Women in Jane Austen's Novels
Strong, Independent, and Sometimes Sad, These Women Always Satisfy
Jun 24, 2009
Although Austen's heroines are always resourceful, independent, and strong, they reflect different periods in Austen’s life. Some are happy-go-lucky types with the strongest worry being who they will sit next to at the next tea party, whilst others must deal with heavier burdens life has thrust upon them.
But they are all part and parcel of Austen herself, a reflection of the writer and her experiences with life.
Pride and Prejudicial Matchmaking
Elizabeth Bennet may well be Austen’s most famous creation. The heroine of Pride and Prejudice perhaps reflects Austen at her best–strong, with a sense of humour, prideful but willing to grow and change.
Emma Woodhouse, on the other hand, has even fewer problems than Elizabeth. Austen writes:
“Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.” (Emma, Oxford University Press, 1971)
Since her existence is so blessed, Emma turns her attention to matchmaking, and in the classic ending, finds her own true love, who was right before her all the time.
Elizabeth and her suiter, Mr. Darcy, must work a bit harder before they can come together.
- Emma is more comedic than Pride and Prejudice, but there are blithe moments in both, and they reflect Jane Austen in her more light-hearted, younger days.
- Both novels deal with younger women and older men who must grow and open their eyes to come together, though the burdens they carry are not so very heavy and are largely of their own making.
- Both heroines are independent, free-spirited, and generally happy in nature. Their lives have been relatively to very comfortable, and they are not accustomed to hardships or even having their wishes crossed.
The Sensible Approach to Life
Sense and Sensibility (Penguin Books Ltd., 1995), Austen’s first published novel (though not the first written), introduces readers to Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, two sisters who, though quite lovely, have extremely different approaches to life. Elinor observes manners and proprieties, and displays a reserved demeanour, whilst Marianne gives in to her passions and whims, causing grief and hardship and pain, for herself and for others, including her sister.
The two sisters face an immediate hardship, when they are forced to move from their comfortable home after the death of their father. This novel looks at the role and limitations of women in Regency-era England by comparing and contrasting the two sisters and their views of life, their unrequited loves that threaten to disappear forever, and their reactions to their separate situations.
- In the end, both sisters must question their values in order to move forward.
- Marianne is forced to reign in her wild notions and dreams of romantic passion and look at life more realistically, seeing that whilst real life may not be as wildly romantic as imagination, it is firm and rich and rewarding, because it is real.
- Elinor learns that she must show a bit of passion and interest in order to get what she truly wants. Being overly-controlled and reserved all of the time will not get one far in romance–or indeed, life.
Persuasion of the Finest–and Most Painful–Kind
In Persuasion, Austen’s last completed novel, the heroine, Anne Elliot, speaks for Austen in her later years, after sadness and disappointments have coloured Austen's world.
The novel takes place in Bath, with lovely, detailed descriptions of the city and its famous landmarks, although Austen’s happiest years were not spent there.
Some of the saddest, most hopeless words in Austen’s works are spoken by Miss Elliot to a male friend:
“All the privilege I claim for my own sex…is that of loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone.” (Persuasion, Oxford University Press, 1971)
Anne Elliot, when the book starts, made a decision eight years earlier not to marry a young man based on the opinions and harsh whisperings of others. She is confronted with this decision when the man, Captain Frederick Wentworth, returns and she is forced to meet him face to face.
In the intervening years between their break-up and their fortunate though awkward and painful second meeting, their love for one another has not waned. It has sat, tightly locked away in each of their hearts. The novel is the story of how Anne and Captain Wentworth–Anne especially–overcome the opinions of others in order to come together at last.
- Persuasion is perhaps Austen’s most complex and sober novel, telling a simple love story but at the same time, offering lessons on life and social mores.
- Anne Elliot’s lovely but wilted and sad demeanour may well reflect how Austen saw herself toward the end of her life.
- In the end, Austen allows Elliot the blessing of having her wishes granted, a salvation she herself did not necessarily find, though it is evident that Austen took pleasure in the details of life.
Austen’s sense of irony and her razor-sharp wit are displayed in fine form through her heroines in some of her most well-known works.
Elizabeth Bennet, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, Emma Woodhouse, and Anne Elliot all have endearing qualities, and all are willing to learn, change, exert their inner strength, and grow in order to move forward in life.
These are qualities that Austen obviously held in high regard, as all of the women were rewarded for having them, Anne Elliot after an eight-year wait, but still, in the end, she was rewarded.
Austen’s heroines are so enduring because they represent womanhood at its best–strong, independent yet loving and dedicated to family, with the willingness to take chances and move forward, leaving old ideas behind.
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