In life, I am a devoted student of two things: Jane Austen and beauty culture. Recently, the two collided rather spectacularly with the explosion of “Jane Austen bangs” circulating on TikTok. It coincides with the 20th anniversary re-release of Pride & Prejudice, English director Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of what is largely considered Austen’s most popular work. (I recently went to see the movie with my book club, and some die-hard acolytes showed up in their best cottagecore.) Despite the fact that I am an Austenite to the nth degree, when I saw the trend pop up, all I could muster was an eye roll—and I’m not the only one.

May I be so bold as to suggest that we already have variations on Jane Austen bangs? They’re called mall bangs, only with ‘90s flair and shag. But the length and volume are the same. If you’d only taken ten minutes to curl them for a cottagecore vibe over a mall-rat look, you would’ve been there. And maybe it’s because I spend a lot of time looking at beauty trends, but I can also see the ephemeral whispers of the French/Korean aesthetics and micro bangs. Thus, if we really wanted to give credit where credit was due, everything is just a twist on JA’s original fringe. I’m fine with that—only let’s replace scraggly and unwashed strands with freshly crimped hair fit for the Netherfield ball. 

Which Jane Austen Character Are You?