Persuasion

For the 9th month of my 12 Month Challenge to read a book I read Persuasion by Jane Austen. This review is also posted at The-Vault and was edited by Shriya.

Seven years before the events in the novel, Anne was in love with a naval officer, Captain Fredrick Wentworth. They were engaged for a short time but Lady Russell, a friend of Anne’s, persuaded her not to marry Fredrick. Hence the name of the book is ‘Persuasion.’

Persuasion is the story about Anne Elliot who is overlooked and put down by the rest of her family. She may not live in the attic like Cinderella but, nevertheless, her family makes her life miserable. Anne has a father and two sisters. Her mother had died and her father, Sir Walter Elliot, is a vain man who is very occupied by his own reflection in a looking glass. He looks down at other people, and judges them from their outward appearance. Anne’s two sisters are silly – to say the least – and consistent with Cinderella’s evil stepsisters. They both use Anne at their disposal for chores or sitting with them when they are sick.

Because of Sir Walter’s extravagant ways, they have reached a situation where they cannot afford their lifestyle any more. When Anne’s mother was alive she was able to keep him in check but with her died her restraint. The Elliot family had to ‘let out’ their estate. Basically, that means they had to rent it out and move somewhere else. It happened that they rented the house to Fredrick’s brother. After doing so, they moved to a town named Bath.

When Anne went to visit her younger sister, who was married and lived several miles away from Kellynch Hall, she met Fredrick – who was there to visit one of the families in that community – for the first time since their separation. Ever they had separated Anne had been down in spirits. She had ‘lost the bloom of her youth’ and while it was known that Fredrick was looking for a wife, he would not consider Anne because he was still mad at her for refusing to marry him.

Anne makes a bit of reconciliation between the reader and Lady Russell’s crime with this: It was good that she heeded and obeyed the authority over her and not married Fredrick even though the counsel was wrong. It was good that she was humble enough to obey. And as we can see at the end of the book their love was much sweeter after having gone through the trial, they were much surer of their love for each other.

If you know something of Jane Austen you will recognize the Bath reference. In Jane Austen’s life, her father moved the family to Bath but she preferred the country to town. Persuasion is known to be the most autobiographical of Jane Austen’s novels. She wrote in things that happened to her or reflected how she felt about a particular subject.

I find it’s hard to come up with marks against a Jane Austen novel. It is such a respected piece of literature, can you really criticize it? Black marks like the punctuation can be explained by looking at the date the book was written in. Not just the date though, the literary style. No, I will leave the criticizing to the experts. But, I can suggest what type of reading level you should have to understand this book.

One of the obvious problems is the writing style. You should have a strong vocabulary (in the United States we would say a twelfth grade vocabulary). You should also be used to old literature a little bit. Keep in mind this is a slow read. You can’t rush through the pages because there is a lot of information in each paragraph and sentence. For example, here is a quote from the book: “Sir Walter could not have borne the degradation of being known to design letting his house.”
If you don’t take the time to read each word and understand the passages you may finish the novel believing you wasted a lot of your time. But in fact, this is one the most brilliant, exciting and insightful looks into the world of literature.

There is one other thing to remember when reading this book. Austen does not repeat herself a lot. You will not often find her paraphrasing what she has already said in the book. Not even through the character’s dialogue. Rather, there will be a confirmation of certain facts and circumstances. Issues and appearances but no renewal of the first suppositions or telling. Austen is an efficient writer besides being very creative.

I found the read enjoyable. As always, Jane Austen is a gentle teacher about social decorum and the nature of love. The book can be easy to understand with its rich and colorful words that convey the emotions and point of the story in exactly the right way. The book is not completely predictable. Jane Austen does know how to throw a twist in the plot and of course, she is a master in delivering a happy ending.

Also joining me on this challenge:
Andy