] What I meant to say was that being aware of the stark contrasts in living conditions in society, Jane must have had some thoughts and feelings about it, right?

I agree with Jack Cerf's opinion here, we really have to consider JA is her own time, and not try to impose modern sensibilities. e.g. People on this board often find the class system in JA's time hard to understand, and I am sure that JA would be asking quite a few questions about the social order of today or at the time of the Norman Conquest if she was asked to write a paper on it!

Anyway, I have a point to add, a question really, because none of us will ever know what goes on inside someone else's head - but we are very lucky that we have JA's writings, letters and many other people's insights about her.

What we do know is that JA did appreciate there was inequality in a class society, and wrote about it. Isn't that good enough?

Do you really believe that JA really appreciated our so-
called inequalities in her society? i.e. servants, slavery etc. Is there any evidence that JA ever went to an industrial town, a coal mine or factory and saw the *real* inequalities there? She lived all her live in pleasant places in the South of England. Did she ever go to a plantation and see slavery first hand? Did she ever meet anyone who could have given her some anti-slavery information? Of course she knew about servants, but servants were actually well off - they had room, board and wages, and mostly looked after well by their employers. People work for other people today - I do very long hours for my employer in my office job for a few pounds so I can live.