The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a person in possession of a novel by Jane Austen must be reading about marriages. Austen ends every single one of her novels with at least one marriage, however, Austen’s ideas on the marriage market in the 18th Century are not simply based on some ideal f...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng
Other Authors: Terence Richard Dawson
Format: Final Year Project (FYP)
Language:English
Published: 2015
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10356/62733
_version_ 1826127029188165632
author Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng
author2 Terence Richard Dawson
author_facet Terence Richard Dawson
Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng
author_sort Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng
collection NTU
description It is a truth universally acknowledged that a person in possession of a novel by Jane Austen must be reading about marriages. Austen ends every single one of her novels with at least one marriage, however, Austen’s ideas on the marriage market in the 18th Century are not simply based on some ideal fantasy of hers. They are, as Peter Knox-Shaw’s notes in his study on Austen’s influence by the English enlightenment, “firmly rooted in observation” (Knox-Shaw 8). So what exactly has Austen observed about the English and their marriages? Austen’s heroines and heroes are different in their situations and characteristics and from that, readers can observe the different types of marriages that are formed between these people. This essay will focus on three main types of marriages from three of Austen’s novels: the marriage to educate in Northanger Abbey, the marriage of contentment in Pride and Prejudice, and the “incestuous” marriage in Mansfield Park. A couple from each of the three novels will be studied with careful attention: from Northanger Abbey, Henry Tilney’s interactions with Catherine Morland, from Pride and Prejudice, William Collins and Charlotte’s Lucas’ situation, and from Mansfield Park, the incestuous affair between Edmund Bertram and Fanny Price. From these three separate marriages, this essay will show how the different situations in life will result in the different types of marriages that Austen will condone and how ultimately, the important thing is to achieve happiness in one’s marriage and happiness that will last and be sustained.
first_indexed 2024-10-01T07:02:04Z
format Final Year Project (FYP)
id ntu-10356/62733
institution Nanyang Technological University
language English
last_indexed 2024-10-01T07:02:04Z
publishDate 2015
record_format dspace
spelling ntu-10356/627332019-12-10T14:32:13Z The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng Terence Richard Dawson School of Humanities and Social Sciences DRNTU::Humanities::Literature::English It is a truth universally acknowledged that a person in possession of a novel by Jane Austen must be reading about marriages. Austen ends every single one of her novels with at least one marriage, however, Austen’s ideas on the marriage market in the 18th Century are not simply based on some ideal fantasy of hers. They are, as Peter Knox-Shaw’s notes in his study on Austen’s influence by the English enlightenment, “firmly rooted in observation” (Knox-Shaw 8). So what exactly has Austen observed about the English and their marriages? Austen’s heroines and heroes are different in their situations and characteristics and from that, readers can observe the different types of marriages that are formed between these people. This essay will focus on three main types of marriages from three of Austen’s novels: the marriage to educate in Northanger Abbey, the marriage of contentment in Pride and Prejudice, and the “incestuous” marriage in Mansfield Park. A couple from each of the three novels will be studied with careful attention: from Northanger Abbey, Henry Tilney’s interactions with Catherine Morland, from Pride and Prejudice, William Collins and Charlotte’s Lucas’ situation, and from Mansfield Park, the incestuous affair between Edmund Bertram and Fanny Price. From these three separate marriages, this essay will show how the different situations in life will result in the different types of marriages that Austen will condone and how ultimately, the important thing is to achieve happiness in one’s marriage and happiness that will last and be sustained. Bachelor of Arts 2015-04-28T05:57:20Z 2015-04-28T05:57:20Z 2015 2015 Final Year Project (FYP) http://hdl.handle.net/10356/62733 en Nanyang Technological University 24 p. application/pdf
spellingShingle DRNTU::Humanities::Literature::English
Foo, Lionel Rong Sheng
The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title_full The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title_fullStr The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title_full_unstemmed The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title_short The proposal for a life time of happiness : the different types of marriages in Jane Austen’s novels
title_sort proposal for a life time of happiness the different types of marriages in jane austen s novels
topic DRNTU::Humanities::Literature::English
url http://hdl.handle.net/10356/62733
work_keys_str_mv AT foolionelrongsheng theproposalforalifetimeofhappinessthedifferenttypesofmarriagesinjaneaustensnovels
AT foolionelrongsheng proposalforalifetimeofhappinessthedifferenttypesofmarriagesinjaneaustensnovels