Literary+Devices+in+Persuasion

= = =__ Examples of Literary Devices in //Persuasion//: __= = =

1. __Characterization__:
-Jane Austen uses direct characterization in a humorous way in //Persuasion// to explain each character’s personality and to point out specific reasons for several particular actions. An example of this is the description of Sir Walter Elliot: “Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character: vanity of person and of situation” (//Persuasion// 4). Through this humorous description of Sir Walter, readers can infer the priorities Sir Walter dotes upon and an explanation for his cold indifference towards Anne and arrogant reception towards Captain Wentworth.

-Lady Russell is described as “a benevolent, charitable, good woman, and capable of strong attachments… but she had prejudices on the side of ancestry; she had a value for rank and consequence, which blinded her a little to the faults of those who possessed them” (//Persuasion// 11). -Captain Wentworth, he is described as “a young man, who had nothing but himself to recommend him, and no hopes of attaining affluence, but in the chances of a most uncertain profession… but he was confident that he should soon be rich” (//Persuasion// 25-26). This direct characterization shows how these two characters, Lady Russell and Captain Wentworth, are immediately put at odds with each other due to their circumstances and opinions. This proves to be important in the novel since Anne’s engagement with Captain Wentworth is soon terminated by the persuasions of Lady Russell and the apathetic nature of her father towards anyone not of nobility.

2. __Irony__:
-In the very first chapter, Sir Walter is described as “a good father” (//Persuasion// 5). This is truly ironic since the narrator had previously described Sir Walter as a “conceited, silly father” (//Persuasion// 4) whose vanity, acts of narcissism, and apathetic attitude towards Anne show readers he is anything but “a good father.”

-Other instances of irony are used to describe several other situations. For example, in describing Anne’s and Captain Wentworth’s previous engagement, the author uses this ironic statement: “Half the sum of attraction, on either side, might have been enough, for he had nothing to do, and she had hardly any body to love” (//Persuasion// 25). Rather than getting engaged for love, the two main characters were attracted to one another by entirely different and unusual reasons due to their circumstances.

-Another instance of irony is during the time when Captain Wentworth’s relatives come to visit Kellynch Hall. Anne had “found it most natural to be sorry that she had missed the opportunity of seeing them” (//Persuasion// 31). This verbal irony demonstrates how Anne speaks differently from what she truly feels; a reoccurring theme in //Persuasion//. Nervous about meeting Admiral Croft and his wife, she readily avoids them due to their connections to her former lover, but she acts as though she is apologetic for missing them. She commits many acts of verbal irony due to her characteristic of hiding her true emotions and this irony shows readers the inner turmoil of Anne‘s feelings. Jane Austen’s use of irony is plentiful in her writings and they are important due to the fact that they give the characters more depth and give each of them several new layers and dimensions.

3. __Conflict__:
-Anne has many inner conflicts when she must choose between what is right or wrong. The weight of what she truly feels versus what her actual actions are is the deciding factor in what happens in the novel. At the beginning of the novel, Anne submits to Lady Russell’s persuasions and breaks off the engagement. In Anne’s own words, she felt that, “when I yielded, I thought it was to duty” (//Persuasion// 230). Later, Anne reveals that though she does not regret her former decision, she would not repeat it again. Anne settles her inner conflict when she receives the chance to be with Captain Wentworth once more.

-Captain Wentworth also goes through emotional conflicts when he struggles with his feelings for Anne. “I too have been thinking over the past, and a question has suggested itself, whether there may not have been one person more my enemy even than that lady? My own self” (//Persuasion// 232). This quote reveals the conflict Captain Wentworth had with himself when his pride prevents him from reconciling with Anne even though his heart tells him otherwise. This inner conflict led to their eight year separation, but Captain Wentworth throws away his pride in order to confess and propose to Anne.

-Persuasion also addresses a serious social issue back in 19th century England. Sir Walter believes and reveres the old truths that nobility reigns supreme. Wealth and power gained through one’s own merit offends his belief of superiority by birth. Lady Russell also believes in the traditionalist ideals of a hierarchy. Thus Sir Walter’s and Lady Russell’s opinions immediately put them at odds with the “brilliant, headstrong” (//Persuasion// 29) Captain Wentworth who gains his distinction in the navy through meritocracy. These social conflicts are shown throughout the novel but come to a shaky resolution when Lady Russell and Sir Walter reluctantly agree to Anne’s engagement with Captain Wentworth at the novel’s end.

