Kathy Hamilton It’s been a little while since we cosied up for a chat about Jane Austen don’t you think? Which is why I thought it would be fun to share my favourite Jane Austen novels ranked today.
So, I think it goes without saying that the order of my “Jane Austen Novels Ranked” post are based on my own personal feelings. I’ve also reduced this list to Jane’s finished and published, full length novels. I know she has a bigger back catalogue (this post goes into that in more depth). For the purposes of this post though, I thought it would be easiest to stick to the core six novels. I love each of the novels featured here, almost equally, but it was fun to analyse them and pick an ultimate winner. What do you think it is?
Northanger Abbey
Starting my list of “Jane Austen novels ranked” is the first book she completed. For a long time, I have been a defender of Northanger Abbey. It’s witty and light. Its characters are enjoyable and the plot runs along nicely. But it feels like a first attempt to me. It lacks the depth of later novels, and the satire is a little more obvious. But most of all, I think Northanger Abbey, more than any novel she wrote, feels influenced by other books around it.
Jane Austen liberally borrows from and alludes to other contemporary authors in Northanger Abbey. Whilst this is interesting from a literary standpoint, I do think it dilutes Jane’s distinct voice. I always get the feeling that Jane Austen was experimenting when she wrote Northanger Abbey. And since we’re in the business of ranking Jane Austen’s novels, inevitably one has to come in last. For me, it’s Northanger Abbey.
Emma
I’m starting with a controversial choice for many Jane Austen fans! Emma is, in my opinion, the hardest Jane Austen novels to get along with. That is to say, it’s good but long and slightly unsatisfying. This is due to a combination of factors. Firstly, it’s the most parochial of all Jane Austen’s novels. With its core focus being on a small village. Secondly, Emma herself is hard to like at times – she’s overtly snobby, aware of her own importance and often overconfident as a result. She’s also kindhearted and not too proud to admit she’s at fault. It’s a complicated mix.
But my biggest issue is Emma’s relationship with Mr Knightly. He exerts an almost brotherly influence over Emma for much of the book. This, combined with the large age gap between the two, I couldn’t help but notice the power imbalance here. Although Knightly’s selfless actions do redeem him somewhat by the end.
Mansfield Park
You may be surprised to find Mansfield Park featuring so high on this list of Jane Austen Novels ranked! I know it’s not many people’s favourite. But bear with me, I am going to try and convince you! This was the first novel by Jane Austen that I ever read! And for me, Mansfield Park is one of Jane Austen’s most grown-up and darkest books. It’s not concerned with being light and witty. It’s arguably the novel with the biggest scope too, dealing with a myriad of themes. And, it gives us a heroine who is almost the antithesis of Lizzie Bennet and a plot that is seething with the underside of polite society.
Fanny Price is dutiful, repressed and all too aware that she’s a poor relative. But she’s also stubborn and has a deep moral core that cannot be shaken. When the opportunity for wealth and comfort comes her way, she is able to refuse it because it would compromise her own ideas – despite her own personal suffering. In creating Fanny Price, who is doomed to suffer unrequited love in secret and powerlessly watch her vain and amoral relatives fall into decline, Jane Austen manages to bring a counterpoint to her other novels. Mansfield Park was written directly after Pride and Prejudice was published and I like to think that Jane Austen was giving us a sly wink when she wrote it.
Sense & Sensibility
I seriously debated swapping Sense and Sensibility with Pride and Prejudice whilst I was planning this post. But ultimately, I had to admit that I was allowing the strength of the Emma Thompson adaptation to curry my favour. Honestly, we could have an entirely different post about Jane Austen adaptations! But in terms of novels, although I think Sense and Sensibility is an excellent book, it just falls short of Pride and Prejudice.
As with Northanger Abbey, I sometimes get a sneaking suspicion Jane Austen was experimenting with themes in this book. I do think that Elinor and Marianne are well-crafted characters. However, I also think that they are let down by rather two-dimensional supporting characters. Despite this, Sense and Sensibility really holds a place in my heart because it deals with the aftermath of what other novels only threaten. The dreaded death of a father and the resulting genteel poverty his daughters are forced into. It was a bold move to use this a plot device and I think Sense and Sensibility is stronger for it.
Pride & Prejudice
Time for something “light, bright and sparkling” don’t you think? Jane’s own words perfectly sum up Pride and Prejudice. It’s a breezy, playful, summer’s day of a novel and, I think, the one most of you will have expected to be first! But there’s something holding it back. To borrow from Jane Austen’s own words and finish the quote above, “it wants shade; it wants to be stretched out here and there with a long chapter of sense.”
I think Pride and Prejudice is almost a perfect novel, in terms of structure. It has a nice, full plot; a selection of interesting characters and a satisfying and romantic conclusion. But, for me, it also lacks passion or shade – as Jane put it. Despite the forebodings of future poverty, everything seems to fall too easily into Elizabeth’s lap. She’s young, beautiful, popular and secures the richest man around. It needs a little struggle; which brings me to…
Persuasion
…Our number one in “Jane Austen Novels Ranked”! Persuasion is what Pride and Prejudice could be with added shade, in my opinion. It’s my favourite novel by Jane Austen and it was an easy choice for top spot. Persuasion is about the power of love and duty, in its many forms. And how love and honour for your family can ultimately lead to make a wrong choice for the right reasons.
In Persuasion we are introduced to Anne Elliot, a faded beauty well past her prime. She’s still single, despite previous expectations of a splendid match by her family. And soon, we realise why. Anne has never fallen out of love with her early, disadvantageous match – Frederick Wentworth. Of course, time has changed both and when he re-enters her life he’s both wealthy and heartily disinterested in her.
It many ways, Persuasion by Jane Austen feels like the most contemporary novel. It allows us to see the inner workings of Anne’s mind. We see through her eyes and she helplessly watches the man she loves fall in love with another, younger woman. We feel the wrong that was done to Anne when she was persuaded not to marry him, but also acknowledge that no one could have predicted Frederick’s meteoric rise to wealth and stability. Oh, and that letter? It’s potentially the best love letter in the history of fiction.
That wraps up “Jane Austen Novels Ranked”!
What do you think? Have I put the novels in the order you would have picked? Honestly, I spent so long trying to rank Jane Austen’s novels because each time I sat down to write I remembered why I loved each on specifically. I loved creating this list, it was great to get the creative juices flowing again. It was also the perfect excuse to photograph my beautiful Vintage Classic editions of Jane Austen’s novels. They’re so beautiful I basically use them as art instalments in my bedroom! Ultimately, I’m pretty satisfied with the order I picked, but let me know what you think?
