Tuesday, March 13, 2012
The Perpetuation of Class and Hierarchical Values as Evidenced by Future Figures
Jane Austen's Persuasion is of a genre of literature that I quite enjoy for its "decorum language" and stateliness--it is a piece of dignity and eloquence. Intrinsically, the novel incorporates themes of status and hierarchy that indeed have carried over into society today, albeit in lesser or, at the very least, altered forms. Such fixation on one's class and place in a community seems to transcend all boundaries of time and development. One particular section form the book reminded me of a famous quote by Booker T. Washington. Austen writes, "From situation, Mrs. Clay was, in Lady Russell's estimate, a very unequal, and in her character she believed a very dangerous companion--and a removal that would leave Mrs. Clay behind, and bring a choice of more suitable intimates within Miss Elliot's reach, was therefore an object of first-rate importance" (57). At the very onset of the piece, the book's theme of persuasion is introduced as a method and means of ensuring that status levels are maintained and perpetuated. Washington's famous quote, "Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is better to be alone than in bad company," echoes this mentality.
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The "decorum language" has made the novel quite enjoyable for me as well. While I am still reading the first volume, I have concluded that the title is accurate because of the amount of persuasion it takes using the decorum language to convince Sir Walter Elliot to do anything--namely because these actions may lower his class status. What strikes me is that although everyone in the community seems to know about the family's debt, they still try to maintain appearance of superiority and affluence. This brings up the question of whether money is necessarily the determinant of social class.
ReplyDeleteI love your connection to the Booker T. Washington quote, Alex! I think that it very well sums up the important ideas of social mobility and class values in the novel. I also think that the novel shows a transition point or a movement from a more traditional to a more modern view. Characters like Sir Walter perpetuate the image of the “English gentleman” in a more traditional sense: by being a titled land-owner who does not need to work for a living. Characters like Captain Wentworth, Admiral Croft and the other members of the navy made their own money through hard work, brought themselves through the ranks, and have well-tuned manners. They are considered “gentlemen” as well in this novel, and are deemed just as desirable and acceptable for marriage. This novel displays a tension between those traditional values and the coming changes regarding mobility and the class structure.
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