4. __Foreshadowing__:
-An example of foreshadowing is used when Sir Walter and his lawyer, Mr. Shepherd, talk of potential tenants who are worthy enough to rent Kellynch Hall. Mr. Shepherd speaks highly of the naval officers returning from the Napoleonic Wars when he speaks of how they are “responsible tenants” (//Persuasion// 17) and how many of them had gained a considerable fortune from the war. This foreshadows that Kellynch Hall will indeed be rented out to an admiral and his wife. The comment that many men gained a fortune also foreshadows the news of what had happened to Captain Wentworth and how he did succeed as a naval officer to gain fortune and power.

-Another example of foreshadowing occurs when, “Anne, who had been a most attentive listener to the whole, left the room, to see the comfort of cool air for her flushed cheeks; and as she walked along a favorite grove, said with a gentle sigh ‘a few months more, and //he//, perhaps, may be walking here’” (//Persuasion// 24). This sentence foreshadows two things; one of which is Captain Wentworth’s arrival. The second relates to Anne’s emotional state of being at the mere mention of Captain Wentworth. Her flushed cheeks and agitated reaction to this piece of news foreshadows the even greater degree of impact that Captain Wentworth will have on Anne’s temperament later on in the novel.

-The third example of foreshadowing in //Persuasion// is related to a side couple. Henrietta Musgrove and Charles Hayter were once lovers who were separated and reunited, foreshadowing the main couple’s eventual reconciliation. It is the idea portrayed by Henrietta and Charles that love, no matter how oppressed, stays consistent. This side couple’s rekindled love for one foreshadow the theme that two lovers who are suitable for one another will be able to overcome all interferences and any temptations placed on them. This is shown in the resolution of //Persuasion// when Anne and Captain Wentworth reunite at last.

5. __Theme__:
-In her last novel, //Persuasion,// Austen endeavors to relate a prominent social issue with the theme of a class hierarchy and social mobility. Sir Walter is the embodiment of what it means to be vain about one’s social status in life. He believes in superiority by birth rather than the idea of meritocracy. In reality, Sir Walter abhors the idea of rising above one’s station in life by one’s own volition. The theme of meritocracy is introduced with characters employed in the navy which was “the means of bringing persons of obscure birth into undue distinction, and raising men to honours which their fathers and grandfathers never dreamt of” (//Persuasion//19). Captain Wentworth is the personification of meritocracy since he uses his own abilities to rise in rank and gain wealth for himself. The social values differed greatly between these two characters and it was the theme of class hierarchy that tore Anne and Captain Wentworth apart. However, it is ultimately the theme of social mobility that allow the couple to reunite and become engaged once more with a reluctant acceptance from Anne’s family.

-The theme of class hierarchy in //Persuasion// leads readers to the theme of persuasion. Persuasion acts as the catalyst to the beginning of the plot and it is what prevents the early happiness of Anne and Captain Wentworth. Persuasion is seen throughout the novel as the characters are constantly being persuaded and advised to do things differently from what they truly feel. Lady Russell’s persuasions had affected Captain Wentworth to such a degree that he at first hates Anne because “she had used him ill; deserted and disappointed him and worse, she had shewn a feebleness of character in doing so, which his own decided, confident temper could not endure. She had given him up to oblige others. It had been the effect of over-persuasion“ (//Persuasion// 58-59). Although Anne would not follow these persuasions anymore after gaining eight years worth of experience, she persuades herself that she committed the right thing because it was done for duty’s sake. The rest of the novel follows Anne’s emotional state as she persuades herself that Captain Wentworth no longer loves her and later on when she begins to persuade herself that no other man is capable of making her happy besides him. This idea of loving only one person leads to the third example of theme in the novel.

-//Persuasion// integrates a third theme in its story telling: the constancy of love. This theme is shown through Anne’s devoted feelings towards Captain Wentworth despite eight years of separation. Captain Wentworth also demonstrates the consistency of love when he culminates all of his feelings into a love letter for Anne: “dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death. I have loved none but you“ (//Persuasion// 223). Anne and Captain Wentworth were suitable for one another and so their love was able to endure all the hardships that came before them in the forms of persuasions and temptations from other suitors. The constancy of love can also be seen in the other couples of the novel. Henrietta Musgrove and Charles Hayter were able to marry even after their previous engagement failed. Captain Benwick was heartbroken and melancholic for years after his fiancée’s death and it took much encouragement to get him out of his depressed stupor. The wives of the naval officers also show resolution in their love for their husbands as they brave the fierce seas to be with them. Love’s constancy is thus shown throughout the novel to present this last paramount theme in Jane Austen’s last novel.