By the penultimate chapter of the novel, we finally get a solid conclusion to the question of whether persuasion is a good or bad thing in Anne's eyes, a question that had two equally supported answers up to this point. As Anne and Wentworth are discussing their previously failed relationship and Lady Russell's role in it. Anne quickly verifies, however, that when she yielded to her friend's persuasion, "it was to duty," and "safety" rather than risk (251). At this point, the main character's immense maturity is revealed as she is able to look retrospectively and not regret her decision to end their relationship. Instead, she resolves that she would have suffered more had they stayed together "because I should have suffered in my conscience" (253). She continues to say that "a strong sense of duty is no bad part of a woman's portion." This marks a decisive change from her character at the beginning of the novel, at which point she was passive, vulnerable, and almost completely unable to voice her own opinions. The last several years, then, has matured her and made her more aware of what she wants for herself, guaranteeing that their marriage will be healthy and mutually beneficial. Furthermore, being persuaded has ultimately helped her to take a more active role in her own life and more accurately define her "sense of duty."
Watching Anne's character development through the novel did intrigue me to the point where I wondered if Austen wrote about the same character consistently. On the note of the powers of persuasion, Lady Russell, a prominent character in the first volume, gradually fades to a background figure as Anne consults Mrs. Smith and her own feelings. The theme of marrying for duty appears frequently in Austen's novels: Elizabeth's "duty" to marry Mr. Collins in P&P is a classic example. What is interesting is that for both characters, the word "duty" has connotations of unhappiness in personal life to benefit the family a whole.
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