Jane Austen the Great

I have of late pursued the book Sense and Sensibility. Jane never ceases to amaze me. Certainly the style of that era is in itself rather eye-catching, but she puts the icing on the cake! (excuse the lame cliche...) For example:

"I can feel no sentiment of approbation inferior to love." Simpletons as I am might have to stop and think about what she is saying, but once you figure it out, it is a rather beautiful way of saying "I can't but love."

"I could not be happy with a man whose taste did not in every point coincide with my own." In other words, unless you're just like me I can't love you."

Now, some may say that the such language is just complicated and strung out, and therefore in no way better than our own. But might I help you recall the many times you have struggled with not being able to express yourself as you would like - you just can't find that perfect word. I doubt if those in that era had such problems, much less as frequently. Because of their vocabulary and their being able to put words together, they (people like Austen) could paint the perfect picture of what they want you to understand.