Common questions

What is the story of Persuasion by Jane Austen?

What is the story of Persuasion by Jane Austen?

Persuasion tells the story of a second chance, the reawakening of love between Anne Elliot and Captain Frederick Wentworth, whom eight years earlier she had been persuaded not to marry. Wentworth returns from the Napoleonic Wars with prize money and the social acceptability of naval rank.

What is the main theme of Persuasion?

The issues of class rigidity and social mobility are the most important themes in Persuasion. Marriage and the naval profession are two means by which individuals may improve their social class. Austen is not a revolutionary; she defends the values and traditions of respect for the social structure.

How is Persuasion different from Austen’s other novels?

Like many other of Austen’s works, “Persuasion” is a love story at its essence, but beneath its surface we encounter much bleaker subjects, such as injustice. Though Austen writes in third person, the free-indirect discourse seamlessly weaves Anne’s thoughts into the narration such that hers is the primary perspective.

Is persuasion a sad book?

Persuasion is Austen’s last published work. She began it when she was nearly 40 years old, and when she finished it she was within a year of her death. Perhaps not surprisingly, it is one of her shortest – and it is certainly her saddest – novel. But it is also her subtlest and most impassioned.

Is persuasion worth reading?

Persuasion is my one of my favorites for several reasons. To begin with, it is beautifully written — melancholy and haunting, it’s a piercing book that runs a full gamut of emotions in a very small space. That short length is another reason I love this book.

Is Persuasion worth reading?

What does the last sentence of Persuasion mean?

oddly ambivalent
While the ending does suggest that having eight years to grow up and figure themselves out has made our happy couple even more likely to stay that way, and with the added bonus that Anne’s snobby family is finally OK with Wentworth’s naval profession, the last sentence of the novel is oddly ambivalent.

Why should I read Persuasion?

Persuasion preserves the improbable coincidences, but it focuses more on the ways that relationships are maintained over time and what it takes to remain happy with a person. Each time I read this novel, it strikes me in a different way. That is why it’s one of my favorite books.

Is Persuasion the best Jane Austen?

“Pride and Prejudice is not Austen’s greatest novel. Jane Austen’s greatest novel is Persuasion.” It is – among many other things – the most moving love story she ever told. Anne Elliot is the second daughter of the absurdly vain baronet Sir Walter Elliot of Kellynch Hall.

Did Jane finish Persuasion?

Although Persuasion was completed in August 1816, Austen took no steps to have it published. Perhaps she planned to revise the manuscript further before publication.

What happens at the end of persuasion by Jane Austen?

The breakup produces in Anne a deep and long-lasting regret. When later Wentworth returns from sea a rich and successful captain, he finds Anne’s family on the brink of financial ruin and his own sister a tenant in Kellynch Hall, the Elliot estate.

When was the last book by Jane Austen published?

Persuasion, Jane Austen Persuasion is the last novel fully completed by Jane Austen. It was published at the end of 1817, six months after her death. The story concerns Anne Elliot, a young Englishwoman of 27 years, whose family is moving to lower their expenses and get out of debt.

How old is Anne Russell in the book Persuasion?

P ersuasion is a novel by Jane Austen in which the 27-year-old Anne Russell, who broke off a youthful engagement with Captain Frederick Wentworth, reconciles with him before the two again become engaged. Years after their engagement, Anne and Wentworth meet again.

Who is the author of the book Persuasion?

Title page of the original 1818 edition Author Jane Austen Country United Kingdom Language English Publisher John Murray