Jane Austen and the Internet & a New Irish Find

It's wonderful to have you back for August, where the homesteady life clashes with modern technology...

Aug 10, 2023

About two miles from our little homestead, a small, scenic lake is nestled at the base of a 5,000 foot, lushly forested foothill we can see from our garden.

The big foothill seems far away, but it’s less than 2 miles from our place!

Most days, I ride my bike past the lake and pop into the county park on its shoreline. In the middle of a forest of 50-year old firs, the park attracts lots of summer visitors.

Not long ago, biking on the county road near the lake, I was flagged down by a fortyish, nice- looking guy driving a shiny new Mercedes camper-van. Used to being asked directions by lots of people, I stopped as he rolled down his window, and looked at him inquiringly.

“How do you get back to the city?” He waved his cell phone. “GPS doesn’t work very well out here.”

“It doesn’t really work at all around here,” I said smiling. “And there’s no cell reception here either.”

He smiled back, but I could tell he didn’t quite believe there was a spot this close to civilization without a cell signal. I gave him the directions he needed to the highway—he was a good sport about discovering he’d been heading in the completely opposite direction—and wished him luck.

He’s not the first person who has stopped me because they were depending on technology in an unfamiliar place, and I’m sure he won’t be the last.

It’s just that I have to wonder if modern life and all our “high techie-tech” (a term from the TV show The Big Bang Theory) has made people less resourceful. Less able to negotiate unforeseen situations…like getting lost.

I thought of this encounter the other night, when my husband John and I were having take-out pizza with our closest neighbors. Both families had recently signed up for a premium satellite internet service, the one run by a certain well-known, eccentric billionaire given to, shall we say, unconventional business practices.

John and I have satellite internet too, but it’s not at all fast, or convenient. And each neighbor raved about the lightning speed of their new internet. “I have to say, it’s screaming fast,” said one.

“You can even stream movies!” said the most recent convert.

“We’ve never been able to stream anything,” John said a bit glumly.

I’m constantly reading about cool new shows—all streamers—that I’d love to check out. These shows have loads of interesting plots and characters, great inspiration for creating my own fictional stories.

But on the current internet at our house, the shows are a no-go.

“We can’t do Zoom or audiobooks either,” I said. “I can’t even watch a five-minute YouTube without it buffering. Then there’s the weather…”

In heavy rain or snow, our satellite signal completely cuts out. You have to wait for a break in the precipitation before you can get back online.

On some of the websites I need for my writing business, by late afternoon (the time when people are coming home from work and jumping online, maybe?) these sites have become impossible to use.

“If you don’t mind my asking,” said John to the others, “how much is your internet?”

The neighbors were open about the costs—and I have to say it sounded affordable for us. Both had been on our current satellite service previously, and we all collectively kvetched a bit about their deteriorating customer service, and the way the prices keep inching up.

John and I were definitely intrigued.

After we all said goodbye, John and I walked down our neighbor’s driveway in silence. I knew we were both thinking of this new internet possibility. “Upgrading sounds totally doable,” John finally said.

“It would sure make life easier,” I said.

“I could do remote doctor visits,” said John. This same week, his remote medical visit appointment fizzled due to our creaky internet, and he and his doctor had to quit the meeting app and talk over the phone.

“I could even download my own audiobooks,” I said, “and get them on other stores!”

As we headed into our driveway, I slowed my steps. “Our lives would change a lot, though, if we suddenly had hundreds of TV channels to watch.” John and I haven’t had cable TV for probably 25 years.

“That’s true,” said John. “I don’t know if I’m up for that.”

I know for a fact I wouldn’t really want to stream all the TV shows or movies that seem intriguing. “What would I have to give up,” I mused aloud, “to make time to watch TV? I don’t have time to do most of the stuff that needs doing now.”

We both chuckled, a little ruefully. I thought of just three days before, and how an unexpected summer downpour had cut out the internet while I was working.

I turned from my computer screen to the window, and reveled in the sight of the much-needed rain, and the sound of the raindrops hitting the maple tree next to the house.

The rain soon eased, and back came the internet signal. But in the meantime, I’d actually had a lovely break…and a lesson in patience too.

Now, as John and I neared our house, I said, “We moved out here to live a simpler life. So maybe we should just stick with it.”

So what’s all this got to do with Jane Austen? Read on…

For Austen Fans:

A well-loved, oft-read Christmas gift from John 20 years ago…he’s read all the novels too!

I finished Jane Austen’s novel Sense and Sensibility yesterday, my second reading—and I was absolutely…flummoxed.

I’m embarrassed to admit I must have skimmed-read the book the first time around. I enjoyed it, but not to the level of say, Emma or Persuasion. (Pride and Prejudice, IMO, is in a class by itself!)

This time, Sense and Sensibility completely enchanted me. On every page, I discovered new charms in the story, new twists and turns, and the uniquely Austen-ian wisecracks I’d missed before.

Especially at the close of the novel. Austen, tongue firmly in cheek, has some of her most wickedly clever passages poking fun at the foibles of marriage-making, particularly when it comes to conniving young ladies and wealthy mothers who try to run their sons’ lives.

Rereading those passages yet again, I wondered, where was I when I read this book the first time? How could I have missed this pure Austen gold?

Anyway. I’ll admit, I love sisters’ stories. One of my recent novels, Becoming Emma, features two devoted sisters from Dublin, Emma and Hazel Carey. (Perhaps inspired by the Dashwood girls? Who can say…novel inspirations come from everywhere!)

Now, the Dashwood sisters’ dynamic of the practical elder sister and the emotional younger sister is one I’ve seen in a lot of other stories. For my novel, however, I consciously wanted to do something different…so I turned Elinor’s and Marianne’s relationship on its head.

Emma, the elder sister in my story, is guided by her emotions and is prone to rash decisions, especially when it comes to falling in love. Hazel, who is much younger, is the wise, sensible sister, to whom Emma turns for advice and counsel.

You may well ask, what do the Dashwood girls have to do with the homestead life?

Well, if wise, practical Eleanor was a 21st-century girl, she would likely advise going for the fast, efficient internet. Which would save not only time, but on the long term, money. Very sensible, yes?

On the other hand, Marianne, lover of nature, rainstorms, and long, meandering tramps over the countryside, might well opt for the pokey, inconvenient internet. And continue to live her life guided by homesteady sensibilities.

In any event, John and I have definitely decided to stick with the Marianne D. mindset, and keep our internet on slow-life speed.

And I’ll bet neither Dashwood sister in her modern incarnation would want to give up their creative activities like painting (Eleanor), or playing the pianoforte (Marianne), or reading, which they both love, in favor of streaming Netflix!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on Sense and Sensibility… Or if you occasionally take screen or technology breaks, what’s that like for you?

This Little Farm Life with Susan Colleen Browne

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