Manners, Law and Society in Jane Austen's Persuasion

This essay analyzes Jane Austen's novel Persuasion in the light of Edmund Burke's comment: “Manners are of more importance than laws…..like that of the air we breathe in”. It discusses the themes of manners, laws, social status, feminism, liberty of women, and social idiosyncrasies in the novel.

Running head: MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
Manners, Law and Society
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
“I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational
creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.”
The above quoted lines of Anne Elliot from Jane Austen’s famous novel “Persuasion”
in a succinct manner provide an overview of the theme which dominates the majority of her
literary compositions. Campbell et al. (2017) are of the viewpoint that a close analysis of the
major novels of Jane Austen would reveal a female protagonist who instead of affirming to
the standard set of ideals or manners that the refined ladies of the age were expected to
display indulges in the kind of actions or manners which is repudiated by the society. As
opined by Wheeler (2016), the literary works of Austen can be seen as the great divide which
separates the literature of the 18th century from that of the 17th century and also the earlier
ages.
Zionkowski and Hart (2015) have stated that the basic difference between the works
of Austen and that of the earlier literary artists not only lies in the fact that she choose the
novel as her artistic vehicle in contrast to the general trend of poetry and play but also in the
themes that she choose to use in her works. For example, in the majority of her novels a
woman is seen who refuses to abide by the traditional norms, laws, mannerisms and other
standards set by the society for the fined gentlewomen or the ladies of the 18th century
(Russo, 2017). In this regard, Moore (2017) has argued that the majority of her novels belong
to the category of social novels or social chronicles wherein she tries to highlight the
mannerism, social trends, the lifestyle and the other aspects of the life of the 18th century
people of England. This essay will undertake a detailed analysis of Jane Austen’s novel
“Persuasion” in the light of Edmund Burke’s comment: “Manners are of more importance
than laws…..like that of the air we breathe in”.

2MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
“Persuasion” published after the death of Jane Austen in 1817 is not only her last
novel but is generally considered to be among her most matured ones as well (Murphy,
2017). According to Garcia (2018), the novel, just like the other novels of Austen depicts the
flight and also the challenges faced by a girl in her late twenties who is from an old yet
financially unstable family. On the other hand, Campbell et al. (2017) have argued that the
theme of love is a common one in almost all the major novels of Austen including
“Persuasion”. Furthermore, just like “Pride and Prejudice” and others, this novel also depicts
the hardships faced by a woman in getting love and acceptance in the society which generally
associates love and acceptance with wealth (Wilson, 2015).
The novel narrates the story of Anne Elliot, a 27 year old woman from a financial
unstable family (Collins, 2016). The novel begins seven years after the engagement between
Anne Elliot and Commander Frederick Wentworth had been broken because of the
impoverished family background and also the financial status of Wentworth (White, 2018).
However, presently the Elliot family find themselves in stiff financial conditions and to
overcome this condition they decide to lease out their home and they move to Bath so as to
save money. The house is rented by an admiral whose wife’s brother is Wentworth, who has
become financially success in the past seven years (White, 2018). Anne and Wentworth in the
subsequent sections of the novel find that they have not been able to overcome the feelings
that they had for the other in the seven years. However, it is only at the end of the novel after
a series of trials and misadventures that the couple is being reunited after a time span of more
than seven years (Steiner, 2016). Zionkowski and Hart (2015) are of the viewpoint the
manners and also the clash of these manners that the novel seems to depict is as important to
the plot of the novel as the love story of Anne and Wentworth.
A basis overview of the novel would reveal that the novel is primarily concerned
with the love as were the majority of the novels which were written in the 18the century (The

3MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
Guardian, 2018). As a matter of fact there are sections in the novel which particularly affirm
to this view held by the casual or the non-academic readers of the novel. For example, there
are lines in the novel like “You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope. Tell me not that I
am too late, that such precious feelings are gone forever”, “A man does not recover from such
devotion of the heart to such a woman! He ought not; he does not” and others which affirm
this view of the casual readers regarding the novel”(Austen, 2016). However, a close or
critical analysis of the novel would reveal that the novel is redolent with various important
themes like manners, laws, social status or position, feminism, liberty of women, social
idiosyncrasies and others (The Guardian, 2018).
Steiner (2015) has argued that manners and etiquettes formed an important aspect of
the society of the 18th century England. The 18th century was an important age in the social
history of the nation since it not marked a change from the values of the Elizabethan Age but
also provided an insight into the themes or the concepts which were to dominate the society
in the coming years (Morini, 2016). For example, the women of the society, just like the other
ages had limited power in the society and as a matter of fact their amorous preferences were
based on the social status or the acceptance that the intended groom would offer in return to
the bride (Anand, 2017). The position that the woman held in the 18th century society is being
succinctly indicated by the lines of the novel “Men have had every advantage of us in telling
their own story. Education has been theirs in so much higher a degree; the pen has been in
their hands” (Austen, 2016). According to Walle (2016), this need for security among the
women arises not only from the limited liberty that the women enjoyed in the society of that
age but also because of the fact they had no property rights and needed to depend on the male
members of their family. In this regard, the opening lines of the novel “Pride and Prejudice”,
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune,
must be in want of a wife” becomes a parody of the common social trend which was

4MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
prevalent in the age (Austen, 2016). In addition to these, the emphasis of Jane Austen on the
entity of manners in the majority of her novels including “Persuasion” becomes apparent
when environment in which she herself was raised. Austen for the major part of her life lived
in a small village cottage wherein she took care of her younger brothers and sisters (Steiner,
2016). It is pertinent to note that this was the exact behavior or the manner that the women of
the 18th century were expected to display.
Campbell et al. (2017) are of the viewpoint that Anne Elliot, Elizabeth Bennet and
other female protagonists of her novels not only displayed the kind of behavior and manners
which were too radical for the 18th century but at the same time these female characters were
way ahead of their times as well. For example, in “Persuasion”, it is seen that unlike the
general mannerism or the trend followed by the majority of the girls of her age Anne decides
to refuses to have anything to with Mr. Elliot although he could have offered her not only
wealth but also social position as well as acceptance (Zionkowski & Hart, 2015). In this
regard, her comments about Mr. Elliot are important to note where she says “His cold
politeness, his ceremonious grace, were worse than anything……….”(Austen, 2016). In
addition to this, it is seen that because of the façade of the social norms and also mannerisms
she had to sacrifice her true love for Frederick Wentworth and break her engagement with
him because he could not offer her financial security and social acceptance (Zionkowski &
Hart, 2015). Speaking of her separation with her beloved she says that “Now they were as
strangers; worse than strangers, for they could never become acquainted” (Austen, 2016).
These lines clearly reveal the inner most feelings of a tormented soul who had to part with the
happiest thing of her because of the societal norms and mannerism. As per Wheeler (2016)
the net result of this separation is the fact that she detaches herself from the general
population and hoped to become wise and reasonable through experience “She hoped to be
wise and reasonable in time…she was not wise yet” (Austen, 2016). However, this behavior

5MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
of the part of Anne not only vexed her family members but at the same time lead the
members of her society to think of her as boastful.
Mannerism and societal norms also play an important role during the second phase of
acquaintance of Anne and Wentworth (Wheeler, 2016). Campbell et al. (2017) are of the
viewpoint that the separation which she had with Wentworth forces her to undergo an
emotional journey she detaches her from the general societal manners or the norms followed
by the others. Furthermore, in the 18th century it was seen that the girls who had not got
married by 25 years were generally considered to be spinsters and not treated with much
respect (Russo, 2017). However, on the other hand, it is seen that Anne does not display any
such feelings about getting old and even goes to the point of rejecting marriage offers
because the grooms did not have sound characters (Zionkowski & Hart, 2015). Her elation at
knowing that Wentworth still has feelings for her which she displays in the words “She had
been forced into prudence in her youth, she learned romance as she grew older: the natural
sequel of an unnatural beginning” are important to note in this regard (Austen, 2016).
Campbell et al. (2017) are of the viewpoint that Anne Elliot is a more developed
version of the female protagonist of Pride and Prejudice, namely, Elizabeth Bennet and for an
understanding of her character, an understanding of Elizabeth’s character is necessary.
According to Garcia (2018), the relationship which Anne and Wentworth share when
analyzed through the relationship of Elizabeth and Darcy would reveal insightful details. For
example, it is seen in both the relationships the individuals go against the social laws and also
the manners that they were required and as a matter of fact it is this disregard for the social
laws as well as the manners by these individuals, which forms the primary source of pleasure
or entertainment in these two novels (Moore, 2017). Furthermore, Austen through the clash
of manners also tries to articulate the desired changes that were needed with the need of the
18th century English society. Thus, it can be said that the motto of Austen in her novels is not

6MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
only to entertain the readers but at the same time to educate them as well. This becomes even
more important when the stringent manners as well as the customs followed by the people of
the 18th century English society are taken into consideration.
Mr. Bennet, the father of Elizabeth Bennet in the novel “Pride and Prejudice” says
“What do we live for but to make sport of our neighbors?” (Austen, 2016). This line of
Austen shed valuable light on the reasons for the extensive usage of the mannerism of the
society and their disregard by the protagonists of the novels. Collins (2016) is of the
viewpoint that this disregard of the manners rather than the laws are not a source of pleasure
for the readers but at the same time highlight the orthodox nature of the manners and
traditions followed by the 18th century society. This becomes particularly important when the
novel under discussion here and the protagonists of the novel are taken into consideration.
For example, Austen has depicted Anne as a woman who refuses to accept the traditional
choices as well as the manners that have been relegated to the women (Wheeler, 2016). On
the contrary, it is seen that she is a woman who likes to follow her heart and this often leads
to a clash between the manners or the traditions which she is expected to follow and her own
actions (Zionkowski & Hart, 2015). This aspect of her character which is a source of much
entertainment for the readers becomes apparent from her rejection of Mr. Elliot and
acceptance of Wentworth.
The protagonists of the novel “Persuasion” and also the other novels of Jane Austen
disregard the orthodox manners and also the customs of the society yet they do not disregard
or disrespect the laws (Zionkowski & Hart, 2015). One reason for this being the fact
disregarding the law would entail legal penalties and would at the same time generate pity
from the readers and hence would not only be a source of pleasure for them (Campbell et al.,
2017). In this regard, it can be said that the majority of the novels of Jane Austen including
“Persuasion” are in synchronicity with the comment of Edmund Burke that “Manners are of

7MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
more importance than laws [. . .] The law touches us but here and there, and now and then.
Manners are what vex or sooth, corrupt or purify, exalt or debase, barbarize or refine us, by a
constant, steady, uniform, insensible operation, like that of the air we breathe in”. This
statement of Burke becomes especially important when the fact that the entire novel
“Persuasion” is centered on the social manners and the traditions that the women of the 18th
century society were required to follow.
To conclude, the novel “Persuasion” is an important one not only in the canon of
Austenian Literature but also from the perspective of the 18th century as well. The novel in an
implicit manner depicts the manners, values, traditions, customs and the other aspects of the
18th century English Society. Furthermore, it is seen the readers derive much pleasure from
the clash of these manners in the personalities as well as the actions of the diverse characters
of the novels. Moreover, the novel and the characters through their actions depict the kind of
manners and traditions that the society needed to follow. The net result of this aspect of the
novels of the Austen is the fact that some of her female protagonists like Elizabeth, Anne and
others are way ahead of their times and rather than breaking the law and order they break the
set patterns of manner in accordance with which they are required to act. Thus, it can be said
that the novel “Persuasion” affirms to the above given comment of Edmund Burke.

8MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
References
Anand, S. (2017). The Crisis of Female Identity in the Novels of Jane Austen and Shashi
Deshpande: A Comparative Study. International Journal on Multicultural Literature
(IJML) Vol. 8, No. 1: Jan-18, 115.
Austen, J. (2016). Persuasion. Lerner Publishing Group.
Austen, J. (2016). Pride and Prejudice (International Student Edition)(Norton Critical
Editions). WW Norton & Company.
Campbell, B., Duquette, N., Fergus, J., Hart, M., Hopkins, L., Kincade, K., ... & Steiner, E.
K. (2017). Jane Austen and Masculinity. Rowman & Littlefield.
Collins, M. B. (2016). Reading Jane Austen through the Lens of the Law: Legal Issues in
Austen's Life and Novels. DePaul J. Art Tech. & Intell. Prop. L, 27, 115.
Garcia, C. (2018). Left Hanging: Silence, Suspension, and Desire in Jane Austen's
Persuasion. The Eighteenth Century, 59(1), 85-103.
Jacobs, C. L. (2016). From Miss Delia Dainty to Diana Parker: bodily spinster stereotypes in
Jane Austen’s works (Doctoral dissertation).
Moore, R. E. (2017). Jane Austen and the Reformation: Remembering the Sacred Landscape.
Routledge.
Morini, M. (2016). Jane Austen's narrative techniques: A stylistic and pragmatic analysis.
Routledge.
Murphy, O. (2017). “A Future to Look Forward to?”: Extinction and Evolution in Jane
Austen's Persuasion. Eighteenth-Century Life, 41(2), 154-170.

9MANNERS, LAW AND SOCIETY
Russo, S. (2017). Review of Kathryn E. Davis, Liberty in Jane Austen's Persuasion. ABO:
Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640-1830, 7(2), 7.
Steiner, E. K. (2015). Jane Austen's Civilized Women: Morality, Gender and the Civilizing
Process. Routledge.
Steiner, E. K. (2016). Jane Austen: Northanger Abbey/Persuasion. Macmillan International
Higher Education.
The Guardian 92018). Rereadings: Persuasion [online]. Retrieved from
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/nov/23/janeausten.classics
Walle, T. (2016). “He looked quite red”: Persuasion and Austen’s New Man of
Feeling. Eighteenth-Century Fiction, 29(1), 45-66.
Wheeler, D. (2016). Acceptance or Anxiety? the Class Dynamics of Persuasion. Persuasions:
The Jane Austen Journal, 38, 228.
White, R. (2018). “Let Other Pens Dwell on Guilt And Misery”: Jane Austen and Escapism,
from Trench Warfare to Youtube Fanvids. Women's Writing, 1-13.
Wilson, C. A. (2015). " Something like mine": Catherine Hutton, Jane Austen, and Feminist
Recovery Work. The Eighteenth Century, 56(2), 151-164.
Zionkowski, L., & Hart, M. (2015). " Aunt Jane Began Her Day with Music": Austen and the
Female Amateur. Persuasions: The Jane Austen Journal, 37, 165.