Lynness: Jane Austen and freedom

So... this week PBS finished the series of Jane Austen movies on
Masterpiece Theater. I've watched them all as well as read (or, in
several cases re-read for the umpteenth time) the novels along the way.
I was thinking about the constraints of the time on relationships and on
women in particular and thinking about how grateful I am to be living in
this time in this country. Nathan's has a co-worker who refers to all
of the works of Jane Austen as "bonnets and forbidden love." In all of
her novels there is at least one relationship that is "imprudent"-
someone looks down on it because of lack of wealth or social standing or
occupation. In the last of the PBS movies, "Sense and Sensibility,"
Edward wants to be a minister, but that is not high-class enough for his
family; neither is his fiancee- she has neither wealth nor is she of a
high social class and they prefer both. They disinherit him when he
won't break off the engagement. I was thinking back to when Nathan
spoke to my father about marrying me. Neither Nathan's family's (mine
too, now!! yay!) position, or his income or his employment were asked
about. They didn't even meet him until Wednesday evening before our
early Friday afternoon wedding!
As far as women in particular, though I became a nurse, my parents
never pushed me to more traditionally female vocations, nor did they
tell me I was smarter than that and could do better. Basically the only
thing they told me about my higher education was that I was either going
to have to get a job or a scholarship, because they couldn't help me.
And so I did both. I chose my major, being influenced by my high school
AP Bio class and my roommate Lisa Coudron (who was also in my AP Bio
class- we always studied together), who had decided to go into nursing
and was taking all of these classes that I really liked the sound of.
And thus I became a nursing major.
I can vote, I can own property (my credit score was better, so it
was my name on the title of our house until we refinanced), I can work
(I include "mother" and "homemaker" as work) as I see fit, I am as much
a person with rights as my husband is. I'm so glad to be in a time and
place where all this is true.
I still love to read Jane Austen, though!