<Tr> <Th> Signature </Th> <Td> </Td> </Tr> <P> Jane Austen (/ ˈɒstɪn /; 16 December 1775--18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century . Austen's plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage in the pursuit of favourable social standing and economic security . Her works critique the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th - century literary realism . Her use of biting irony, along with her realism and social commentary, have earned her acclaim among critics and scholars . </P> <P> With the publications of Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814) and Emma (1816), she achieved success as a published writer . She wrote two additional novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1818, and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but died before its completion . She also left behind three volumes of juvenile writings in manuscript and another unfinished novel, The Watsons . Her six full - length novels have rarely been out of print, although they were published anonymously and brought her moderate success and little fame during her lifetime . </P> <P> A significant transition in her posthumous reputation occurred in 1833, when her novels were republished in Richard Bentley's Standard Novels series, illustrated by Ferdinand Pickering, and sold as a set . They gradually gained wider acclaim and popular readership . In 1869, fifty - two years after her death, her nephew's publication of A Memoir of Jane Austen introduced a compelling version of her writing career and supposedly uneventful life to an eager audience . </P>

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