I think most fans of Jane Austen, and there are legions, like to think of her as having experienced love in her short life. Now a miniature of the young man she is believed to have cared for has been placed on the art market. This morning, an article was posted in The Guardian about Jane Austen and penniless law student, Tom LeFroy:
“She described him as “a very gentlemanlike, good-looking, pleasant young man” – and Jane Austen certainly fell for his boyish charms.
This tiny watercolour portrait, which is expected to fetch £50,000 when it goes on sale next week, was painted two years after a brief but highly charged dalliance between Austen and law student Tom Lefroy. They met at a ball, danced over and over, sat together and talked about their love of books and Henry Fielding.”
The recent book, Becoming Jane Austen, and the movie that was based upon it, entitled Becoming Jane, depict their relationship.
Sigh….
full article:
http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2284672,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=10
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Very interesting! Thanks for posting about this. We finally know what this dashing man looked like.