of the article?
To describe the status of women in Jane Austen's time. To promote Jane Austen's novels among teenagers. To explore the characteristics of Jane Austen's novels. To analyze why Jane Austen's novels have such a lasting appeal.