Jane Austen (1775-1817) was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction, set among the gentry, earned her a place as one of the most widely read writers in English literature. George Justice is Vice Provost for Advanced Studies and Dean of the Graduate School, as well as Professor of English at the University of Missouri-Columbia. He is the author of "The Manufacturers of Literature: Writing and the Literary Marketplace in Eighteenth-Century England," as well as essays and reviews on books related to eighteenth-century literature and culture. He is editor, with Albert J. Rivero, of the scholarly journal "The Eighteenth-Century Novel." He is co-editor of "Women's Writing and Circulation of Ideas: Manuscript Publication in English, 1550-1800.".