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Home , Becoming Jane, Eliza de Feuillide, Thomas Langlois Lefroy

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Becoming Jane

Sarah Williams and Kevin Wood are also there, but Tom arrives late. Mr Austen makes easystarts a speech about Henry’s return and Cassandra’s future visit to her brother Edward and his wife to help them when their child is born. Jane reads one of her stories of two young people who had to wait for their marriage. level 2 Obviously it’s about Cassandra and Robert. Tom thinks the story is childish, and this upsets Jane. level 3 Chapter 5: Tom sees Jane in the forest. Jane is still offended about Tom’s comment on her writing. Tom suggests she read his favourite book, The History of Tom Jones. Tom thinks Jane is an interesting young woman. level 4 Chapter 6: At Basingstoke Dance, Mr Wisley steps on Jane’s foot. Jane dances with Tom three times rather than Summary only twice. Henry warns Jane about Tom’s reputation. level 5 The story, set in 1795, is about young , the Chapter 7: Jane meets up with Tom at a country fair. world-renowned English novelist, before she became Mrs Austen doesn’t think Tom is a suitable husband for well-known. It is loosely based on the few known facts he will not be able to provide well for the family. level 6 about her life. She wishes to become a writer and dreams of marrying for love. Chapter 8: Mr Wisley finally has a chance to propose to Jane, but she tells him she can’t marry without love. Jane’s Chapter 1: Jane Austen is twenty years old. She is living parents think love is desirable but money is indispensable. with her family at a rectory in a small country village in Lady Gresham also insists that Jane should accept the Hampshire. Mr Austen is a rector. Jane’s older sister proposal at once. Jane learns that Tom’s feelings for her Cassandra’s future husband Robert Fowle and Jane’s are also very strong. aristocratic widowed cousin are there as well. One Sunday, they visit their rich aristocratic Chapter 9: Eliza conspires to visit Tom’s uncle in London: neighbour Lady Gresham after church. Mrs Austen The Comtesse de Feuillide and ‘her cousins’ are visiting thinks Mr Wisley, Lady Gresham’s favourite nephew, Jane’s brother, Edward, and planning to stop in London is a prospective match for Jane. on the way there. In this way, Tom can introduce Jane to Judge Langlois in order to get his blessing for their Chapter 2: Tom Lefroy is boxing at a men’s club in marriage. In London Jane starts to write a story, which London. He meets up with Jane’s brother Henry Austen later becomes . and his friend John Warren there. Both Henry and John are heading to Hampshire as Mr Austen is preparing Chapter 10: The Judge receives a letter saying that Jane positions in the Church for them. Tom is a law student is from a poor family. He doesn’t want them to marry. in London and he depends financially on his uncle Judge Jane insists that they can still marry, but Tom says he has a Langlois. Tom has a bad reputation, so Judge Langlois is family to think about. Heartbroken, Jane leaves London. sending him to his other relatives in Hampshire for the Chapter 11: Jane comes back home with her sister summer. Cassandra. During the dinner at Lady Gresham’s, a Chapter 3: At the rectory, the girls are getting ready for messenger arrives with the news of Robert’s death. Jane the evening. Guests are invited as Henry is coming home. learns that Tom is now engaged to a rich young lady from Cassandra is worried that Robert may forget about her Ireland. Both girls are devastated. Jane accepts Mr Wisley’s because soon he will be going to West Indies. Mr Wisley proposal. pays a visit, and attempts to propose marriage to Jane. Chapter 12: Tom comes to offer Jane an explanation. Jane avoids the topic by running to meet Henry as his He asks her to elope with him, and she agrees. coach arrives. Chapter 13: After leaving Hampshire with Tom, Jane Chapter 4: In the evening, family, friends and neighbours happens to learn that Tom’s parents, brothers and sisters get together. The Lefroys, the Austens’ neighbours, depend on Tom’s allowance to survive. Jane ends her affair with him and comes back home.

pearsonenglishreaders.com © Pearson Education Limited 2016 - Teacher’s notes 1 of 3 level 3 Teacher’s notes Teacher Support Programme

