• Research Paper on:
    Jane Austen's 'Persuasion' / Redefined Marriage

    Number of Pages: 5

     

    Summary of the research paper:

    A 5 page argumentative essay arguing that Austen's 'marriage' relationship is related to equality between the sexes in both the domestic and professional circles of life. A secondary argument ties this to the change from aristocratic to middle class values. Bibliography lists 1 source.

    Name of Research Paper File: D0_Austpers.doc

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    Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
    domestic life. In her story, both male and female characters participate in the professions, and both participate in domestic affairs. This is the reality of life, and  the writing profession is not excluded. In the character of Anne Elliot, Austen saw this as the natural extension of a movement away from aristocracy and toward the rise  of the middle class. For this reason, she separates her characters into "evil" and "good" according to their place in society, not according to their gender. By incorporating  "good," one understands the full meaning of "marriage." The most cruel and scheming characters are the members of Anne Elliots family, who represent  the aristocracy. The Elliot-Musgrove plot to have her marry fortunes does not work with Anne as it did with her sister Mary. Anne is the orchestrator of the  shift, and that shift will incorporate all "marriages." One of the most important shifts is in regard to the marrying of  fortunes. Anne is not persuaded to accept the old definitions. Austen kills off her betrothed enemy, William Elliot, at Lyme Cobb. This in turn represents the killing  of the aristocracy-represented by her family-and Anne develops relationships with the middle class. The middle class characters help present the argument that women and men inhabit the world as  a team. Annes friends are Navy officers, their wives, nurses, and widows down on their luck. Of these people, those Anne admires most are Admiral and Sophia Croft,  who have an egalitarian and happy relationship. Austen provides a number of incidences where this couple operates as a team. In one, Admiral and Sophia Croft share the 

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