Samuel Richardson
In Rambler 97 Samuel Richardson argues in favour of the course of courtship of his own youth. It is interesting to see how much the mores had changed between his times and those of Austen.
Austen famously paraphrased his words in Northanger Abbey:
for if it be true, as a celebrated writer has maintained, that no young lady can be justified in falling in love before the gentleman’s love is declared, it must be very improper that a young lady should dream of a gentleman before the gentleman is first known to have dreamt of her.
It is likewise significant to note that no positive hero of Austen’s ever seeks the lady’s family’s approval for courtship or asks for her hand before her own consent is given. Such a kind of behaviour is left to men like Mr. Collins or Henry Crawford.
You can read the Rambler 97 in The Repository.
Relevant posts at Austenette:
Rambler 97 by Samuel Richardson
Woman in Love
Mending My Own Pen 
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If you ever want to hear a reader’s feedback 🙂 , I rate this article for four from five. Decent info, but I just have to go to that damn google to find the missed parts. Thank you, anyway!
Thank you, but I admit to being confused. What missed parts?
Thanks for the info, I’m re-reading Northanger Abbey now and I wondered about the reference and found your site.