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In the early 1800s Jane Austen wrote what would be her last novel, Persuasion. Persuasion is set during the “Georgian Society” which greatly affects the character's views and actions throughout the novel. Anne Elliot and Frederick Wentworth quickly fell in love when Anne was just nineteen years old, but because he wasn't wealthy enough, Anne was not given the permission by her father, Sir Walter, to marry him. Eight years after this incident, the roles have reversed; Sir Walter has lost all of his money and Frederick Wentworth is now known as Captain Wentworth. Throughout the novel, Anne tries to overcome struggles with social class in order to fulfill her longing of being with Captain Wentworth. Therese Anderson's statement about the foundation of society in “The Importance of Class and Money” justifies the actions of those in Persuasion. “Marx argued that the real foundation of society was the economic structure, that political and legal superstructures rose from this... it is on the contrary their social existence which determines their consciousness” (1-2). Sir Walter focuses only on the economic factor which is what creates his narcissistic personality. Because of Captain Wentworth's lack of social class, Anne Elliot is unable to further her love and commitment for him. Jane Austen uses heavy irony throughout the plot line to show that there is no correlation between the amount of money one has and their quality of love. The difference in social class between Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth affect their ability to get married. Sir Walter doesn't like the idea of having equality with men in the service, because he thinks it makes them unworthy of certain attributes, which is not uncommon for this time period. In this situ... ... middle of paper ... ... Factor” Jasna. 1984. Web. 28. Feb. 2014 Works Consulted Armstrong, Nancy. Persuading the Navy Home: Austen and Married Women's Professional Property. JSTOR. JSTOR, 2004. Web. 15 Jan. 2014. Duffy, Joseph M. Structure and Idea in Jane Austen's “Persuasion.” JSTOR. JSTOR, 1954. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. Eagleton, Terry. Marxism and Literary Criticism. Berkeley: University of California, 1976. Print. “Marxism.” Alpha History. 2005. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. Monaghan, David M. The Decline of the Gentry: a Study of Jane Austen's Attitude to Formality in Persuasion. JSTOR. JSTOR, 1969. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. “Political Changes.” HistoryLearningSite. 2013. Web. Jan 15. 2014. Stevens, Laura M. Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature. JSTOR. JSTOR, 1982. Web. 14 Jan. 2014. Young, Kay. Feeling Embodied: Consciousness, Persuasion, and Jane Austen. JSTOR. JSTOR, 2003. Web. 15 Jan. 2014.
Fowler, Karen J.Introduction. Persuasion. Jane Austen: The Complete Novels. By Jane Austen. New York: Penguin, 2006. 1091-1231. Print.
...iece, with lengthy, persuasive essay-like chapters throughout the text. Austen compresses her commentary and the narrator does not dominate the discussion. As it concisely conveys its message, Austen's work represents a development from Fielding's inflated treatise on the subject. The issue of the novel as respectable or as art was clearly an important issue of debate; the greatest speakers for both novelists were the "authors" of their respective texts.
To summarize Persuasion, Anne Eliot, on the advice of her friends and family, declined the marriage proposal of a naval captain named Wentworth eight and a half years prior to the start of the story. Wentworth was not thought of as noble prospect for the daughter of a baronet by Anne’s friends and family. In search for a wife, Captain Wentworth returns home only this time he would be consider a noble prospect for Anne to marry due to the fact that he is rich from prizes taken in the war. Even though the captain shows disdain and is cold
Southam, B.C., (ed.), Jane Austen: The Critical Heritage. Landon, NY: Routledge & Kegan Paul - Barres & Nobel Inc., 1968.
New Haven, Conn: Yale University Press, 1979. Le Faye, Deirdre, ed. Jane Austen's letters, 3rd. ed. Oxford University Press, 1995.
Johnson, Claudia Durst, ed. Issues of Class in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
The literature output in Jane Austen’s creation is full of realism and irony. Janet Todd once asserted that "Austen creates an illusion of realism in her texts, partly through readably identification with the characters and partly through rounded characters, which have a history and a memory.” (Todd, The Cambridge Introduction to Jane Austen, 28.) Her works are deeply influenced between by late eighteenth-century Britain rationalism phenomenon and early nineteenth-century of romanticism.
Vanity is a reoccuring theme in Persuasion and is particularly portrayed through the character of Sir Walter Elliot and it is evident that the cause of this is the abundance of wealth that seemingly elavates the upper classes. His arrogance is immediately highlighted in chapter one where the narrator declares how “vanity was the beginning and end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character.” He prides his appearance and that of others beyond most things, even his daughter Anne who he can find “little to admire in.” His disaproval evokes his own self importance as her “delicate features an...
Persuasion, by Jane Austen is a story of a maturing heroine and her second chance at love. Eight years before Persuasion picked up the story, Anne Elliot let herself be persuaded to refuse the man she loved because her family and friends told her she was above him. He left, his heart broken, and resented her for the next eight years. She never loved anyone else, and at the start of this romance novel, she was twenty seven years old, and unmarried. In Persuasion, Austen provides a character study of Anne Elliot who transforms from an easily persuaded young girl to a strong, independent woman; and in doing so changes the lense through which her family, friends and the man she loves view her.
Jane Austen Society of North America, Inc. A Brief Biography. jasna.org. 26 April. 2014.
The short story Girl written by Jamaica Kincaid is a mother’s compilation of advice, skills, and life experience to her daughter. The mother believes that her offer of practical and helpful guidance will assist her daughter in becoming a proper woman, and gaining a fulfilling life and respectable status in the community. Posed against the mother’s sincere concern for her daughter’s future is Sir Walter’s superficial affection to his daughters in the novel Persuasion written by Jane Austen. Due to his detailed attention for appearance and social rank, Sir Walter has been negligent to his daughters’ interests and fails to fulfill his responsibility as a father. Throughout both literary works, the use of language and tone towards persuasive endeavors reveals the difference in family dynamics and the success of persuasion on the character’s transformation.
“Biography of Jane Austen.” Critical insight: Pride and Prejudice (2011): 18-31. Literary Reference Center. Web. 24 Nov 2013.
In order to analyze Austen’s treatment of class system in Persuasion, the novel can be split into two somewhat contradictory halves. Austen spends much of the first half of the novel attempting to convince the audience of the importance of a system of manners, upon...
Kaplan, Deborah. Structures of Status: Eighteenth-Century Social Experience as Form in Courtesy Books and Jane Austen's Novels. Diss. University of Michigan, 1979.
Fergus, Jan. “Biography.” The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Jane Austen. Ed. Janet Todd.