by Paul Rance

Created on: November 04, 2011   Last Updated: November 07, 2011

Jane Austen's 'Mock Panegyric on a Young Friend' contains wit akin to her literary masterpiece 'Pride and Prejudice'.

'Mock Panegyric on a Young Friend' begins with a very witty first verse that displays Jane Austen's skillful, observational and affectionate wit. One can ascertain from this first verse that the rest of the poetry is going to be a playful 'tribute' to her friend, and subject of this poem, Anna.

Anna's Enthusiasm for Knowledge 

The first two verses suggest that Anna's mind will not be contained. Meaning that she has a thirst for knowledge. In the third verse she is already passing on the knowledge she possesses to all and sundry. The humor in the poem is really in the way that Jane Austen pokes fun at Anna's enthusiasm, but in a sweet, gentle way. It makes it difficult not to like Anna, but also difficult not to like the poet either. 

It appears that Anna is not slow in coming forward, and gives her opinions to friends and foes alike. The way that Jane Austen uses the word "descends", is as if Anna is a bird of prey, waiting to strike and impart her version of wisdom on any unfortunate who happens to come within her orbit. 

Jane Austen describes Anna's judgment as sound, and likens her giving of wisdom to dispensing aid. Anna's wit gushes forth like "famed Niagara's fall", and you can't help but feel that the travelers who "gaze in wild amaze" are doing so with a sense of incredulity, rather than because they are gleaning much wisdom. They are also too polite to find an excuse to pull themselves away. 

The Beauty of Anna 

In the final two verses, the reader gets to find out more about what Anna actually looks like, though Jane Austen reveals that Anna is so beautiful that "Another world must be unfurled, / Another language known" to describe such a beauty. Anna has a beautiful face and figure, and a likeable character to match. 

'Mock Panegyric on a Young Friend' is a poem of seven verses, with each verse having four lines. The second and fourth line of each verse is rhymed. 

Though the poem does pick out Anna's inclination for over-enthusiasm, it does so in such a gentle way, that Anna's friends and loved ones, and even Anna herself, would surely not take offence. Jane Austen, of course, would also be appreciated for capturing the essence of her friend, though by doing so with the opposite of a dull and sycophantic tribute. 

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