Jane Austen’s Guide to Being a Man

In the latest addition to my Jane Austen Theorem*, William Deresiewicz explains how Jane Austen taught him to be a man:

I was 26 when I read my first Jane Austen novel, “Emma,” the story of a spoiled young lady in Regency England who fancies herself a matchmaker. A graduate student at the time, I was as arrogant as they come and didn’t think there was much anyone could teach me about life—especially not Jane Austen, the godmother of chick-lit. Imagine my surprise when she taught me not just how to grow up, but how to be a man.

*Carter’s Jane Austen Theorem states that all complex behavior of advanced mammals can be explained by reference to the novels of Jane Austen. See also: Jane Austen and Game Theory ;  Jane Austen and Baboon Metaphysics ; and Jane Austen’s Guide to Being a Gentleman .