Austenland Prologue Summary

How It All Goes Down

Prologue

  • "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a thirty-something woman in possession of a satisfying career and fabulous hairdo must be in want of very little" (Prologue.1).
  • Hmm, that sounds familiar. Yep, it's Pride and Prejudice's classic first line updated by two hundred years of women's right's progress. (In case you're curious, the original goes like this: "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." Blah. We like Shannon Hale's version much better.)
  • The rest of the brief prologue to Austenland introduces us to our protagonist, Jane Hayes. Here's a cheat sheet of her defining characteristics:
    • Single
    • Thrifty
    • Likes Cocoa Pebbles
    • Has an unhealthy obsession with Colin Firth
  • We can relate.