Mansfield Park book cover

Mansfield Park is a novel by Jane Austen. Written between 1812 and 1814. Mansfield Park was written at Chawton Cottage, and published in July 1814 by the Mr. Egerton who had given to the world its two predecessors. When the novel reached a second edition, its publication was taken over by John Murray, who was also responsible for bringing out its successor, Emma. It is, perhaps, the most satirical of Austen's works. Image File history File links Mansfield Park book cover This image is a book cover. ... Image File history File links Mansfield Park book cover This image is a book cover. ... DeFoes Robinson Crusoe, Newspaper edition published in 1719 A novel (from French nouvelle, new) is an extended fictional narrative in prose. ... Jane Austen, in a portrait based on one drawn by her sister Cassandra House of Jane Austen (today it is a museum) Jane Austen (December 16, 1775 – July 18, 1817) was a prominent English novelist whose work is considered part of the Western canon. ... 1812 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1814 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Chawton is a small village in Hampshire, England, near Alton. ... Emma is a comic novel by Jane Austen, generally regarded as the most perfectly constructed of all her works, concerning the perils of misconstrued romance. ... Satire is a literary technique of writing or art which exposes the follies of its subject (for example, individuals, organizations, or states) to ridicule, often as an intended means of provoking or preventing change. ...

Plot

The main character, Fanny Price, is sent at an early age from her poor family to live with her rich uncle and aunt, Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram, at Mansfield Park. She grows up with her four cousins, Tom, Edmund, Maria and Julia, but is always treated as inferior to them; only Edmund shows her real kindness. Despite often being unhappy during her childhood, Fanny grows up with a strong sense of propriety and virtue, and remains closely attached to her brother William (possibly based on Jane Austen's brother Frank), who has begun a career in the Royal Navy. Over time, Fanny's gratitude for Edmund's kindness grows into love, and she secretly forms an attachment to him. Virtue (Greek αρετη; Latin virtus) is the habitual, well-established, readiness or disposition of mans powers directing them to some goodness of act. ... Sir Francis Austen (1774–1865) was a British officer who spent most of his long life on active duty in the Royal Navy, rising to the position of Admiral of the Fleet. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the senior service of the British armed services, being the oldest of its three branches. ...

Fanny's other aunt, Mrs. Norris, is a miserly busybody who spoils the Bertram children while putting Fanny down and verbally battering her. Sir Thomas tries to correct the influence of Mrs. Norris on his children, but only succeeds in setting himself up as a severe patriach from whom they become accustomed to conceal their true feelings and opinions. Maria and Julia end up vain and convinced of their own worth simply by dint of being beautiful, accomplished women of consequence, whilst Tom is an irresponsible partygoer and gambler. Only Edmund survives his upbringing with his sense of virtue unscathed.

The bulk of the action of the book takes place while Sir Thomas is away for two years in Antigua, dealing with problems on his plantation there. The romantic entanglements begin after the arrival of two siblings, Mr. and Miss Crawford, to visit their sister Mrs. Grant, who is the wife of the inhabitant of Mansfield Park parsonage. Miss Crawford and Edmund begin to form an attachment, though Edmund often worries that she displays a lack of correct manners and worryingly irreverent opinions, particularly towards his chosen vocation of clergyman. The growing affection between them grieves Fanny, who not only fears to lose him but feels that love is blinding Edmund to deep flaws in Miss Crawford's character. Mr. Crawford meanwhile sports with the affections of both Bertram sisters, despite the fact that Maria is already engaged to the rather dull, but very rich, Mr. Rushworth.

On Sir Thomas's return, he finds the young people in the midst of a grand scheme to put on a play (considered a highly inappropriate activity for gently born women to participate in, and ultimately opposed only by Fanny). His arrival causes the play to be aborted. Mr. Crawford leaves, and Maria is crushed. Her marriage to Mr. Rushworth goes ahead, despite the jealousy that had been engendered in him by her behaviour with Mr. Crawford, and they leave on honeymoon, taking Julia with them. In their absence, Fanny becomes of more consequence to the family and her uncle shows her much greater affection than previously. When Mr. Crawford returns to Mansfield Park after an absence, she becomes the new target of his flirtations. However, her genuine gentleness and kindness cause this plan to backfire, and he falls in love with her. But when he proposes, her knowledge of his previous improper behaviour towards her cousins, as well as her existing attachment to Edmund, cause her to reject him. Her family is dismayed at this; Sir Thomas rebukes her for insubordination and ingratitude. But Fanny holds her ground, knowing that she has acted correctly (she cannot bring herself to implicate Maria by explaining her reasons).

