{"id":121999,"date":"2018-02-28T11:00:19","date_gmt":"2018-02-28T16:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/?p=121999"},"modified":"2018-02-28T12:02:27","modified_gmt":"2018-02-28T17:02:27","slug":"corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/","title":{"rendered":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

From the Jane Austen Society of North America\u2019s 2013 Netherfield Ball.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

In Minneapolis that fall, while my mother lay on a couch in upstate New York with her legs elevated as she healed from a recent knee replacement, it fell to me to deliver her paper at the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA). During the\u00a0Q&A that followed my rendition of her paper, I was roundly congratulated for this service to my mother, though no one voiced the rather obvious question of why such an apparently dutiful son wasn’t where he ought to be: at her bedside. The answer would have been that I was working on a book, researching and trying to understand the Janeites, this intoxicating secret society of superfans that was beginning to feel like an unexpected birthright. But they were too polite to ask, and I would have been too guarded to offer the answer.<\/p>\n

At the grand ball in Minneapolis, my dancing showed certain improvements since the long weekend I had spent at\u00a0the Jane Austen summer camp<\/a>\u00a0three months before. Though still clumsy in following the choreography, I was at least not a total amateur the second time around. Nevertheless, the size alone of the annual JASNA meeting meant the ball would be far more populous, collisions would be more frequent, and no one was safe from a camera. As the ball was set to begin, the writer Deborah Yaffe dragged over a friend, the two of them insisting that \u201cJane Bennet\u201d (an elegant-looking historical novelist with bouncy blonde ringlets) had been eyeing me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cGo over there!\u201d Yaffe told me. \u201cTell her she\u2019s the very image of Jane Bennet. That\u2019s your line.\u201d<\/p>\n

I thanked Deborah and turned to locate the woman in question, who had just materialized on my right arm.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re taking photographs of us,\u201d she whispered into my ear as she steered me toward a phalanx of camera phones. \u201cI hope you don\u2019t mind.\u201d Her poise before the cameras, and the commanding way in which she had taken my arm, felt absurd, like a moment of stage management on a red carpet outside the Oscars. There were camera flashes all around us, and I didn\u2019t even get to use Deborah\u2019s line before the lady had reserved two dances with me. Things were looking up.<\/p>\n

At dinner, while scribbling observations in my steno pad, I noticed Inger, a professor of mine, and one of her daughters seated two tables away in the banquet room. After the chicken course, Inger spotted me, smiled, rose, and approached.<\/p>\n

\u201cTed, at the risk of meddling, I should like to say that the two ladies on either side of me would both be tickled if you reserved the first four dances for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Craning, I spotted them: Prashansa, a young Indian scholar in a crimson sari, and Maria, a young Coloradan with doe eyes and lashes the length of Samuel Richardson\u2019s Clarissa<\/em>. Maria wore a beautiful white gown with a red sash.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, Inger. Depend upon me. Shall I pretend we never had this conversation?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I think we\u2019d better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staff began clearing tables to make room for dancing, and I approached the women in question.<\/p>\n

\u201cExcuse me\u2014I wondered whether you ladies would do me the honor of reserving the first portion of your dance cards for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

They smiled\u2014Maria actually curtsied\u2014and agreed, with a sly glance at Inger.<\/p>\n

We were novices, and there were one or two moments when our costumes came between us (the breech clasps below my knees kept coming undone, while Prashansa\u2019s sari did its best to trip her graceful feet), but no one trod on anyone else\u2019s toes, and we acquitted ourselves well. Conversation during the \u201cDuke of Kent\u2019s Waltz\u201d was quite literally by the book.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd now it is your turn to talk,\u201d Prashansa told me as we spun down the dance line. I lost only a moment in finding my bearings\u2014Pride & Prejudice<\/em>, Volume I. She\u2019s Elizabeth. You\u2019re Darcy. Get on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cPerhaps something about the number of couples?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes!\u201d Prashansa cried. \u201cOr the size of the room!\u201d<\/p>\n

Maria\u2019s dress was far better behaved, an arrangement that left her free to bat her eyes at a rate that would turn any warm-blooded man epileptic.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re very good, you know,\u201d I told her.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t tell anyone I didn\u2019t attend the instructional sessions,\u201d she stage-whispered. We interlaced with other couples, parted, reunited at the center of the dance line.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so crowded!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI would have twirled you, but there wasn\u2019t sufficient real estate.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, we can twirl next time; just don\u2019t let Glasses over there step on your toes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deborah Yaffe and her partner appeared next to us, in one of the kaleidoscopic reconfigurings that form the ritual intricacy of the Regency assembly dance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see you\u2019re doing well for yourself,\u201d Deborah said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou as well,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut what happened to Miss Bennet?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMiss Bennet, sad to say, is married.\u201d (This was true.) \u201cBut I really must thank you for your matchmaking efforts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deborah pulled me aside for a moment. \u201cWell, at least we know,\u201d she said in a tone of delectable conspiracy.<\/p>\n

