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Pride and Prejudice

An Annotated Edition
by Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice: An Annotated Edition. Belknap: Harvard Univ. Oct. 2010. c.464p. ed. by Patricia Meyer Spacks. illus. bibliog. ISBN 9780674049161. $35. LIT
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Early in Pride and Prejudice, Austen writes, "the very shoe-roses for Netherfield were got by proxy." Today's readers may wonder what a shoe rose is. Prominent literary editor Spacks (English, emerita, Univ. of Virginia; Boredom: The Literary History of a State of Mind) supplies the explanation, along with scores of other brief notes defining the terms of Austen's era. She offers more substantial discussions of various references as well as explanations for such components as a young Regency woman entering into society. She also provides an extremely useful introduction, detailing Austen's life and noting (along with her "further reading" section) the ongoing scholarly attention. Readers will also appreciate Spacks's well-placed references to the interpretations of other scholars, such as Tony Tanner and Linda Colley.
VERDICT The value of this edition, as Spacks maintains, is that "annotation helps to locate Austen in history, in literature, in language." Pride and Prejudice has been annotated before—David M. Shapard's 2003 edition—but Spacks's approach is more literary than his historical focus. Readers will appreciate the placement of Spacks's annotations along the wide margin of the page they relate to, as well as the many color illustrations. A valuable addition for any Austen student, scholar, or fan.
Reviewed by Kathryn R. Bartelt, Univ. of Evansville Libs., IN , Sep 01, 2010
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