“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid” proclaims a character in Jane Austen’s “Northanger Abbey.” With this playful and audacious line, Austen defends her own chosen vocation as a writer, while reminding readers of the great value of a good novel. Elsewhere in the book she says that in a good novel “the greatest powers of the mind are displayed” and “the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language.”
All that is certainly true of “Northanger Abbey,” which sparkles with wit and wisdom. With a strong satirical edge, the novel reveals Austen’s keen understanding of human nature and its vanity. One of the characteristics of human life especially well-delineated in the work is the nature of friendship. With great acuity, “Northanger Abbey” explores elements of true and false friendships, as well as the consequences flowing from each.
