Jane Austen

Jane
Austen
(16
December
1775 18
July
1817),was
a realistic
English
noelist,
in the
!re"
ictorian
!erio#$
Due to
her
com!le%"
realistic ision o& the inner li&e o& women, s'ille# #escri!tion, well
#ose# mi%ture o& narrations in the thir# !erson, the smart use o&
ironic an# burles(ue, Austen has become arguably the most notable
writers o& her time, whose in&luence s!ecial to all its rea#ers, een
#uring li&e, ha# little success$
Austen lie# her entire li&e as !art o& a close"'nit &amily locate# on the lower &ringes o&
the English lan#e# gentry$)he was e#ucate# !rimarily by her &ather an# ol#er brothers as
well as through her own rea#ing$ *he stea#&ast su!!ort o& her &amily was critical to her
#eelo!ment as a !ro&essional writer$+er artistic a!!rentic shi! laste# &rom her teenage
years into her thirties$ During this !erio#, she e%!erimente# with arious literary &orms,
inclu#ing the e!istolary noel which she then aban#one#, an# wrote an# e%tensiely
reise# three ma,or noels an# began a &ourth$ -rom 1811 until 1816, with the release o&
Sense and Sensibility (1811), .ri#e an# .re,u#ice (181/), 0ans&iel#
.ar' (1811) an# Emma (1815), she achiee# success as a !ublishe# writer$ )he wrote
two a##itional noels, 2orthanger Abbey an# .ersuasion, bot !ublishe#
!osthumously in 1818, an# began a thir#, which was eentually title# )an#iton , but
#ie# be&ore com!leting it$
Persuasion
.ersuasion is one o& the most &amous noel o& Jane Austen3s
noels$
4haracters5
)ir 6alter Elliot, 7t,
Eli8abeth Elliot,
Anne Elliot,
4a!tain -re#eric' 6entworth ,
A#miral 4ro&t ,
)o!hia 4ro&t,
0r$ 6illiam Elliot,
9a#y Dalrym!le,
4harles 0usgroe,
9ouisa 0usgroe,
9a#y :ussell ,
0ary 0usgroe$
Anne Elliot is the mi##le #aughter o& )ir 6alter, a s!en#thri&t ,who is obsesse# with his
goo# loo's an# ran'$ Anne;s ol#er sister, Eli8abeth, has the same character as her &ather,
an# the younger sister o& Anne, 0ary, is a nerous woman ,eager &or attention ,who is
marrie# to 4harles 0usgroe o& nearby <!!ercross +all, the heir to a rustic but res!ecte#
local s(uire$
2one o& her &amily can !roi#e Anne, a com!any she nee#s$ )he is a ery re&ine#, an#
sensitie young woman , who is still unmarrie# at =7 an# seems curse# to loneliness ,
although she ha# been engage# to 4a!tain -re#eric' 6entworth$ *ric'e# by 9a#y
:ussell, she en#e# the engagement because he ha# no assets an# no !ers!ectie$
6entworth reenters Anne;s li&e when )ir 6alter is &orce# by his own &inancial
irres!onsibility to rent out >ellynch +all, the &amily estate$ )ir 6alter an# Eli8abeth
moe to !ricey rental lo#gings in the &ashionable resort o& 7ath, while Anne remains
behin# in <!!ercross with her younger sister;s &amily$ >ellynch;s tenants turn out to be
none other than 6entworth;s sister, )o!hia, an# her husban#, the recently retire# A#miral
4ro&t$
6entworth became rich #ue to some great successes an# manages to win a consi#erable
&ortune$ *he 0usgroes, inclu#ing 0ary, 4harles, an# 4harles;s younger sisters,
+enrietta an# 9ouisa, are ha!!y to welcome the 4ro&ts an# 6entworth$ +e is #eliberately
cool an# &ormal with Anne, whom he #escribes as altere# almost beyon# recognition, but
e%tremely &rien#ly an# attentie with the 0usgroe girls, who both res!on# in 'in#$
Although +enrietta is engage# to her cousin 4harles +ayter, nothing is o&&icial, an# both
the 4ro&ts an# 0usgroes, who 'now nothing o& Anne an# -re#eric';s !reious
relationshi!, en,oy s!eculating about which his sister an# 6entworth might marry$ All o&
this a&&ect Anne, who has s!ent the last seeral years bitterly regretting that she bro'e u!
