Gender And Social Class In Persuasion By Jane Austen

Garianne Meyer
ENG 4300
4/22/2014
Dr. Ross
Jane Austen’s Persuasion on Gender & Social Class

Persuasion is Jane Austen’s last completed novel, published not long after her death. The novel tells of a woman named Anne Elliot and the hardships she and her family face. Although a family of nobility, the Elliot’s find themselves in financial trouble. All that they have done to repair their finances falls to pieces so they decide to move out of their mansion and rent it out to the wealthy Admiral Croft and his wife. Because of this, Anne is reunited with the man she fell in love with eight years prior, Captain Wentworth. She once rejected his proposal of marriage after believing that he lacked in both social status and money. However, Austen persuades readers to follow Anne and her journey, giving them an opportunity to see her mature and come to terms that there is something more to a person than his or her status or money.
From the very first sentence, one can see that social class is an important theme in Persuasion. As the reader continues with the novel, the thoughts on class being important is made all the more apparent. The novel shows that if you’re from a high social class, you have nothing to worry about unlike those from a lower or middle class. The same is also made apparent to readers with the aspect of gender and the roles of women. Although not as obvious as the focus on social class, the gender roles in the novel play a major role in how the story progresses. However, there are many critics who feel that Persuasion fails to address these and other issues. This essay will show and prove that Austen’s last novel reflects and foreshadows some of the dramatic changes occurring in England after the Na...

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...ngland change. She accepts the rising naval classes and, as the novel progresses, she attempts to create a new respectable role for the upper classes free from the vanity seen in her father.

There was also a change happening in terms of the roles of men and women in England, which Austen doesn’t fail to satire in Persuasion. Women in the 19th century held a very low and limited place in society. They weren’t allowed a place in public office or even the right to vote. Prior to being married, a woman depended on her father for status and the ability to even live. Once she is married off, she is completely under her husbands control and must do as he says.

While the novel focuses social status and the rise of the naval class in England, it also suggests that at the same time, women’s roles and their increased power is a major reason for this change.