A Jane Austen fan has used her lifelong love of the author to develop a new way of approaching novels in classrooms.

88 year-old Ruth Wilson has just completed her PhD in teaching Jane Austen.

“I wanted to investigate why I loved Jane Austen so much, why I had so much pleasure from reading her, and why I felt that reading her books had been so important in my life,” she said.

Her English teacher introduced her to Pride and Prejudice in 1947 and Mrs Wilson has been reading Jane Austen novels ever since.

“She took away the glass pane between you and the page, and and once you start reading her you dive into her books.”

Her PhD thesis analyzed three Jane Austen novels including Pride and Prejudice, Emma and Mansfield Park.

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