by Jane Austen
73. Mr. Elliot was mentioned earlier as stopping briefly in Bath after the stop in Lyme where he first saw Anne (this page). He had explained to Sir Walter that he failed to visit only because, being in Bath a mere twenty-four hours, he had lacked the time or opportunity. This account suggests that he might have had a little more time than that, and it was really lack of interest that made him stay away.
74. consequence: social position, distinction.
75. fixing: settling.
76. material: essential, necessary. Thus his entire presence in Bath stems from his design to separate Sir Walter and Mrs. Clay.
77. It was Colonel Wallis’s sympathetic explanation of Mr. Elliot’s marriage that persuaded Sir Walter to drop his resentment regarding it (this page). Colonel Wallis was just shown at the concert assisting Mr. Elliot’s attempts to gain a seat next to Anne (this page).
78. The marriage articles were the specific provisions of the legal agreement drawn up by the bride’s and groom’s respective families before a marriage. The agreement centered around the financial contributions and obligations of each side. Provisions like the one Mrs. Wallis imagines would not be part of the articles, which is why Mrs. Smith calls the scheme one worthy of Mrs. Wallis’s (limited) understanding, or intelligence.
79. Nurse Rooke would naturally favor matrimony—which at that time almost always involved at least the attempt to have children—from a wish for more opportunities to work as a monthly nurse for women giving birth. She would be especially likely to find such employment from affluent women, as any wife of Sir Walter would be. In a letter Jane Austen shows the importance of recommendations when she writes of someone getting a nurse who, though with “no particular charm either of person or manner,” is pronounced by local people “to be the best nurse that ever was” (Nov. 17, 1798).
80. worldly: devoted to the affairs of this world (in a pejorative sense); interested in success and money.
81. direction: course or line of discussion.
82. Most wealthy people then got their fortunes through inheriting them. Thus if someone like Mr. Smith spent beyond his means he could easily exhaust that fortune, with limited means of remedying his situation.
83. collect: gather.
84. This suggests that Mrs. Smith bears some of the responsibility for her distress, and that may be one reason she is so keen to throw all the blame on Mr. Elliot. Anne’s reaction to the history indicates that, as bad as Mr. Elliot’s treatment of his friend was, he was not the only one at fault.
85. easy temper: thoughtless disposition; one that was averse to taking trouble.
86. understanding: intellect, mind.
87. amiable: kind, good-natured.
88. The above letter from Mr. Elliot to Mr. Smith suggests a relationship in which the former regularly asked for, and received, money from the latter.
89. involving: entangling, creating difficulties for. In other words, Mr. Elliot was happy to engage in any gratification that did not cost him anything or land him in any trouble.
90. ought to have found himself to be poor: should have perceived that he was becoming poor.
91. Mr. Elliot might have particularly encouraged Mr. Smith in expenses, such as lavish entertaining and dining or travel to fashionable resorts, whose fruits Mr. Elliot could have also enjoyed.
92. embarrassments: financial difficulties.
93. Mr. Smith could have appointed Mrs. Smith; a woman had the right to be an executor, or, more precisely, executrix.
94. This refers to her severe illness (see this page).
95. Britain had many colonies in the West Indies, which tended to be very profitable from the cultivation and sale of sugar. The plantations there were worked by slave labor, so there is a good chance that Mr. Smith’s property included slaves. It is not certain if Jane Austen meant this to be significant: the issue of the slave trade, whose recent abolition in Britain had been a major political issue, is mentioned in both Mansfield Park and Emma, and the former novel includes a character with substantial property in the West Indies. A letter of hers, in which she refers admiringly to a book by Thomas Clarkson, one of the leaders of the movement to ban the trade, suggests that she sympathized with the movement (Jan. 24, 1813). At the same time, her letters do not suggest a strong interest in politics, and in the above-mentioned “Plan for a Novel” (see note 66), she ridicules the idea of making a novel a vehicle for political speechifying.
The most likely reason, from the perspective of the story, for having the property be in the West Indies is that its distance would add to the difficulties Mrs. Smith suffers in recovering it. Moreover, if this property were in Britain, it might not even be hers to recover, for most landed property there was bound by entails that caused it, on the death of its current holder, to descend to the next male relative. A man, however, could bequeath nonentailed property completely to his widow, as Mr. Smith has apparently done.
