Persuasion - Jane Austen

Persuasion by Jane Austen

Genre: Classics

Blurb (on back of book): At twenty-seven, Anne Elliot is no longer young and has few romantic prospects. Eight years earlier, she had been persuaded by her friend Lady Russell to break off her engagement to Frederick Wentworth, a handsome naval captain with neither fortune nor rank. What happens when they encounter each other again is movingly told in Jane Austen's last completed novel. Set in the fashionable societies of Lyme Regis and Bath, Persuasion is a brilliant satire of vanity and pretension, but, above all, it is a love story tinged with the heartache of missed opportunities.

MY OPINION: *****

Even though it took me decades to read this book, I will preface this review by saying that I read around 75% of it in the same week or so and the first 25% is just the reason it took me so long. I had classes and work and other things to do so I took a lot of breaks but I finished it in the weeks before fall semester. 

I'm determined to get through Jane Austen's repertoire hopefully by the end of this year. I have two main novels left and I believe her short stories and other writings which I may take a look at but probably won't read completely through. However, I found that this one, despite it not being everyone's favorite, was definitely in my top three favorite Austen novels. 

I wasn't a fan of the sailor tropes and reading about the navy but it didn't really encompass the entire plot or anything so I wasn't deterred. I do understand that a lot of people found the idea of a sailor being the main love interest not the most appealing thing on this planet in comparison to the Mr. Darcy's of the Jane Austen world, but you can honestly sort of look over it and imagine him as something else with no real changes being made. It's an interesting commentary on the importance of the navy in Britain, especially when you consider Britain's rich naval history, but you don't have to really care too much about it to understand the book. 

I loved Anne Elliot. She is just like me. I'm sorry, she may have been a tad frustrating at times but her thought process behind her love, Frederick, was so realistic. She isn't sure what he's feeling and rather than trying to have an open conversation with the man, she makes assumptions and jumps to conclusions, which I think is a very realistic thing, even in this "modern" age. This is the first Austen book I've read that features a protagonist who is a little "older" (27) in contrast to the young teenage heroines of her other novels. I liked reading from this perspective, especially considering the emphasis on marriage for girls as soon as they reached "womanhood" and how that played a role in Anne's life and situation. 

Frederick is a sailor who Anne had a little romance with eight years before but who was wrongfully encouraged to dump at the behest of her friend, Lady Russell. She's spent the next eight years regretting her decision but not really thinking too much about it because she doesn't expect to ever see the man again. However, when he makes a sudden reappearance in her life eight years later, she realizes that she has never lost the feelings she's had for him (though he doesn't seem to feel the same way anymore). 

It's a love story of miscommunication, jumping to conclusions, pride, and the inability to voice one's feelings without appearing a certain way. I loved everything about it. I loved seeing the tension between the two grow, I adored the jealousy trope (which felt very contemporary for such an old book!), and Frederick's letter is one of the most beautiful pieces of writing I've ever read. 

Anne's family is insufferable (which seems to be a fairly common theme in Austen's novels). Her dad is obsessed with himself and physical beauty and looks down on those he deems "ugly." His reputation and his wealth are the only things that matter to him and when that starts to go down the drain, he's so desperate to save his societal appearance that he is almost willing to let the rest of his family suffer in consequence. Anne's sister, Mary, is no better. She is naive, annoying, complacent, and whiny and she acted as if she owned the world. She has to be the center of attention at all times. Anne's other sister, Elizabeth, isn't the most present in the book but still manages to portray a rather distasteful character overall. 

The other side characters in this book were fun. They all added something to the plot that made the romance thicken between Anne and Frederick and I loved it. Poor Louise, though. 

This book was way less dramatic than perhaps S&S was and in a way, I found it more interesting. Here, we get to read from a more mature character's perspective about the day-to-day life of this period in England that we don't really get to see in many of Austen's other books. While it could tend to drag on for some parts, it was overall very interesting and intriguing. I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a beautiful classic romance, even if it doesn't have the same popularity as P&P. I definitely plan on rereading this book in the future when I'm closer to Anne's age to see if it hits different.

Main Character: Anne

Sidekick(s): Frederick, the cousin, Louise, etc

Villain(s): Regret, miscommunication, etc

Classic Elements: This book is a classic piece of literature.