“Northanger Abbey” Questions for Discussion
1. What other Jane Austen novels, if any, have you read?
2. Can you describe some of the plot devices, symbols, and images found in Northanger Abbey that characterizedpopular Gothicnovels of the time?
3. We are told in the beginning that Catherine was decidedly not born to be an heroine. Why do you think Austen created such a simple, naïve heroine for a book about literature? How does Catherine compare to the more typical type of novel heroine? How does she compare to Austen’s other heroines?
4. Why is Catherine unable to see that Isabella is not a true friend? What else does she fail to see and understand? What dangers does she imagine, and what dangers are real? How might the situations in which she finds herself, and her resulting behavior and emotions, be reminiscent of teenagers in any era?
5. The narrator frequently interrupts. What is the effect of this technique? Are these narrative interruptions significant? Do readers really get a clear picture of Catherine and her inner life from the narrative or not?
6. Northanger Abbey depicts how hard it can be to get reliable information about people. John's exaggerations to General Tilney about Catherine are a good example. How does unreliable information impact the overall plot and the individual characters?
7. Gothic novels were the pop culture of Austen’s time. The parents and educators of her era worried about the effect of this new cultural form on young people. How does Catherine’s reading of Gothic novels affect her thinking and behavior? Do you think certain aspects of today’s pop culture are particularly harmful? Why?
8. What do you think of Henry Tilney? Is he patronizing and misogynistic, or gentle, caring and perceptive? Why do you think he chooses Catherine? Do you think he will be able to love her? Why or why not?
9. Northanger Abbey contains a famous “defence of the novel” —in a narrative aside about fiction, particularly the kind that is read and written by women. Why do you think so many women like romance novels and the popular genre called “chick lit?” Is there a male equivalent of this kind of escapist fiction? To what extent do you think Austen’s novels belong in the “chick lit” or “romance” categories?
10. Why do you think Northanger Abbey has been disregarded among modern scholars and fans? There is some evidence that in the 19th and early 20th centuries, it was quite popular and considered as highly as the rest of Austen’s other novels. In what ways do you think it falls short of her other works?
11. How would you adapt Northanger Abbey into a modern day movie or book? In what sort of environment would it be set?
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