Experiencing Lyme Regis

Lyme Regis was a lot different than I expected it to be. In some aspects, I believe it was very close to the Lyme Regis that Jane Austen knew, as far as the sandy beaches, little shops, and beautiful coast line go, but at the same time, I think for the people who were on the beach that Friday, bathing in the ocean and finding fossils in the sand isn’t quite the novelty it would have been in the 1700s. That being said, each new experience I’ve had here in England has been invaluable in helping me understand the inspiration behind some of my favorite works. I can see Jane and Cassandra walking along the Cobb and her mind conjuring up a silly little girl jumping off the deceptively high edifice of her own accord. Then building on the story as her active imagination likely did, and having the repercussions of that lead Captain Wentworth to his epiphany about Anne. For all we know that is how the story of Persuasion was conjured—one morning as Jane took a walk down by the Cobb. She drew from her real life experiences to create her masterpieces, and having seen the Cobb, I can understand how she couldn’t resist including it in a pivotal moment of one of her novels.