Jane Austen Biography Quiz

When was Jane Austen born?

• 1750

• 1775

• 1790

• 1817

What major historic events occurred during Jane Austen’s lifetime?

• World War I and the Industrial Revolution

• The American and French Revolutions, and the Napoleonic Wars

• The Civil War and Victorian Era

• The Enlightenment and the Glorious Revolution

How did Austen treat the political events of her time in her novels?

• She centered all her plots on historical battles

• She openly criticized political leaders

• She rarely referred to major historical events

• She wrote patriotic war poems

What social class did Jane Austen primarily write about?

• Working class

• Landed gentry

• Royalty

• Factory workers

Answer explanation

The landed gentry were upper- and middle-class families who owned land and made their money from renting out farmland, not from working jobs or trading.

Why was marriage so important for women in Austen’s time?

• It was required by law

• It provided financial security and social status

• Women wanted more children

• It allowed them to travel

What does 'entailment' mean in the context of Austen’s time?

• A tax paid by women when they marry

• A process of adopting children

• A practice where property passed to male heirs only

• A special education for clergy

What was the purpose of a marriage 'settlement'?

• It ended engagements

• It paid for the wedding

• It protected a woman’s property and passed it to her children

• It made divorce easier

What kind of education did Jane Austen receive?

• Mostly at home, with some time at boarding school

• At Oxford University

• At a military academy

• Only through books in the library

Which of these works was an early draft of *Pride and Prejudice*?

• *Sense and Sensibility*

• First Impressions

• *Emma*

• *Northanger Abbey*

Why didn’t Austen become famous during her lifetime?

• Her books were banned

• Her writing was not appreciated

• Her novels were published anonymously

• She never finished any books