A new Austen drama made me wonder: is the fate of bookish young women really so different today? | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett

The Other Bennett Sister reminded me of my own self-consciousness – and worry that girls still have to play down their cleverness To be a clever, bookish teenage girl is to spend a certain amount of time standing on the sidelines, feeling invisible to boys. When I was at school, there seemed to be a natural division: you could be smart or pretty, but you could not be both. Of course, there were girls who were indeed both, but they either intentionally dumbed themselves down or spent an inordi...

By Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett