Jane Austen's Exploration of Social Destiny in the Presentation of Jane Fairfax and Harriet Smith
In all of Jane Austen's novels, she explores social destiny which
seems to be dependent on their status in society. In the 19th Century
or in Austen's age social destiny was something that everyone was very
interested in. It depended greatly on your rank or class in society.
One's family name and its roots as well as one's fortune are factors
that were considered when determining one's social destiny. For
example, someone of a higher class would be more fortunate in making a
good marriage; good in those days mainly meaning a comfortable
marriage due to the financial situation. In "Emma", social status
seems to be very important, especially to Emma herself who says, 'a
farmer can need none of my help, and therefore is in one sense as much
above my notice as in every other he is below it'. Therefore in Emma's
eyes the social destiny of a farmer would not be anything of a high
standard. In 'Pride and Prejudice it is also clear that the aspect of
social destiny is very important. Mrs. Bennet seems to be much
occupied with her daughters' destiny as she is in agreement with the
very first line of the novel, 'It is universally acknowledged that a
man with a fortune must be in want of a wife'. The social destiny of
Jane Fairfax and Harriet Smith are both quite similar as they both
come from similar backgrounds. In order to explore the social destiny
of these characters that Austen presents their background is an
important aspect to consider as well as Austen's actual
characterisation of them, and their social destiny compared with their
actual destiny in the novel.
Jane Austen does not make Harriet's background known to us or for any
of the other characters in the novel for that matter. It is said that
her father is unknown and has no family or fortune. Only 'family' she
has is Mrs. Goddard, who was the mistress of her school.
Jane, Austen,. Emma complete, authoritative text with biographical, historical, and cultural contexts, critical history, and essays from contemporary critical perspectives. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2002.
Hong Chen in Ha Jin’s short story “Taking a Husband” is troubled by the task of selecting a spouse. The family’s fall from affluence and greed resolved her to pick a husband based on potential prosperity. “After her father died of bone cancer, life was hard for the Chens. Two years after his death, the Chens were forced to move out of the compound inhabited by the cadres’ families” (Jin, 2007, p. 355). Hong decided to pick one of the suitors that were candidates for a higher official position. Material wealth is a powerful incentive to forfeit happiness and love during tough times.
“Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing; a confusion of the real with the ideal never goes unpunished,” said Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. An American wealth-research corporation, Prince and Associates, once did a research on a sample group of more than thirty women that if they would marry for money. Surprisingly, about approximately seventy-five percent of the group said “yes”. In fact, many women admit that they would rather marry a billionaire that they barely know than a penniless guy they truly love. We often read in novels and see it in those late night soap dramas, in the most romantic setting with exquisite background music, the main character solemnly promises his passionate love to the female actor with ninety-nine roses in his hand; the female character of course feels touched by his actions and blissfully accepts his proposal. Depressingly, those fairy-tales are too beautiful to become true. Take Mr. and Mrs. Bennet from Pride and Prejudice for an example, it is quite obvious that these two irresponsible adults did no marry for pure love. Mr. Bennet was more attracted to Mrs. Bennet’s physical appearance in his youth, and he rushed into courtship without further consideration. As time passes, Mrs. Bennet no longer has her good-looking face. Twenty years later, Mr. Bennet lost interest in her and regret ever marrying her. As you can see, in the twenty-first century, a time full with fierce competition, material gain is the first thing most women concern about when they marry, followed by physical attraction and security to a stable home.
man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.’ This
Through the movie Wall Street, the book the Great Gatsby and the short story Bernice Bobs her Hair, women are seen as luxuries who only care about money and their looks. From these pieces, one can determine that wealthy men are being hunted for by women. Also, the women that go after the wealthy men, like Darien and Daisy, care about their looks. They also have this feeling of needing money. The sad part is that wealthy men, like Bud, find great pleasure in having an attractive “little fool” in their life and it continues to drive them in getting more money so that they can continue to live this wonderful and luxurious life. Money is life and for some people, life is having an attractive, greedy and luxurious partner.
... But in fact her powers and beauty cannot change the foundation of her society. Emma’s circumscription within the boundaries of her class kept her world under control. This prevents her from considering another society beyond her existence. The confusion from her failed attempts with Harriet due to her guidance, allows her to embrace reality. Jane Austen uses Emma’s character to reveal the quality in the structures of the nineteenth century society. Based on the conclusion of the novel, when Emma is forced to look beyond the limited power and beauty she has and acknowledge the existing order and structure of the early nineteenth century English society.
single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife'.
man in possession of a good fortune must be in a want of a wife". This
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. (PP, 1)
Austen was raised in an unusually liberal family where her father was a part of the middle-landowning class. They had a moderate amount of luxuries, but were not considered well off. Unlike many girls of her time Austen received a fairly comprehensive education. She received this mainly through the undivided support of her family. Austen and her sisters, like most girls of their time, were homeschooled. Austen’s zealous parents encouraged the girls to play piano, read and write. Her parent’s encouragement led to her interest in writing. Austen’s father housed an extensive library filled with books which kept Austen occupied for years (“Sense and Sensibility” 119). Through her observant nature and passion to read and write, Austen was able to eloquently write of the many “hidden truths” of social and class distinction during her time. They included daily societal changes some of which foreshadowed future societal leniency. Familial support also extended societal norm of marriage. Her parents attempt...
“It is truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”
Within the novel, Jane Austen’s exploits of irony are shown linked throughout Emma’s notions of love and the real within her own society. Emma’s lack of education on the concepts of love is quite evident within her apathy towards Frank Churchill as her opinions are deeply rooted within her own affections, as she states, “Emma continued to entertain no doubt of her being in love. Her ideas only varied as to the how much. At first, she thought it was a good deal; and afterwards, but little. She had great pleasure in hearing Frank Churchill talked of; and for his sake, greater pleasure than ever in seeing Mr. and Mrs. Weston; she was very often thinking of him. But, on the other hand, she could not admit herself to be unhappy, nor, after the first morning, to be less disposed for employment than usual; she was still busy and cheerful; and, pleasing as he was, she could yet imagine him to have faults,” (Austen 264). Emma’s sketch of Harriet is another illustration of irony surrounded by Emma’s arrogance as it does not portray an accurate depiction of Harriet as Emma has altered ...
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”
Many people read Jane Austen’s fiction novels and only see her writing as cliché and old fashioned. But her stories have a classic, undying theme to them. Stories that are still relatable to readers today. In the last 10 years Austen’s books have been made into a number of television adaptations. Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Sense and Sensibility, and Mansfield Park. Not only do we see Austen’s story lines through her books and the movies, but many modern authors and movie directors use Austen as an inspiration when writing their books and movie scripts. Austen’s stories capture the heart of many people, but she also captures the heart of women today. Women who strive to abolish the social discrimination against themselves. It is a debatable
The biographies about Jane Austen describe the facts of her life in a step-by-step manner. They tend to be repetitive since she did not leave behind a rich fabric of day-to-day life. Yet Jane Austen is known not because of the factual details of her life; she is not remembered two hundred years after her death because she had six siblings and was a wonderful aunt to her nieces and nephews. Rather, Jane Austen is remembered because of what she wrote, her "ouvre." Only through reading her literature does one get a taste of the real Jane Austen, the Jane Austen who dreamed and made plans for the future that failed to materialize. Therefore, I have attempted to describe the life of Jane Austen by interpreting her novels and picking three main characters who I feel most closely serve as her alter ego. A writer writes from his or her own experiences; only by analyzing Jane Austen's characters do we get an understanding of the true author.