96. sequestration: the appropriation of income from a property.
97. An incumbrance, or encumbrance, is a claim on property. What this probably means is that Mr. Smith’s debts related to this property, while not causing him to lose it, had given creditors the right to appropriate the income.
98. Mrs. Smith would not have been prevented from taking legal action because she is a woman. Married women at this time suffered serious legal restrictions, for in the eyes of the law they were considered part of their husbands. But single women and widows could act independently.
99. Lawyers collected fees according to which specific services they rendered, with the fees being regulated by the government. The fees were not necessarily exorbitant—many, in addition to the wealthy, hired lawyers—but they certainly would add up in a complicated suit, as Mrs. Smith’s sounds like it could be. In addition, contingent fees, allowing someone with no money to hire a lawyer on the basis of anticipated winnings, were not legal at this time.
100. natural connexions: connections, i.e. relations, by blood. Her relations by her marriage may not be good candidates for assisting her, since, if they exist, they might resent Mr. Smith’s having left her all his property—many men left a substantial portion of their fortunes to other family members instead of leaving it all to the widow. In an unfinished novel by Jane Austen, The Watsons, one man condemns a relative of the family for leaving all his fortune to his widow.
101. streightened means: straitened, i.e., inadequate, monetary resources.
102. She was planning to reveal her history, and her predicament about Mr. Smith’s property, while concealing, as much as possible, anything that might reflect badly on Mr. Elliot’s character, or reputation. She presumably could not have avoided mentioning his failure to act as executor, but she might have attributed it to a misunderstanding or to his being distracted by other matters.
103. Mrs. Smith’s excuse is a feeble one. Having hardly heard Anne mention Mr. Elliot, and never with any special affection, she had no reason to imagine her deeply in love. Nor would she have reason, from her knowledge of Anne, recently strengthened by their conversations, to believe that Anne would either crave the social advantages of a match with Mr. Elliot or simply accede to the possible wishes of her family. Her willingness to visit Mrs. Smith, despite the latter’s poverty and unfashionable location, already testifies to Anne’s independence of mind and lack of concern with rank. All this, and her knowledge of Anne’s good sense and strict principles, would give Mrs. Smith sufficient reason to expect Anne to heed information regarding Mr. Elliot’s bad character, especially when backed by the proof of Mr. Elliot’s letter.
One possible explanation is that Mrs. Smith’s cynicism, seen at various points, has made her assume that anyone, even someone who seems as high-minded as Anne, would automatically seize the chance at a marriage that is socially and financially advantageous. Another is that this cynicism, along with the desperation of her circumstances, has made her willing to sacrifice her friend to her own interest in having access to Mr. Elliot. A final explanation is that the ep
isode is not plausible and exists only to provide otherwise unavailable information about Mr. Elliot. Many commentators have pointed to this subplot as the weakest element in the novel and speculated that, had Jane Austen’s health permitted her to revise the novel more thoroughly, she would have substantially altered and improved this aspect of the story.
104. This shows the potentially tragic turn the story could have taken, due to Lady Russell’s excessive regard for social rank. It also shows the significance of Anne’s clear rejection of Mr. Elliot before Captain Wentworth’s reappearance, for her decision indicated how much she had learned the lesson of not being too persuadable and had learned over the years to judge well for herself.
105. She thinks only of undeceiving Lady Russell, and not her father, even though the latter has established much greater intimacy with Mr. Elliot. Anne may fear that he would not listen, or she may believe that the truth about Mr. Elliot’s feelings toward Sir Walter and reasons for recently seeking reconciliation would be so painful and embarrassing for Sir Walter that it would be better to spare him the knowledge.
106. This would be much of the day, for at this time “morning” referred to the entire day until dinner, which was usually around four or five o’clock.
VOLUME II, CHAPTER X
1. Anne’s relief signals another result of the revelations about Mr. Elliot, which is that they have confirmed the complete correctness of her preference for Captain Wentworth. He has turned out to be far superior to Mr. Elliot, and far more suitable for Anne. This unambiguous affirmation of the rightness of the romantic hero for the heroine is also a feature of Jane Austen’s other novels. In each case the charming seducer who, like Mr. Elliot, tempts the heroine is ultimately proven to be completely wrong for her, whether because of fatal defects of character or because of prior involvement with another woman.