Sir Thomas contrives a plan to send Fanny back to her family's shabby home for a few months, so that she might realise that a rich husband is a very useful thing to have. Mr. Crawford comes to visit her to demonstrate that he has changed his ways and is now worthy of her affections (partly by helping to secure a promotion for Fanny's brother William), and this strategy begins to soften Fanny's attitude, though she is still far from accepting him. However, shortly after he leaves for London, Fanny begins to hear rumours of a scandal involving him and Maria; it later emerges that on resuming their acquaintance in London, Crawford recommenced his flirtations, which ended up in an elopement. Between this and an illness suffered by Tom (in the aftermath of a drinking binge), the situation at Mansfield Park is dire, and Fanny is recalled to be of both use and comfort to her aunt and uncle. In the aftermath of the scandal, Edmund breaks off relations with Miss Crawford, and eventually comes to return Fanny's affections, and they marry.

Principal Characters

Fanny Price -- A daughter in a large family, who is sent to live with her mother's sisters at Mansfield Park. Her mother defied her family and married for love. Her husband turned out to be an alcoholic and Mrs. Price had to settle for a life far less comfortable than that of the rest of her family.

Lady Bertram -- Sister of Fanny Price's mother who is married to the wealthy Sir Thomas Bertram.

Mrs. Norris -- the widowed sister of Lady Bertram and Fanny Price's mother, who lives at Mansfield Park with the Bertrams. Her late husband, Mr. Norris, was the previous parson at Mansfield Park.

Sir Thomas Bertram -- The husband of Fanny's aunt, Lady Bertram. He owns a large plantation in Antigua.

Tom Bertram -- The elder son of Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram. Tom is principally interested in carousing in London society and enjoying the pleasures of the theatre with his friend Mr. Yates. Tom incurs large debts, which Sir Thomas is forced to pay off with the money that was to go to Edmund, Tom's younger brother. One celebratory journey leaves Tom with a fever, left in a ditch by his partying friends.

Edmund Bertram -- The younger son of Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram. He aspires to become a clergyman. Young Edmund and Fanny find much in common with each other. Upon reaching adulthood, Edmund finds himself attrached to Miss Crawford.

'Maria Bertram -- The elder daughter of Sir Thomas and Lady Bertram. She becomes engaged to Mr. Rushworth, but then becomes emotionally involved with Mr. Crawford.

Mrs. Grant -- The wife of the current parson at the Mansfield Park parsonage.

Mr. Henry Crawford -- The brother of Mrs. Grant. A handsome and eligible bachelor who shows interest in Maria and Julia and Fanny.

Miss Mary Crawford -- The sister of Mr. Crawford and Mrs. Grant, who takes a keen interest in Edmund Bertram.

Mr. Rushworth -- a wealthy but foolish man who becomes engaged to Maria Bertram.

Mr. Yates -- Good friend of Tom Bertram. Tom and Yates carouse in London society and bring their love of the theatre to Mansfield Park. Yates proves himself unreliable when his neglect leaves Tom ill and uncared for after a bout of celebratory carousing. Yates also expresses interest in Mrs. Maria Rushworth.

William Price -- Fanny's brother, a naval officer, with whom she is very close.

Susan Price -- Fanny's younger sister, with whom she is very close.

Critical Appraisal

Mansfield Park is not amongst the most popular of Austen's works. Many modern readers find Fanny's timidity and disapproval of the theatricals difficult to sympathise with, and the idea (made explicit in the final chapter) that she is a better person for the relative privations of her childhood rather unpleasant. Other critics point out that she is a complex personality, perceptive yet given to wishful thinking, and that she shows courage and grows in self-esteem during the latter part of the story. The story contains much social satire, particularly at the expense of the two aunts. It is also perhaps the most socially realistic Austen novel, with Fanny's family of origin, the Prices, coming from a much lower echelon of society than most Austen characters, and the novel's suggestion that the wealth of the Bertrams is derived from slavery in the West Indies.

The novel has been adapted for the screen twice: a 1983 TV mini-series directed by David Giles and starring Sylvestra Le Touzel as Fanny and Anna Massey as Mrs. Norris, and a 1999 film directed by Patricia Rozema and starring Frances O'Connor as Fanny and Jonny Lee Miller as Edmund (interestingly, he also featured in the 1983 version, playing one of Fanny's brothers). 1999 (MCMXCIX) is a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Patricia Rozema (born 1958) is a Canadian film director and screenwriter. ... Frances OConnor (born on 12 July 1967 in Wantage, Oxfordshire) is an Australian actress who attended Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts as well as earned a BA in literature from Curtin University in Western Australia. ... Jonny Lee Miller Jonny Lee Miller (born November 15, 1972) is a British actor. ...

External link

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Mansfield Park

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:

Mansfield Park

• Free eBook of Mansfield Park at Project Gutenberg
• Mansfield Park - in easy to read HTML format.