As a break in the proceedings, the staff refreshed us with meats, cheeses, and white soup, the latter a favorite with Charles Bingley. (\u201cAs soon as Nicholls has made white soup enough I shall send round my cards,\u201d he promises Lydia before the Netherfield ball.) Making my way toward a table, I came upon a group of women discussing their conquests at previous years\u2019 balls. \u201cI\u2019ve tried to explain to my cousin,\u201d said one lady. \u201cNobody comes here for the sex. But we\u2019re warm-blooded people\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to watch a man struggle with a corset.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like you get the best of then and now! You can dress like Emma but still go to bed with Frank Churchill.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAssuming his fianc\u00e9e isn\u2019t around.\u201d<\/p>\n

The women agreed that a JASNA ball was a bit like visiting a resort in Austen\u2019s day, when, as a tourist in Bath or Southampton, a man or woman of means could behave much more freely than at home, especially given that most people would be strangers.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you think Austen would have considered Minneapolis a resort city?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know, but we\u2019re here, and we\u2019re thoroughly disguised.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine just putting your hand down Willoughby\u2019s pants. What a power move that would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think one\u2019s allowed a bit of fun after being so studious all day.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI should think Jane would be happy to see modern ladies getting to enjoy themselves, though I\u2019m not sure she\u2019d be impressed with the selection of men \u2026 \u201d<\/p>\n

I sat myself with Maria and Prashansa and several older ladies. The lady to my right, in a green bonnet, offered us a gracious smile as we installed ourselves.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I know you\u2014I attended your mother\u2019s talk,\u201d said Miss Green Bonnet. \u201cShe seems to have the proper idea about Austen and sex.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYour mother had many thoughts on this score,\u201d Prashansa said with a smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy mother,\u201d I explained to Maria, \u201cdisagrees with Ruth Perry, who argues that film adaptations have blinded us to Mr. Collins\u2019s status as an eligible bachelor.\u201d Maria laughed.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, that <\/em>is going too far. But the films always make us read the books differently, don\u2019t they?\u201d The table issued nods and slurps. \u201cFor instance: Do you like the Olivier-Garson version?\u201d Maria was referring to the 1940 adaptation, directed by Robert Z. Leonard with a script by Aldous Huxley<\/a> and Jane Murfin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do, very much,\u201d I said with a generous wave of my soup glass. \u201cDespite its famous liberties!\u201d<\/p>\n

Maria nodded. \u201cWhich include a thorough rewrite of Lady Catherine.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA public rehabilitation in the third act?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIndeed. And of course that\u2019s all a wartime thing\u2014the American P&P <\/em>leaves us with warm feelings toward this crusty exponent of the traditional gentry virtues.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRight. Because we\u2019d never send troops to help Mrs. Norris,\u201d someone added.<\/p>\n

The evening\u2019s wines were beginning to take effect; this remark was met with titters around the table. I told the ladies about the man whom I had met in the elevators that morning. There were two conferences happening concurrently at the Minneapolis Hilton: JASNA and a separate much-smaller weekend seminar called \u201cFinancial Planning for Lutherans.\u201d In general, it was not difficult to tell which hotel guests were attending which of the two conferences. The gentleman in question (who struck me as the very model of a fiscally prudent Lutheran) had cast a smiling eye over the dresses and petticoats in the lobby of the hotel before joining me in the elevator to observe that \u201ceveryone seems to be dressed very nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

I laughed, uncertain as to what he meant, whether he was joking. \u201cWhat do you think of the bonnets?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I guess I didn\u2019t realize they were back in fashion!\u201d<\/p>\n

He wasn\u2019t joking.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou realize it\u2019s the big annual meeting of the Jane Austen Society?\u201d<\/p>\n

His smile widened, but he remained blithe, unfazed. \u201cOh! How funny. I had no idea. I thought perhaps there was a wedding or baptism.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Excerpted from <\/em>Camp Austen: My Life as an Accidental Jane Austen Superfan,<\/em>\u00a0by Ted\u00a0Scheinman, forthcoming from Farrar, Straus and Giroux this March. Copyright \u00a92018 by\u00a0Ted\u00a0Scheinman.\u00a0\u00a0All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n

