Jane Austen Tea: Reflections on a local, literary adventure

Kimberly Wilder and Barbara Hellering

A couple of weeks ago, I had the chance to attend a Jane Austen tea in nearby Port Jefferson. It was a lot of fun. And, I met another local Jane Austen fan who does media and blogging projects. Her name is Erin Coughlin, and her article is excerpted and linked below. I was late to the event. Though, I was in time for the slideshow and tea. I enjoyed hearing Barbara Hellering, give her list of favorite “Mr. Darcies” and speak about the importance of irony in Jane Eyre. My Flicrk photos are: here.

(excerpt from) The Patch
Library Hosts Literary Tea Party To Celebrate Favorite Author
Barbara Hellering of the Jane Austen Society of North America delights fans at The Port Jefferson Library
Erin Coughlin 4/21/2011

On April 14, the Port Jefferson Library hosted it’s highly successful, Annual Jane Austen Tea Party to celebrate National Library Week.

Vice President Barbara Hellering of The Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) was on hand to discuss both the British author’s life and times, as well as her influence on modern society…

Hellering, a resident of Riverhead who has previously appeared on such hit shows as Good Morning America, continues to conduct group discussions on both Jane Austen and her growing iconic presence in modern times.

Aside from providing a lot of personal, biographical information about Austen, Hellering presented a slide show of images representing what England was like during Austen’s time.

Among the slides were photographs and drawings of other popular destinations mentioned in Austen’s novels as well as the other celebrities that frequented them. She then continued to give modern examples of how Austen’s work has not only influenced society, but remains visible in aspects of our everyday lives.

Audience members then watched three completely different versions of the famous “marriage proposal sequence” from Pride and Prejudice, in order to get an understanding of how different filmmakers interpreted Austen’s work.

Hellering explained how accurate the productions were in regards to both dialogue and art direction…

JASNA hosts regular meetings at rotating locations on Long Island as well as in the city. Fans under the age of 40 are encouraged to join JASNA’s younger group, Juvenilia.

“People should join if they like Jane Austen, because they can get together with other people that share their interest,” said Hellering…