Jane Austen and Feminism

Subtle Feminism-Bold Female Characters

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Jul 2, 2008 Jessica Gleason

The question at hand is whether Austen was a feminist. It was thought that Austen
was a romance writer who taught tradition/virtue in her prose. This was not the case.

While it may be true that Austen was a romance writer, it was not the way critics had
once believed. Instead of exalting the value of tradition and virtue in her prose,
Austen defied it and made a case for feminine rights. Whether we see Austen as a
feminist because we are looking for evidence in her text or because she truly was a
feminist is something that we may never be able to discern.

Austen was not outright in her feminism and if you weren't looking for it, you might
not have noticed the stances she took. She was well known for writing about young
women who only had interest in marriage, and she was often underestimated because
of this (Ashford 1). Though if you analyze her work you will find her subtle feminist
tendencies.

Complex Heroines-Elizabeth, Catherine and Elinor

While most of Austen's characters did want to marry, they always wanted to choose
their own suitors and marry for love which is something that was unheard of during
Austen's lifetime.

Elizabeth Bennet, in Pride and Prejudice, "who will be dependant on her family and
at the mercy of Mr. Collins who holds the entail to the family house if she never
marries, only wants to marry if she can find 'the deepest love'" (Ashford 1). Elizabeth
was a very intelligent character, but it was not only the smart females that held this
sort of strong feminine notion about marrying for love.

The character, Catherine, from Northanger Abbey was not very dim, but she also had
great character judgement in disliking John Thorpe.

Read more at Suite101: Jane Austen and Feminism: Subtle Feminism-Bold Female
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There can even be a case for Austen believing that women should hold jobs like men,
Elinor from Sense and Sensibility envies men with careers (Ashford 1).

Marriage and Patriarchy

Society was very patriarchal during these times, men were in control of all monitary
assets. When a man died, his money was actually passed on to the closest living male
heir and the women were left penniless. While men and women were allowed to
chose thier own partners, money/wealth/status were very important and often
marriages were made on those grounds alone (Spacks 326).

Not Technically Feminism, But Close

You can't actually call Austen a feminist because her protest was very subtle and only
found by the discerning eye, but she did help pave the way for modern day feminists.
She had views on women and marriage and women's rights in general and she made
that known in her writing. Her message was read by millions of women all over
England and is read by millions more today, without pioneers like Austen, women
may have been left in the dust--victims of a never ending patriarchal society.

Bibliography

Ashford, Viola. “Was Jane Austen A Feminist?” suite101.com . 30 January 2005.

Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York, NY: Pocket Books, 2004.

Austen, Jane. Sense and Sensibility. New York, NY: Bantam Dell, 2006.

Spacks, Patricia Meyer. Afterword. Sense and Sensibility. New York, NY: Bantam
Dell, 2006. 325-326.

Read more at Suite101: Jane Austen and Feminism: Subtle Feminism-Bold Female
Characters http://victorian-
fiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/jane_austen_and_feminism#ixzz0n9HF30SM