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November 30, 2008: Jane Austen Birthday Tea JASNA Western PA will host our annual tea in honor of Jane Austen's birthday (December 16, 1775) on Sunday, November 30, 2008. We will gather at 2 PM. Please join us in celebrating Jane's life and legacy. Guests are very welcome. Bring a light sweet or savory to share with the group. A birthday cake in honor of Jane will be provided. In addition to our usual spirited discussion about Austen and her works in general, Master Gardener and former JASNA Western PA president Carol Chernega will share her gardening expertise and lead a discussion about flowers and herbs as related to Jane's novels and characters. If you would like to join us, please email Mell Steven Cosnek at President@janeaustenpgh.org for details. JASNA Western PA is also seeking a host for our Winter tea. If you would like to share your home, please contact Mell. Saturday, March 21, 2009: Annual Spring Meeting and Luncheon Please save the date for our spring gathering at the Pittsburgh Athletic Association in Oakland. We are delighted to welcome speaker John Ogden, a local 1812 War Re-enactor and Enthusiast, who will address us on the topic of the War of 1812 within the context of the Napoleonic Wars. Since Charles Austen (JA's youngest brother) served on the North American front during this war, this talk should be of special interest to us. WOODVILLE PLANTATION HOSTS HOLIDAYS AT THE HOUSE Step back in time at Woodville Plantation as this living history museum celebrates the holiday season in an 18th century fashion. On Sunday, November 23, 2008, the public can experience the holidays in a "different light" with candlelit tours of Woodville Plantation. Visitors will learn about holiday customs that differ from today's celebrations - such as Twelfth Night, Boxing Day, and the firing of the Christmas guns. Admission is $5 per adult and $10 per family. The site will be open from noon until 8 pm. Woodville Plantation , the home of John and Presley Neville, is Western Pennsylvania's link to the late 18th century. Built in 1775, this living history museum interprets life during the period of 1780-1820, the era of the New Republic. Guided tours of the house are available every Sunday from 1 to 4 pm. Just 7 miles and 15 minutes south of Pittsburgh, Woodville is conveniently located 1/4 north of Interstate I-79 Exit 55 (Kirwin Heights Exit) on Route 50, near the intersection of Thoms Run Road. For further directions or for more information, please visit Woodville's website at www.woodvilleplantation.org or call 412-221-0348.
Previous Announcements and Meetings: October 11, 2008: JASNA Pittsburgh gathered for our Autumn luncheon and meeting on Saturday, October 11th at the Pittsburgh Athletic Association. Linda Troost, Professor and Chair of English at Washington & Jefferson College, and Sayre Greenfield, Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, presented "The City and the Country in Persuasion on Film." Sayre and Linda, both members of JASNA Pittsburgh, presented at the Jane Austen Society of Australia's 2008 conference in New South Wales. Fall 2008:
Realism in Jane Austen's Fiction LI4248 Class examines print and film versions of Northanger Abbey, Mansfield Park, and Persuasion as narratives of a social and historical era marked by specific story-telling conventions. As the idea of the novel as entertainment was beginning to unfold in the 18th Century, Jane Austen challenged the notion of the hysterical heroine in search of a rescuer. The personal and environmental forces guiding Austen's pen will be considered. Text to be used is 101 Things You Didn't Know about Jane Austen: The Truth about the World's Most Ingriguing Romantic Literary Heroine. Class participants are asked to read the first 10 chapters of Northanger Abbey for the first class. Teacher is Erika Pertoll, an adjunct faculty member in English at Community College of Allegheny County, and an instructor in literature and writing courses in the Osher Program. August 16, 2008: During the summer of 2008 JASNA Western PA/Pittsburgh personally experienced the historic authenticity of Woodville Plantation's Neville House. Following a docent led tour, participants had the opportunity to take afternoon tea and sample fruits and vegetables from the plantation's heirloom garden. It's easy to imagine yourself in one of Jane's novels as you walk through the beautiful eighteenth century American home known as Neville House. Woodville Plantation , located just 20 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh, is one of only 2,500 National Historic Landmarks in the United States. The window panes of Neville House still bear the signatures of its historic guests and relatives, engraved with the point of a diamond. Photos of the house are available at www.woodvilleplantation.org. July 20, 2008: JASNA Pittsburgh held our Summer Tea on Sunday, July 20. Over tea and goodies, friends gathered to chat about all things Jane and read to the group a beloved passage or quote. Selections included one of Jane's essays as well as excerpts from several of her novels. The guests agreed that is was a pleasant way to pass a rainy summer afternoon. June 7, 2008: JASNA members, friends and guests met at Northland Public Library in the North Hills to view snippets from two versions of Persuasion: the 1995 theatrical film (starring Amanda Root and Ciarán Hinds) and the 2007 Masterpiece television release (starring Sally Hawkins and Rupert Penry-Jones.) Janeites deliberated the pros and cons of adapting Austen's work for media: can any writer/producer/director completely satisfy our very high standards? With dramatically different characterizations and endings, opinions were divided on these two productions. The 1995 film has developed quite a loyal following, but many people questioned the recent release's decision to have Anne make a mad dash through the streets of Bath. Both films are available on DVD if other fans would like to view these productions and draw their own conclusions. April 5, 2008: JASNA Spring Luncheon: We had lively conversation and lunch at the Pittsburgh Athletic Association. Dr. Laura Engel, Assistant Professor for the English Department of Duquesne University and a member of JASNA Pittsburgh, presented Much Ado About Muffs: Actresses, Accessories, and Austen. When Jane Austen was a teenager in the late 1780s several portraits of well-known actresses holding muffs were painted by a variety of famous artists including Thomas Gainsborough, Thomas Lawrence, and Sir Joshua Reynolds. Laura presented these paintings, along with satiric prints of grotesque muffs that appeared simultaneously in the press, and explore how the muff functions in these images as a sign of fashion and style and as a sign of crass accumulation and overt sexuality. She also examined how this vexed cultural dynamic of female celebrity is reflected in Austen’s depiction of muffs as accessories that dramatize the conflicts inherent in female performance, display, and desire. A big thanks to Dr. Engel for a fantastic presentation! February 17, 2008: JASNA Winter Tea: Members and friends gathered to share sweets, savories and tea. Vigorous discussion about the PBS Complete Jane Austen and other films ensued. What would Jane think of the new Films? We elected officers for 2008. Congratulations to the new officers, and thank you to those who are continuing to perform their duties for another year.
December 16, 2007: Group trip to the Matinee (2:00) performance of Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre's Pride and Prejudice. Group discount to Pittsburgh Chapter members. December 12, 2007: President Carol Chernega presented a pre-performance lecture at PICT's production of Pride and Prejudice. 7:00 pm at the Charity Randall Theatre at the Stephen Foster Memorial in Oakland. December 2, 2007: We celebrated Jane Austen's Birthday at our traditional Birthday Tea. JASNA Pittsburgh provided a birthday cake. We played a rousing trivia game related to contemporaries of Jane Austen.
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