Becoming Jane

Chapter 14: Jane finds out that John Warren is the one young Jane Austen pursues the idea of marriage for love, easystarts who wrote a letter to the Judge. Mr Wisley withdraws but in the end she was never married. his marriage proposal amicably. Jane’s family is very Lifestyle of middle and upper-middle classes: From this supportive. She continues writing Pride and Prejudice. story you can get a glimpse of social life for middle and Chapter 15: Twenty years later, Jane encounters Tom at level 2 upper-middle classes in England in the early nineteenth a social function. Henry invites him to a dinner party at century, such as formal visiting and dance parties. Women Henry and Eliza’s house (they are married). Tom is late as were not supposed to talk with men if they hadn’t been ever. Tom introduces his oldest daughter, whose name is introduced. In addition, an unmarried woman couldn’t level 3 Jane. She asks Jane to read at the party, and Jane reads the travel alone. story of Pride and Prejudice. Discussion activities level 4 Background and themes Chapters 1–3 Becoming Jane is a story from a film of the same name. The film was directed by and starred Anne Before reading 1 Discuss: Talk about the book cover. Ask students to level 5 Hathaway as Jane Austen and James McAvoy as Tom look at the picture on the front cover. Have students Lefroy. Although some of the things aren’t historically work in pairs to ask and answer the following correct, each character is a person who actually existed. questions: What can you see? Where do you think the Jane Austen: She is a much-loved English novelist. Born in story takes place? Do you think the story is about the level 6 past or present time? What do you think the story is 1775 in the Hampshire countryside, she was the seventh about? Why do you think so? child in a family of eight. Her father was a rector. Austen 2 Research: Have students collect information on Jane started writing as a young teenager. She fell in love with Austen and one of her novels, Pride and Prejudice. a young man (it is believed that this man is Tom Lefroy), Put students into small groups. Students can use the but as both of them were penniless, they weren’t allowed Internet and library. Later in class, ask each group to to marry. There is, however, no evidence that they share their findings with the rest of the class. attempted to elope or that they encountered each other After reading years later. At the end of this story Jane gives a public 3 Write and retell: Put students into pairs or small reading, but this must have been very rare as she was groups. Assign a different chapter to each group, and published anonymously until her death. Austen wrote have them write a short paragraph to explain what is happening in the chapter. When they are ready, ask six major novels. (1811), Pride and them to read out their paragraphs to recount the Prejudice (1813), (1814) and (1816) story. were published during her lifetime, and 4 Discuss: Talk about marriage. Have students work in and were published in 1818 after her death. small groups to discuss the followings: In Chapter 3 it Tom Lefroy: was an Irish says ‘She knew she had to get married. It was her duty to her family’. Do you think it is a duty to get married politician and judge. He was the eldest son of the Lefroy these days? What do you think if you have to get family. His great uncle Benjamin Langlois was his family’s married for your family? benefactor. He became the Chief Justice of Ireland in 5 Role play: Put students into pairs. Have them role 1852. Scholars believe that he was the one Jane Austen play the following situation: fell in love with when she was young. Student A: You are Eliza de Feuillide. You became a rich aristocrat by marriage, but you really wanted a Pride and Prejudice: It is said that Tom Lefroy is the marriage with love. Give Jane Austen some advice. inspiration for Mr Darcy in one of Austen’s most beloved Student B: You are Jane Austen. Tell Eliza what novels Pride and Prejudice. It’s a story about a young Mrs Austen says about marriage and Mr Wisley. Tell woman called , who learns to love Mr her your true feelings on marriage. Ask her for advice. Darcy although her first impressions of Mr Darcy were Chapters 4–6 false. Pride and Prejudice is available as a Pearson English Before reading Reader. 6 Write: Have students work in pairs. Ask them to Marriage with or without love: Young women in Jane think of the words for Mr Wisley’s marriage Austen’s era were searching for a wealthy husband of proposal. Mr Wisley couldn’t finish his important talk with Jane because Henry’s coach arrived. What if Henry good birth to secure their future social standing. Marrying didn’t arrive then and he had time to finish? He started a poor man for love was unthinkable then. In this story pearsonenglishreaders.com © Pearson Education Limited 2016 Becoming Jane - Teacher’s notes 2 of 3 level 3 Teacher’s notes Teacher Support Programme

