Reception history of Jane Austen a responsible land-owner taking care of his family's ancient estate and Emma Woodhouse symbolising wealth cut off from any sort of social role. David Kaufmann in his 1992 essay "Propriety and the Law" argued that Austen was a classical liberal in the mold of Adam Smith, who felt that virtue was best exercised in the private sphere of the family life rather than in the public sphere of politics. Kaufmann rejected the claim that Austen was influenced by Edmund Burke, arguing that for Austen, virtue was not something passed down from time immemorial from a landed elite as Burke would
Reception history of Jane Austen lifestyle, did not want to follow this suggestion, but her friends convinced her otherwise: in short order, "Emma" was dedicated to him. Austen turned down the librarian's further hint to write a historical romance in honour of the prince's daughter's marriage. In the last year of her life, Austen revised "Northanger Abbey" (1817), wrote "Persuasion" (1817), and began another novel, eventually titled "Sanditon", which was left unfinished at her death. Austen did not have time to see "Northanger Abbey" or "Persuasion" through the press, but her family published them as one volume after her death and her brother Henry included