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“Angry people are not always wise.”
- Jane Austen
One of Jane Austen’s many great romance novels, ‘Sense and Sensibility’ is a story of patience, class and unrequited love. Divided in three volumes, the book talks about how women were dependent on their male relatives for mere survival and how class determined almost all prospects of women having a secure life.
The novel follows the lives of two sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood and how they strive to make their place in reputable society after the death of their father leaves them almost penniless, forcing them to move out of their home. The book is also a satirical remark on the early 19th Century, middle-class society.
Introduction
Name of the Book - Sense and Sensibility
Author’s Name - Jane Austen
Genre - Romance Novel
Language - English
Synopsis - Spoiler Alert!
The death of Henry Dashwood leaves his second wife and his three daughters Elinor, Marianne and Margaret penniless and forces them to move to a small cottage in Devonshire, away from reputable society and from their home.
Marianne Dashwood is torn between the handsome and young John Willoughby and older Colonel Brandon, while Elinor’s heart lies with her half-brother’s brother in law Edward Ferrars, who is engaged to Lucy Steele. Both Elinor and Marianne strive for romance while the circumstances in their lives constantly change.
About the Author
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One of the most famous writers of the early nineteenth century, Jane Austen is a British novelist born on the 16th of December, 1175 and primarily famous for her six major novels, commenting on the British aristocrat and middle-class society at the end of the eighteenth century and towards the beginning of the nineteenth century.
Jane Austen is a personal favorite for her depiction of women and their lives during the Victorian era. One can consider her to be an early feminist writer. Some of her books include, ‘Emma’, ‘Mansfield Park’, ‘Sense and Sensibility’, ‘Northanger Abbey’ and ‘Persuasion’. She died on the 18th of July, 1817.
About the Book
‘Sense and Sensibility’ is the story of the Dashwood family, left destitute after the death of Henry Dashwood, who leaves all his belongings to his first wife’s son John. Elinor and Marianne Dashwood are both of matrimonial age and personify sense and sensibility (emotional). The Dashwood women move to a small Devonshire cottage.
There the bold and passionate Marianne meets Colonel Brandon, who is twenty years her senior and admires her deeply. Marianne discourages his attention and falls for John Willoughby who seems like an ardent lover, but is actually an untrustworthy fortune hunter.
He deserts Marianne for an heiress which leaves Marianne quite literally lovesick but she later makes the wise decision of marrying Colonel Brandon.
During this time, Marianne's older sister, the reasonable and attentive Elinor, and Edward Ferrars, Fanny's sibling, have formed a connection. Nonetheless, she is apparently reserved about her expressions of warmth, particularly in the wake of discovering that he has been subtly drawn in to Lucy Steele for quite a while.
Despite the fact that Edward is in love with Elinor, he is resolved to respect his obligation to Lucy. At the point when the commitment is uncovered, Edward is abandoned, and Colonel Brandon offers him a living as a pastor. Later Elinor is informed that Mr. Ferrars is married.
Accepting that the Mr. Ferrars being referred to is Edward, she is both stunned and relieved to find that Lucy has married Edward's sibling, Robert. Edward shows up at Barton Cottage and proposes to Elinor, who accepts.
‘Sense and Sensibility’ has also been made into an excellent movie starring Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman as Elinor Dashwood, Marianne Dashwood, Edward Ferrars and Colonel Brandon respectively.
Themes Involved
The major theme in the novel is perhaps the perils of excessive sensibility. Marianne is a deeply passionate and emotional person and her sensibility almost causes her death after Willoughby rejects her to marry an heiress, leaving her heartbroken and love-sick.
The story is a dual romance and focuses on the love affairs of the Dashwood sisters. But while Elinor’s story is more sensible, Marianne’s is more passionate and some might say, perhaps more romantic.
Famous Quotes
“I wish, as well as everybody else, to be perfectly happy; but, like everybody else, it must be in my own way.”
“Money can only give happiness when there is nothing else to give it.”
“The more I know of the world, the more I am convinced that I shall never see a man whom I can really love. I require so much!”
“It is not time or opportunity that is to determine intimacy; - it is disposition alone. Seven years may be insufficient to make people acquainted with each other, and seven days are more than enough for others.”
The Bottom Line
‘Sense and Sensibility’ is a must read if you enjoy reading Romance Novels as it takes you to a completely different time and era and makes you believe in destiny and the fact that if someone is meant to be with you, the universe will find a way.
Although fantasy, the novel is something you will enjoy thoroughly and I highly recommend the book.
My ratings for the book - 5 on 5
Get the Book from Amazon - Sense and Sensibility
Written By - Sakshi Singh
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