There are many low key clubs in CHS, one of them being the Jane Austen Club.

There are approximately 10 members total and an average of about six to eight members show up at each meeting. There aren’t too many members, but the small numbers suit the club.

During the club, the members read and discuss novels by Jane Austen or from her time period as well as watch movies of the books or about the time period and discuss the historical and literary contexts for the novels.

The club’s president, Julia Bailey, a sophomore at CHS says that she’s in the club because she really loves Jane Austen’s work. Bailey also says, “I really like Jane Austen Club because it is the one time a week I am able to discuss the novels I love with peers; it is always refreshing to hear someone else’s take on a novel, or to see how others imagine the characters and situations. I really enjoy going to a club where other people share an interest in something you are really passionate about; it is nice to see you aren’t the only one who likes to read more archaic or outdated texts, or even that people are curious about the time period, or the novels.”

The club’s president, Julia Bailey, a sophomore at CHS, says that she likes Jane Austen for many reasons. “Firstly, I enjoy the satiric humor in her novels, coupled with the elegant writing; it is very refreshing to read someone from that era that does not waste their time nor bore their audience with involved periods,” Bailey says. “I also enjoy the stories in of themselves, and the messages they carry with them. I often feel that Jane and I agree on almost everything that comes up in her novels. I love Jane Austen’s outlook on life, she does not waste her time delving into the depths of the human soul, but rather portrays human life as it is, writing about people in a way that is both amusing and accurate, and that brings the time period to life.”

Bailey’s favorite Jane Austen novel, she says, would have to be Mansfield Park. “Mansfield Park is not one that many people pick, or even recognize, but I like it all the same. I love this novel immensely. It is probably one of my all time favorites due to the story itself, the fascinating characters, the very subtle satire, and the bitter undercurrent that runs through the novel, which gives it a flavor I particularly enjoy,” Bailey says. “II believe the novel is deeply reflective of Jane’s life and of what influenced her, which accounts for the bitter undercurrent, and for the striking affinity it has with several 18th century texts, which I also happen to enjoy).”

Bailey also would like to tell people that Jane Austen Club is by no means a club for really literary individuals or for people who have read all the books and know them by heart. “It is an opportunity to read influential and, I might add, fun books, to discuss with other people, and to discover the life and times of Jane Austen,” Bailey says. “We are particularly open to people who are curious, so if you have the inclination, stop by on a Thursday afternoon from 3:00 to 4:00 in room four and join us for a cup to tea!”