This is a bit of a precaution, but today's post would be on a lesser focus on Anne and more of the society during this era. To give a little context, I was researching further on the book when I stumbled on a list of discussion questions. I skimmed through them pretty quickly, but I saw one that really struck me, “What value is placed on titles and the aristocracy?”
Let me tell you that my very being tingled with the anticipation of answered such a question, I just hope that it won’t be too long (Sorry Timmy…)
In Persuasion, Jane Austen compares three different types of characters and demonstrates how old traditions are being replaced by more ‘modern minds’. The three categories included; the people of high birth (like the Elliott’s), the rising middleclass who are rich (the Musgrove’s), and then there is another set of people who create their own fortune: the naval families.
Now, the Elliott’s represent the old traditional money and rank. This family is a perfect representation of how new ideas replace the out dated assumptions of society. The Elliott’s have depleted their fortunes but continue to live a lifestyle they cannot afford. By losing Kellynch, Sir Walter demonstrates how the old high birth family no longer held the power or influence of the past. They are effete and extravagant to the point where they are ‘not much educated, and not at all elegant’. The high class family live empty lives where ranking and appearances matter more than keeping finances in check. However, these families are quickly dying out as many other families follow in their footsteps. This shows how society no longer places enormous value on rank or titles, since the Kellynch Hall had to be rented to tenants, who coincidently, were the brother-in-law Admiral Croft (and his wife) of Captain Wentworth.
The second class becomes more dominate in society. This family, the Musgrove’s, do have the finical support but not the title to enforce it. This was certainly a difficult time to move up into the ranks as many of the old money refuse to accept the new money folks. Thus, to ensure a doorway into that society, many of the new money sought marriages to those of high class families. And since many of them did not have their fortunes anymore, marriage didn’t seem to such a farfetched idea. In the novel, the youngest of the Elliot daughters had in fact married for much of the same reasoning. However, the marriage had set backs as the new money folks saw themselves rising and the old saw themselves plummeting. Sir Walter’s appreciation for his children rides heavily on his own values, thus when Mary married she “acquired a little artificial importance, by becoming Mrs. Charles Musgrove…” (p. 598) As a result, many of the higher families felt as if they were being pulled down from their high rankings to the low classes. As the separation between the old money and new money became harder and harder to separate, the emergence of a new class set fire to many of the assumptions.
With their vigor, bravery, friendliness and loyalty to one another Anne find the naval families bewitching. "Only they know how to live" (p.763), she believes. In Persuasion, there are a number of naval families introduced but the Wentworth’s are an example of the rising influence the Navy has gained. This was influenced by Jane Austen’s own life, as England was at war with Napoleon during the events in the novel. Basically, the war provided the means for the Navy to obtain power and wealth. As a result the naval men return to the sea regularly, Admiral Croft had even commented that Wentworth’s courtship would have to be short because, “We [the] sailors, Miss Elliot, cannot afford to make long courtships in time of war’ ” (p. 638) The sea savvy men of this novel had not only portray a quickly developing class but also demonstrates admirable traits for society to follow. When a carriage driven by Admiral Croft comes perilously close to hitting a post, Mrs. Croft grabs the carriage reins from him and prevents the carriage from crashing. The narrator comments, "by coolly giving the reins a better direction herself...they neither fell into a rut, nor ran foul of a dung-cart." (p.638) Mrs. Croft displayed a controversial picture of female strength. Since women weren’t allowed to ride with the men, who steered the carriage, the fact that Sophia Croft sat with her husband and at one point, had taken the reins from him shows the complete trust and love this man places in his wife. The naval family was a representation of a class that did not find in necessary to mold themselves to the original image of a naval officer, but to one that live life to the fullest and worked hard for their gains.
To sum it all up, out of all three classes, the naval one had proved to be the most admirable. However, they hold the least rank and power in comparison to the other two classes. In reality, most naval officers lived lives that would be very similar to the peasants. Unless you have high ranking, which is gained through paying the commissions for status (and it’s pretty pricey), naval and regular soldiers don’t receive much assets from their occupation. Thankfully, this class emerged during the war with Napoleon and the need for Navy and its subordinates was endless. In Persuasion, Jane Austen has painted the role of the naval families as the most commendable to follow. She is basically showing the declining importance of rank and title in society for a more favorable one.
*Wow, that was a long post…I think I may have been off topic and there are probably plenty of mistakes but at the moment, I don’t care. It doesn’t really focus on Anne but more of a theme of the book. But to my reader (mainly Timmy), did the separation of the three classes better society or worsen it? Do you think that the naval family was the correct class to admire or is there another one you find more deserving?
Let me tell you that my very being tingled with the anticipation of answered such a question, I just hope that it won’t be too long (Sorry Timmy…)
In Persuasion, Jane Austen compares three different types of characters and demonstrates how old traditions are being replaced by more ‘modern minds’. The three categories included; the people of high birth (like the Elliott’s), the rising middleclass who are rich (the Musgrove’s), and then there is another set of people who create their own fortune: the naval families.
