Devoney Looser

“Oh, I quite like the creaking door. I prefer its sound to any other. Do leave it be.”


We no longer need the myth of female self-abnegation or palatable feminine reticence to revere her as an author, a woman or a woman author. The fact that she wanted to give her stories to the public, and that they continue to resonate so profoundly, is what’s crucial. Let’s put the fanciful story of Austen’s hidden writing to rest. Let’s fix that creaking door.

Article by Devoney Looser, a professor of English at Arizona State University, is the author of “The Making of Jane Austen.”