To mark the 200th death anniversary of one of the most celebrated writers of English literature, the Bank of England has unveiled a new banknote that features a portrait of Jane Austen, as well as a quote from her novel Pride and Prejudice.

Made of plastic polymer that the bank says is cleaner, safer and more hard-wearing than the traditional cotton material of existing currency, the new note incorporates tactile features — similar to Braille characters — that will make it easier to recognise by the visually impaired.

The note will be issued into public circulation in September. A limited run of Ј2 coins featuring the author has also been released.

The writer, noted for her irony, would smile at this turn of events: Austen grew up in semi-genteel poverty. Her father George took care of her expenses until he passed away when she was about 30 years old. Thereafter Austen became a ‘poor relation’ living on a meagre income provided by her brothers who were not in any magnificent financial shape themselves.

As such, economics was a prevalent theme in her novels, underscoring the necessity for young women — if they did not have wealth of their own — to marry wealthy suitors. Austen’s female characters discuss the merits of potential husbands on the basis of their yearly incomes. Her male characters grow conflicted when the appeal of the young ladies is not satisfactorily offset by their families’ financial standing.

By the time she died aged 41, Austen had published four books that were generally well-received, but did not earn her much money. In 1833 the first collected edition of her works was released, and since then — 16 years after her death — her books have been continuously in print, selling hundreds of thousands of copies, including three further novels that were published posthumously.

Published in Dawn, Books & Authors, July 23rd, 2017