News Release
Jane Austen and the Silver Screen
(February 21, 2008) -
Fans of British novelist Jane Austen -- or of the movies based on her works ("Sense and Sensibility," "Pride and Prejudice," "Mansfield Park") -- will get an opportunity to discuss Austen and how her works are translated by Hollywood. Pacific English Professor Amy E. Smith's weekend course, "Jane Austen on the Big Screen," will be offered from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. April 5 and 6. The two-day course is open to both students and the public and costs $150. Students who complete the course can earn one credit.
The course is part of the University's effort to support Stockton's literacy and culture initiatives, Smith said. Smith, who earned her doctorate at Pennsylvania State University, is a well-known authority on Jane Austen. She recently was the featured speaker at a meeting of Stockton book club in January where members analyzed Jane Austen's final novel, Sanditon.
Smith has also traveled all over Latin America conducting Jane Austen reading groups in Guatemala, Mexico, Ecuador, Chile, Paraguay and Argentina. "Readers in those countries love Austen," Smith said. "I formed one group by walking into bookstores in Buenos Aires and inviting total strangers to join in. I had a fascinating talk with Guatemalans about how 'Pride and Prejudice' made them think about racial prejudice in a country that recently ended decades of racially motivated civil war."
Besides the upcoming weekend course, Smith will host a "Jane Austen Night" in December of this year, also open to students and the Stockton community.
Born in 1775, Jane Austen became one of England's foremost novelists. She wrote comic stories as a child and her first mature work was a novella called "Lady Susan," which she wrote around the age of 19. She published her most well-known novel "Pride and Prejudice" in 1813. Austen died in 1817 at 41 years old.
For more information please contact Center for Continuing and Professional Education at 209.946.2424 or visit the Web site at www.pacific.edu/cpce.
