Jane Austen.

Jane Austen lived from December 1775 to July 1817. She was part of a close-knit family and was one of eight children . She was mainly educated by her father and older brothers, however she also learnt through her own reading - many believe the steadfast support of her family was critical to her development as a professional writer.

Between the age of 18 to 35, Austen experimented with various literary forms such as the epistolary novel (a novel written as a series of documents) which she tried and then abandoned. From 1811 up to 1816 Jane Austen released Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1816) - through the release of these novels Austen received success as a published writer.

Austen's plots, though fundamentally comic, highlight the dependence of women on marriage to secure social standing and economic security. Her work/novels were also part of the transition to 19th-century realism.

Early in 1816, Jane Austen began to feel unwell. She ignored her illness at first and continued to work, however by the middle of that year her decline in health was unmistakable and this slow deterioration of her health lead to her death the following year.

During her lifetime, Austen would have attended many social gatherings and dances and it was well known that she enjoyed social events. Many have concluded over the years that these events and gatherings have influenced her writing, especially Pride and Prejudice where much of the socialising  and meeting of the characters was done through dances.

Finally, Austen's novels (during her lifetime and shortly afterwards) brought her little fame or personal renown through the majority of the public. Her novels were popular and fashionable among opinion makers such as Princess Charlotte Augusta. However, it is thought that Austen's novels weren't popular because they failed to conform to the Romantic and Victorian expectations and so 19th century critics preferred the works of Charles Dickens and George Elliot. It wasn't until late 19th century when Austen's novels began to become more widely popular.