with him $ *o aoi# the situation,Anne 'ee!s com!any with the 0usgroe sisters in
!articularly with 9ouisa, she #oes eerything she can to stay away &rom him$ 6hen they
meet, his cons!icuous in#i&&erence nearly brea's her heart$
*he sa# !ace o& Anne;s li&e su##enly !ic's u! when the younger members o& the
<!!ercross &amily #eci#e to accom!any 4a!tain 6entworth in a isit to one o& his
o&&icers, 4a!tain +arille, in the coastal town o& 9yme :egis$ *here Anne meets yet a
thir# o&&icer, 4a!tain James 7enwic', a !assionate a#mirer o& the :omantic !oets, who is
in mourning &or the #eath o& his &ianc?e, the sister o& 4a!tain +arille $+e a!!reciates
Anne;s sym!athy an# un#erstan#ing$$ *he new location, new ac(uaintances, an# &resh
ocean air all agree with Anne, who begins to regain some o& the li&e an# s!ar'le that
4a!tain 6entworth remembere#, an# she attracts the attention o& another gentleman, who
turns out to be the Elliots; long"estrange# cousin, her &ather;s heir, 6illiam Elliot$ 9ouisa
0usgroe sustains a serious concussion in a &all brought about by her own im!etuous
behaiour$ Anne coolly a#ministers &irst ai# an# assistance$ 6entworth is both con&use#
an# im!resse#, an# begins to re"e%amine his &eelings about Anne$
-ollowing this near"trage#y, Anne relocates to 7ath to be with her &ather an# sister,
while 9ouisa stays in 9yme to recoer her health at the +arilles$ @n 7ath Anne &in#s that
her &ather an# sister are as shallow as eer, obsesse# with ran' an# wealth, an# &lattere#
by the attentions o& 6illiam Elliot, recently wi#owe#, who has now success&ully
reconcile# with his uncle, )ir 6alter$ Eli8abeth assumes that he wishes to court her while
9a#y :ussell more correctly sus!ects that he a#mires Anne$ +oweer, although Anne
li'es 6illiam Elliot an# en,oys his com!any, she &in#s his character #isturbingly o!a(ue,
while a#mitting to hersel& that his a#miration has #one a great #eal to li&t her s!irits$
A#miral 4ro&t an# his wi&e arrie in 7ath, an# soon a&terwar# comes the news that
9ouisa 0usgroe is in#ee# engage#Abut not to 4a!tain 6entworth$ *he luc'y
man is 4a!tain 7enwic'$ 6entworth also comes to 7ath$ +e is not !lease# to see 0r$
Elliot courting Anne, an# he an# Anne begin to tentatiely renew their ac(uaintance$
Anne also ta'es the o!!ortunity to reunite with an ol# school &rien#, 0rs$ )mith, a once
!ros!erous matron who is now a wi#ow liing in 7ath in straitene#
circumstances$*hrough her she #iscoers that behin# his charming eneer, 0r$ Elliot is a
col# o!!ortunist who ha# le# 0rs$ )mith;s husban# into #ebt $ Although 0rs$ )mith
beliees that he is genuinely attracte# to Anne, it a!!ears that his real aim in ma'ing u! to
the Elliots has been to 'ee! an eye on the ingratiating 0rs$ 4lay, whom he worries that
)ir 6alter may ta'e it into his hea# to marry$ A new marriage a baby boy, an# the en# o&
0r$ Elliott;s inheritance$ $ Although Anne is shoc'e# an# #ismaye# by this news, it hel!s
to con&irm her that she is the best ,u#ge o& what will constitute her own ha!!iness$
<ltimately, the 0usgroes isit 7ath to !urchase we##ing clothes &or their #aughters
9ouisa an# +enrietta (now o&&icially engage# to 4harles +ayter)$ 4a!tain 6entworth an#
his &rien# 4a!tain +arille encounter with Anne at the 0usgroes; 7ath hotel, where
6entworth oerhears Anne an# +arille conersing about the relatie &aith&ulness o& men
an# women in loe$ Dee!ly moe# by what Anne has to say about women neer giing
u! their &eelings o& loe een when all ho!e is lost, 6entworth writes her #eclaring his
&eelings &or her$
Anne an# 6entworth reconcile, a&&irm their loe &or each other, an# renew their
engagement$
*he story en#s less well &or Anne;s &ather an# sister$ *hey are both ,ilte# by 0r$ Elliot,
who succee#s in !ersua#ing 0rs$ 4lay to become his mistress$ 9a#y :ussell a#mits she
was wrong about 6entworthB she an# Anne remain &rien#sB an# 6entworth hel!s 0rs$
)mith recoer some o& her lost assets$ 2othing remains to blight Anne;s ha!!iness e%ce!t
the !ros!ect o& another war$