Now, the Elliott’s represent the old traditional money and rank. This family is a perfect representation of how new ideas replace the out dated assumptions of society. The Elliott’s have depleted their fortunes but continue to live a lifestyle they cannot afford. By losing Kellynch, Sir Walter demonstrates how the old high birth family no longer held the power or influence of the past. They are effete and extravagant to the point where they are ‘not much educated, and not at all elegant’. The high class family live empty lives where ranking and appearances matter more than keeping finances in check. However, these families are quickly dying out as many other families follow in their footsteps. This shows how society no longer places enormous value on rank or titles, since the Kellynch Hall had to be rented to tenants, who coincidently, were the brother-in-law Admiral Croft (and his wife) of Captain Wentworth.
The second class becomes more dominate in society. This family, the Musgrove’s, do have the finical support but not the title to enforce it. This was certainly a difficult time to move up into the ranks as many of the old money refuse to accept the new money folks. Thus, to ensure a doorway into that society, many of the new money sought marriages to those of high class families. And since many of them did not have their fortunes anymore, marriage didn’t seem to such a farfetched idea. In the novel, the youngest of the Elliot daughters had in fact married for much of the same reasoning. However, the marriage had set backs as the new money folks saw themselves rising and the old saw themselves plummeting. Sir Walter’s appreciation for his children rides heavily on his own values, thus when Mary married she “acquired a little artificial importance, by becoming Mrs. Charles Musgrove…” (p. 598) As a result, many of the higher families felt as if they were being pulled down from their high rankings to the low classes. As the separation between the old money and new money became harder and harder to separate, the emergence of a new class set fire to many of the assumptions.
With their vigor, bravery, friendliness and loyalty to one another Anne find the naval families bewitching. "Only they know how to live" (p.763), she believes. In Persuasion, there are a number of naval families introduced but the Wentworth’s are an example of the rising influence the Navy has gained. This was influenced by Jane Austen’s own life, as England was at war with Napoleon during the events in the novel. Basically, the war provided the means for the Navy to obtain power and wealth. As a result the naval men return to the sea regularly, Admiral Croft had even commented that Wentworth’s courtship would have to be short because, “We [the] sailors, Miss Elliot, cannot afford to make long courtships in time of war’ ” (p. 638) The sea savvy men of this novel had not only portray a quickly developing class but also demonstrates admirable traits for society to follow. When a carriage driven by Admiral Croft comes perilously close to hitting a post, Mrs. Croft grabs the carriage reins from him and prevents the carriage from crashing. The narrator comments, "by coolly giving the reins a better direction herself...they neither fell into a rut, nor ran foul of a dung-cart." (p.638) Mrs. Croft displayed a controversial picture of female strength. Since women weren’t allowed to ride with the men, who steered the carriage, the fact that Sophia Croft sat with her husband and at one point, had taken the reins from him shows the complete trust and love this man places in his wife. The naval family was a representation of a class that did not find in necessary to mold themselves to the original image of a naval officer, but to one that live life to the fullest and worked hard for their gains.
To sum it all up, out of all three classes, the naval one had proved to be the most admirable. However, they hold the least rank and power in comparison to the other two classes. In reality, most naval officers lived lives that would be very similar to the peasants. Unless you have high ranking, which is gained through paying the commissions for status (and it’s pretty pricey), naval and regular soldiers don’t receive much assets from their occupation. Thankfully, this class emerged during the war with Napoleon and the need for Navy and its subordinates was endless. In Persuasion, Jane Austen has painted the role of the naval families as the most commendable to follow. She is basically showing the declining importance of rank and title in society for a more favorable one.
*Wow, that was a long post…I think I may have been off topic and there are probably plenty of mistakes but at the moment, I don’t care. It doesn’t really focus on Anne but more of a theme of the book. But to my reader (mainly Timmy), did the separation of the three classes better society or worsen it? Do you think that the naval family was the correct class to admire or is there another one you find more deserving?
1 comment:
General Blog: Peggy O3, Blog is very nice; I like how you incorporate pictures with your posts. The music’s great again. The color creates a warm atmosphere to your Blog.
General Post:
Off topic? – No, I don’t think that your Post is off topic at all. Analyzing the social aspects of the era is very important because it allows one to gain a better sense of the ‘big picture’.
Grammar – Again with the nit-picky grammatical mistakes; Peggy O3, some of your grammatical mistakes are not significant, but there are others that hinder the reader’s ability to comprehend the points that you want to make. Please read it at least once more before posting; you may catch and fix these mistakes easier that way.
Idea Development – Peggy O3, your idea development is getting better and better by the Posts. Your organization has improved significantly as well. Just one thing: try to give a little more context about the book when analyzing a quote.
Questions:
Did the separation of the three classes better society or worsen it?
I believe that the separation of these three classes worsens society because it creates schisms within the society itself. This schism restricts the society’s ability to grow and develop within itself; therefore, the society inevitably hurts its own growth.
Do you think that the naval family was the correct class to admire or is there another one you find more deserving?
I agree that the naval class is the class that deserves the most admiration. As you have said, the naval families are the ones “that live life to the fullest and worked hard for their gains” and therefore deserve the highest regards out of the three classes.
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