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Old 07-27-2013, 12:44 PM   #36
sun surfer
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Good on old Jane. Imagine if she knew that one day she'd be on a ten pound note!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Andrew H. View Post
It's fine, I guess...but it's really pretty generic. Lots of people have said that or similar, and I doubt many people would identify the quote with JA.

If they are going to put JA on the banknote, they should have the courage of their convictions and *also* put a well known quote from her on the note.

Of course the obvious candidate is It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

That is the most famous JA quote. That would be great quote for any banknote; much better than the wishy-washy, namby-pamby pap they chose.

Although it wouldn't be my first choice, but I would even be okay if they made it gender neutral:

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man or woman in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a spouse.
Well, with Austen's original quote, it's now incorrect because that single man may very well instead be in want of a husband.

But even making it gender neutral as you've done, it still wouldn't seem very correct for today's world. Perhaps a better quote would be, "It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single person in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a shag."
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