Appearance Versus Reality in Anne Elliot's Persuasion

Appearance Versus Reality in Anne Elliot's Persuasion

In "Persuasion", we meet Anne Elliot, a bright, attractive,

upper-class woman who fell in love with a sailor, Captain Frederick

Wentworth. However, Anne was successfully persuaded to reject

Wentworth by her aristocratic family and friends, who failed to

recognize Wentworth's fine character and saw only his shallowness.

Both Anne's sisters are extremely different to Anne. Mary is an over

reactive hypochondriac. Elizabeth very much follows in her father's

footsteps. She enjoys going off gallivanting at upper-class social

gatherings and usually accompanies her father on these.

The central conflict in "Persuasion" is that of appearance versus

reality. Anne can certainly see the superficiality that surrounds her

while at Kellynch Hall with her family; however, she allows others -

Lady Russell and her sisters to interpret what she sees and to force

her to act according to their wishes.

Anne was raised in Kellynch Hall, a beautiful estate shrouded in

prestige, wealth, and superficiality. Her father, Sir Walter Elliot,

is a vain, foolish man, who spends his days rereading the Baronetage,

a genealogy of the local aristocratic families. He values appearance

over all depth of character; he refuses to associate with anyone who

is not physically pleasing. Admiral Croft, who rents Kellynch Hall,

comically remarks on the extraordinary number of mirrors in Sir

Walter's dressing room: "I should think he must be rather a dressy man

for his time of life. Such a number of looking glasses! Oh Lord! There

was no getting away from oneself". I am quite surprised that "Oh Lord"

has been written in ...

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...d her own inability to change his view of her as one "so

altered that he should not have known her again". Wentworth's

passionate love letter, however, which declares to Anne, "you pierce

my soul," stimulates Anne to mature. For the first time in almost

eight years, Anne feels complete, "overpowering happiness". Instead of

falling prey to her self-described "timidity" and "feebleness of

character". In the last chapter Anne decides to act on her own desires

and according to her own principles by marrying Wentworth for love.

This is an appeal to the reader. Most women of the age found love

wonderful and it was a big deal to be involved and in love with a man.

The idea of it being a love story appeals more to readers than a

horror story. At Jane Austen's time love was a man part of life and

this is why she wrote about it.