THE LAST NOVEL
Twenty-seven-year old Anne Elliot is Austen’s most adult heroine. Eight years before the story proper begins, she is happily betrothed to a naval officer, Frederick Wentworth, but she precipitously breaks off the engagement when persuaded by her friend Lady Russell that such a match is unworthy. 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. All the tension of the novel revolves around one question: Will Anne and Wentworth be reunited in their love?
Jane Austen once compared her writing to painting on a little bit of ivory, 2 inches square. Readers of Persuasion will discover that neither her skill for delicate, ironic observations on social custom, love, and marriage nor her ability to apply a sharp focus lens to English manners and morals has deserted her in her final finished work
Pemberlitten read starting August first for a chapter a day. The last of Austen to group read.
Persuasion is the last novel fully completed by Jane Austen. It was published at the end of 1817, six months after her death.
Readers of Persuasion might conclude that Austen intended “persuasion” to be the unifying theme of the story, as the idea of persuasion runs through the book, with vignettes within the story as variations on that theme. British literary scholar Gillian Beer establishes that Austen had profound concerns about the levels and applications of ‘persuasion’ employed in society, especially as it related to the pressures and choices facing the young women of her day.
Of all Jane Austen’s great and delightful novels, Persuasion is widely regarded as the most moving. It is the story of a second chance.
A chapter a day going through all of Austen’s works in order has made me more of a fan of her writing. My heart is still Bronte, but I have a new Austen favorite and that is Persuasion.
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 twenty-seven years, whose family moves to lower their expenses and reduce their debt by renting their home to an Admiral and his wife.
We have had a wonderful leader giving us prompts and daily summaries. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time as a Pemberlitten.
