Sense and sensibility who is sense

Elinor's is threatened from the start. Marianne's reactions are always impassioned and uncontrolled; Elinor is always sensible and restrained. Sense is finally justified and sensibility shown to be a weakness. Ironically, Marianne marries a prosaic older man, and for both it is a second love, something Marianne vowed she could never tolerate. Elinor's fate is more romantic; she marries her first and only love and is quite happy to settle down as the wife of a country parson.

Austen, in expostulating this theme, is setting up in the process what she believes to be a fitting standard of behavior. But the issues are not so clear cut. The proponents of sensibility actually emerge as much more favorable characters than do those that stress the tenets of sense. The moral qualities of goodness and loyalty to one's family are an integral part of what Austen means by good sense. In fact, they are the most important parts of it. Thus Marianne and her mother, while immature and overly romantic, are, on the whole, good people.

Sir John is much more pleasing than his wife, and Mrs. Palmer is preferable to Mr. Palmer for just those qualities of feeling that he abhors.

Willoughby, John and Fanny Dashwood, and Mrs. Ferrars, the villains of this novel, all lack the necessary human sentiments. We ought to pause to define these terms, because the words have changed in meaning over the past two centuries. It suggested having well-regulated powers of mind.

Sensibility signaled emotional sensitivity, sympathy, and susceptibility. It was a power of the senses, of perception or taste, and of the heart. To claim to feel more deeply, or to express stronger feelings, was a very fashionable form of sensibility. It seems audiences encountered these novels in order to experience and share the powerful feelings that the stories called up. Whether these books were devoured in contemplative solitude or read aloud among family or friends, the point was to be so moved as to shed tears.

Both men and women were invited to cry with these male characters, but over time, the concept of sensibility became further divided by gender. Men might cultivate admirable sensibility, but women were widely believed to have greater natural or biological access to it. The ramifications of these stereotypes about gender, thinking, and feeling still linger with us. Sensibility was also a politically controversial concept.

Sensibility could be used to sort out the well-born from the low-born or the well-educated from the uneducated. Whether learned or inborn, the moral qualities of a privileged person were said to heighten his or her ability to recognize and respond to beauty. Others, however, believed just the opposite. If sensibility were truly about sympathy, then anyone could claim to have it. It could be found in all walks of life. If a privileged person could show sympathy for the plight of the sensitive downtrodden and wanted to better the lot of those who shared his fine sensibility, then he could claim to be a superior moral person.

The problem, of course, was that sensibility could be feigned. Many sounded alarms about the dangers of false sensibility, too. Her distrust of the excesses of sympathy is made especially clear in one humorous conversation in the novel. Do dead leaves deserve sympathy? Are there other things that deserve our passionate concern more than dead leaves? But sometimes they are.

To love dead leaves is to show an exquisite appreciation of nature, beauty, and life, from cradle to grave. She would seem to prefer to evaluate people on their intentions, judgments, and behavior rather than on their heightened sensitivities, dramatic empathy, or professed taste.

Marianne follows in the emotional footsteps of her mother, with little regard for moderating her responses. However, the wait was longer than anticipated; Sense and Sensibility was first advertised for sale in The Star on October Ads ran in newspapers throughout November and also appeared at various times throughout Now in her mids, Jane Austen was finally a published author.

You will be glad to hear that every Copy of S. She continued to receive profits from the sale of the second edition of Sense and Sensibility through March It showcases her keen understanding of human nature and psychology and her satiric wit. Readers also appreciate its ironic depiction of the economic motivations at work in the Regency marriage market. Explore the resources below for more in-depth information about Sense and Sensibility , a discussion guide for your reading group, and more.