Becoming Jane

off by saying, ‘Miss Austen, you are an interesting young Chapters 10–12 lady; you are exciting and so full of life.’ Work with easystarts Before reading your partner and finish his talk. They can share their 13 Understand and predict: Have a whole-class answers with the rest of the students later in class. discussion by asking the following questions: After reading a What happened between Mr Wisley and Jane? level 2 7 Discuss: Have a whole-class discussion by saying, b How does Jane feel about Tom? Just imagine yourself in Cassandra’s situation and that c How does Tom feel about Jane? your boyfriend or girlfriend has to go away for a time. Then ask students to guess which of the following will happen later in the story: level 3 What do you think you will do while you are far apart? Think of the situations at the present time and in the d Jane will refuse Mr Wisley’s offer. late 1700s and early 1800s. e Jane will marry Tom. 8 Read carefully: Remind students that Jane says dances f Jane will marry Mr Wisley. g Jane will never marry. level 4 are very important to life in the country. Put students into small groups, and have them read the h Lucy will marry Tom. Basingstoke Dance part of the story again. What do i Cassandra will marry Robert. people do at the dance? Why do you think dances are j Eliza will marry Henry. level 5 very important to life in the country? Later ask groups After reading to share their opinions with the rest of the class. 14 Research: Bring in a map of England and have 9 Discuss: Put students into pairs. Have them discuss students find where Hampshire, London and Scotland the following questions: are. Put students into small groups. Considering that level 6 a How does Jane feel about Tom during the special there were no cars, trains or aeroplanes then, have evening? students discuss how hard the journey could be. How b Why does Jane act like she does in the forest do they travel? How long do you think it takes to go to when she sees Tom? London from Hampshire? What about from London to c What does Jane think of Tom at the beginning of Scotland? the night of the Basingstoke Dance? 15 Retell: Have students look at the pictures on pages vi, d Why do you think Jane danced with Tom three 3, 7, 19, 29 and 36. Divide the class into five groups times? or put students into small groups, and assign one e Why do you think she reads Tom’s favourite book picture to each group. Have groups describe the The History of Tom Jones? picture and explain what happened beforehand and Chapters 7–9 afterwards in the story. Before reading Chapters 13–15 10 Discuss: Write the names of the following characters Before reading on the board: Jane Austen, Mr Austen, Mrs Austen, 16 Guess: Get students to predict what will happen at Cassandra, Robert Fowle, Eliza de Feuillide, Lady the end of the story. Have students work in pairs to Gresham, Mr Wisley, Tom Lefroy, Henry Austen, discuss the following questions: Do you think Jane will John Warren, Judge Langlois, Mr Lefroy, Mrs Lefroy run away with Tom successfully? Will her family ever find and Lucy Lefroy. Put students into small groups, and her again? Will Jane be happy? What do you think? Ask have them discuss the following questions: Who are them to write notes on what they think will happen, these people? What is their relationship to each other? and have them keep their notes for later. Ask them to write notes, and they can compare their answers later in class. After reading 17 Check: Have students go back to their notes from After reading Activity 16 and check if they were right or not. If not, 11 Discuss: Remind students that dances are very ask them to report how differently the story ends. important to life in the country because young people 18 Discuss: Have a whole class discussion by asking the can be close to each other and have a conversation following questions: Do you think the last chapter is without being heard (activity 8). Have students think important? Do you think the story can end without the what is equivalent for young people today. Have a last chapter? In history, there is no clear evidence that whole-class discussion. Jane and Tom met twenty years later. Does that matter 12 Role play: Have students work in small groups in to you? order to act out the scene of Mr Wisley’s marriage proposal to Jane. Give students sufficient time to practise acting out. The remaining group members can direct their friends’ acting. Later ask students to act out the scene in front of the class.

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