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Miniatures and Morals - the Christian novels of Jane Austen by Peter J Leithart - Several years ago a friend recommended a book by Peter Leithart, a literary study of the Old Testament. I purchased it, read it, and loved it, and have been a Leithart fan ever since. I have a couple other books of his, and the ones I don't own are on my wish lists. Near the beginning of this year, a fellow blogger mentioned challenging herself to read all of Jane Austen's works in 2011, using Leithart's Miniatures and Morals as her study guide. I decided to take the same challenge, purchased the book and started in. Yesterday I finished the final Austen novel on the list (Persuasion) and also the final chapter of Leithart's insightful commentary and analysis. Leithart is a Senior Fellow of Literature and Theology at New Saint Andrews College, and his study of the characters and themes in Austen's novels focuses on her 'miniaturist' style and her interest in Christian virtues. While the novels are never 'preachy' it is clear that godly virtues such as patience, self-control, charity, honesty, and integrity are held in high esteem by Austen and her noble characters. Leithart brings these to the fore, showing how Austen highlights the virtues and contrasts the characters that display them with the characters that are lacking, often using irony and wit to do so. The book opens with a chapter entitled Real Men Read Austen (how can you not love a book with that chapter title!?), in which he extols Austen as a master of intelligent humor and a writer with incredible insight into human behavior; and challenges the notion that Austen's novels are only for women. He admits that much of the action does take place in quiet domestic settings such as drawing rooms and formal gardens, but asserts that she creates strong male characters who may be considered Christlike lovers in that they are willing to sacrifice for their brides and are servant-heroes. Leithart also suggests that men can learn much about romance from a woman's point of view by reading Austen, and that she is a leading commentator on ethics, morality, culture, and public theology. Worth reading, indeed! From there, he analyzes each of Austen's novels in turn, beginning with Pride and Prejudice, showing how each focuses on a set of manners, moral guidelines and attitudes. The commentaries include review and thought questions, so this book can be used for the casual reader to enhance their understanding and enjoyment of Austen's work; as well as for the scholar who wants to delve deeper into the literary and theological themes. I am confident this book could be used as part of a Literature course for high schoolers, and to that end, I do intend to use it in that way for my daughter when she reaches high school age. She already is enjoying the BBC mini-series adaptations of several Austen novels with me, so I have reason to believe she will thoroughly enjoy reading them herself when she is a few years older. I highly recommend this book to all Jane Austen fans!
