Jane Austen's (1775–1817) references to headache: fact and fiction

Abstract

References to headache in Jane Austen's works, both fictional and non-fictional, and in biographical works undertaken by Austen family members have been collated. These multiple references suggest that Jane Austen used headache as a narrative device to reflect not only physiological bodily processes but also psychological states, possibly based on her own experience of headache and that of female relations and acquaintances.