Portions of this book were published, in their early stages, on <\/i>The Paris Review Daily<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ted Scheinman<\/a> is\u00a0a writer and scholar whose work has appeared in the\u00a0<\/em>New York Times, the<\/em>\u00a0Oxford American, The\u00a0Atlantic, Slate, and a variety of other publications. He is based in Southern California, where he works as senior editor at <\/em>Pacific Standard magazine.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  In Minneapolis that fall, while my mother lay on a couch in upstate New York with her legs elevated as she healed from a recent knee replacement, it fell to me to deliver her paper at the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA). During the\u00a0Q&A that followed my rendition of her paper, I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":560,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[419],"tags":[33112,2921,13317,2997,31500,33113,8867,33108,33105,504,14565,33106,12985,16533,26669,33111,33107,15333,3988,2999,18053],"class_list":["post-121999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-arts-culture","tag-camp-austen","tag-convention","tag-dancing","tag-emma","tag-emma-thompson","tag-georgian-era","tag-jane-austen-society-of-north-america","tag-jane-bennet","tag-jasna","tag-literature","tag-mansfield-park","tag-netherfield-ball","tag-nineteenth-century","tag-nineteenth-century-literature","tag-northanger-abbey","tag-period-drama","tag-pride-prejudice","tag-regency-costume","tag-romance","tag-sense-and-sensibility","tag-victorian-era"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCorsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ted Scheinman goes undercover amid the secret society of Jane Austen superfans, tripping through the dances as his breech clasps come undone.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society by Ted Scheinman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"February 28, 2018 \u2013   In Minneapolis that fall, while my mother lay on a couch in upstate New York with her legs elevated as she healed from a recent knee replacement,\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Paris Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/parisreview\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1632\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1224\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ted Scheinman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@parisreview\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@parisreview\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ted Scheinman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"8 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ted Scheinman\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e44969757cbd329372adc9a0f7077ec1\"},\"headline\":\"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\"},\"wordCount\":1669,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo-1024x768.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Camp Austen\",\"convention\",\"dancing\",\"Emma\",\"Emma Thompson\",\"Georgian era\",\"Jane Austen Society of North America\",\"Jane Bennet\",\"JASNA\",\"literature\",\"Mansfield Park\",\"Netherfield Ball\",\"nineteenth century\",\"nineteenth century literature\",\"Northanger Abbey\",\"period drama\",\"Pride & Prejudice\",\"regency costume\",\"romance\",\"Sense and Sensibility\",\"Victorian era\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Arts & Culture\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\",\"name\":\"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo-1024x768.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00\",\"description\":\"Ted Scheinman goes undercover amid the secret society of Jane Austen superfans, tripping through the dances as his breech clasps come undone.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg\",\"width\":1632,\"height\":1224,\"caption\":\"From the 2013 JASNA Netherlands Ball\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"The Paris Review\",\"description\":\"The best prose, interviews, poetry, and art. Since 1953.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Paris Review\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tpr-hadada-roundell-logo-square.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tpr-hadada-roundell-logo-square.png\",\"width\":696,\"height\":696,\"caption\":\"The Paris Review\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/parisreview\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/parisreview\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/parisreview\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e44969757cbd329372adc9a0f7077ec1\",\"name\":\"Ted Scheinman\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/74a5dcbe57b8553f9e244107925833cea3191946a99a1d05b5717e6cc3617663?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/74a5dcbe57b8553f9e244107925833cea3191946a99a1d05b5717e6cc3617663?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ted Scheinman\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/author\/tscheinman\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society","description":"Ted Scheinman goes undercover amid the secret society of Jane Austen superfans, tripping through the dances as his breech clasps come undone.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society by Ted Scheinman","og_description":"February 28, 2018 \u2013   In Minneapolis that fall, while my mother lay on a couch in upstate New York with her legs elevated as she healed from a recent knee replacement,","og_url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/","og_site_name":"The Paris Review","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/parisreview\/","article_published_time":"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00","article_modified_time":"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1632,"height":1224,"url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ted Scheinman","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@parisreview","twitter_site":"@parisreview","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ted Scheinman","Est. reading time":"8 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/"},"author":{"name":"Ted Scheinman","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e44969757cbd329372adc9a0f7077ec1"},"headline":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society","datePublished":"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00","dateModified":"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/"},"wordCount":1669,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo-1024x768.jpg","keywords":["Camp Austen","convention","dancing","Emma","Emma Thompson","Georgian era","Jane Austen Society of North America","Jane Bennet","JASNA","literature","Mansfield Park","Netherfield Ball","nineteenth century","nineteenth century literature","Northanger Abbey","period drama","Pride & Prejudice","regency costume","romance","Sense and Sensibility","Victorian era"],"articleSection":["Arts & Culture"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/","url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/","name":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo-1024x768.jpg","datePublished":"2018-02-28T16:00:19+00:00","dateModified":"2018-02-28T17:02:27+00:00","description":"Ted Scheinman goes undercover amid the secret society of Jane Austen superfans, tripping through the dances as his breech clasps come undone.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/photo.jpg","width":1632,"height":1224,"caption":"From the 2013 JASNA Netherlands Ball"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/2018\/02\/28\/corsets-cotillions-evening-jane-austen-society\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Corsets and Cotillions: An Evening with the Jane Austen Society"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/","name":"The Paris Review","description":"The best prose, interviews, poetry, and art. Since 1953.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#organization","name":"The Paris Review","url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tpr-hadada-roundell-logo-square.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tpr-hadada-roundell-logo-square.png","width":696,"height":696,"caption":"The Paris Review"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/parisreview\/","https:\/\/x.com\/parisreview","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/parisreview"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/e44969757cbd329372adc9a0f7077ec1","name":"Ted Scheinman","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/74a5dcbe57b8553f9e244107925833cea3191946a99a1d05b5717e6cc3617663?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/74a5dcbe57b8553f9e244107925833cea3191946a99a1d05b5717e6cc3617663?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ted Scheinman"},"url":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/author\/tscheinman\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/560"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121999"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":122048,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121999\/revisions\/122048"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theparisreview.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}