Mansfield Park is in essence a tapestry of allusions to various works of literature and events in history to which Jane Austen left abundant "clues." This book is about finding and interpreting those "clues." Works of literature alluded to include, among others, Spenser's The Faerie Queene , Dante's Inferno and Milton's Paradise Lost . Events in history alluded to include the slavery issue of Jane Austen's day, the American Revolution, the Battle of Actium, the Battle of Trafalgar and the then-looming War of 1812.