2. opposed: opposite, contrary.
3. unperplexed: not confused or uncertain.
4. penetrating forward: discerning what is to come.
5. apprehend: anticipate with fear or dread.
6. event: result.
7. want: lack.
8. Meaning her anxieties relating to Captain Wentworth.
9. spell: intimate or hint at one’s desire.
10. For the idea of female cruelty in rebuffing lovers, see note 14.
11. Elizabeth means the game of flirtation, specifically the male practice of pretending affection for a woman simply to have the fun of rousing her interest. The idea of this as common practice is, like that of female cruelty, found in various writings of the period, especially in conduct books warning women of the dangers posed by seductive men. At the same time, social rules of the time meant that such men needed to be careful, for if they were too explicit in expressing interest in a woman, they could find themselves committed to her in the eyes of others and obligated, by social pressure or even legal action, to marry her (for more, see note 91). This is why Elizabeth suggests that someone as experienced as she is knows to ignore mere hints, which, since they would not commit a man, could be freely dropped.
12. Elizabeth’s description is not only ironic in the light of what has just been revealed about Mr. Elliot and his true feelings and designs regarding Sir Walter, but it also suggests, in her insistence on inviting Mr. Elliot, that, despite her above avowal of indifference, she is eager to see him for her own sake. Supposed concern for Mr. Elliot and her father simply provides a good cover. She will continue this pretense as she denies noticing Mr. Elliot’s attentions and explains that she invites him purely out of compassion.
13. This suggests that Mrs. Clay, who was just described by Mrs. Smith as suspecting that Mr. Elliot sees through her designs, also probably suspects Anne of discerning at least some of her motives. She is certainly shrewd enough to perceive how much more intelligent Anne is than Elizabeth.
14. Dear Miss Elliot: This indicates both her aspiration to close friendship with Elizabeth and the latter’s tolerance of that (for Mrs. Clay would not dare use such an intimate designation if she did not know Elizabeth approved).
15. embargo: prohibition.
16. Elizabeth reciprocates the show of friendship with “my dear,” while, by using only a first name, she confirms Mrs. Clay’s social inferiority.
17. Thornberry-park: no place with that name has been clearly identified. It is likely the author simply made it up as a plausible destination for Mr. Elliot: the houses of wealthy landowners were often called “Park” (as in the place that provides the setting and the title of Mansfield Park).
18. See note 22, for this journey. It is hard to see how compassion would demand inviting him because he would be gone for a single day.
19. admired: marveled at.
20. eclat: public sensation or notice; scenes that would attract notice.
21. In a general gathering like this, he must pay frequent attention to the others and cannot devote all his efforts to conversing with Anne, as he had been able to do at the concert, where the others were often distracted by all that was happening.
22. The wording here is misleading. It is currently Thursday evening (the concert was on Wednesday evening, and Anne spent most of this day with Mrs. Smith). Thus, Mr. Elliot will really be absent on Friday and Saturday, or, as stated in the preceding sentence, “the greater part of two days.” For more on the sequence of events, which can be plotted more precisely for the end of the novel than for any previous section, see chronology.
23. complicate: intricate; difficult to understand or unravel.
24. Hers is easier to unravel because she is simply trying to get Sir Walter to propose to her; his intrigue to prevent such a marriage necessarily involves more intricate and subtle maneuvers. As for why her design is less revolting, one reason is that trying to achieve a marriage, even one considered socially unsuitable by most people, is an inherently more honorable course than trying to foil others’ possible marriage simply to secure one’s inheritance. Another is that Mrs. Clay’s modest means and need to support two children makes her scrambling for money more understandable than the efforts of the wealthy and childless Mr. Elliot to attain even greater wealth and a title. Finally, while both are practicing deception, his is more pronounced. Her professions of friendship mask only a wish to become even more intimate with the family than she acknowledges. His professions of regard mask a complete lack of interest, and perhaps complete contempt.
25. compounded for: accepted, agreed to.
26. Poetry was very popular at this time, with poems often outselling novels. For more, see notes 58–62.
27. states of the nation: books about current affairs. That this and poetry seem to constitute the principal types of books read by Lady Russell indicates her serious and thoughtful tastes.
28. dress: attire. The term then referred to everything one was wearing, not to the principal garment worn by women (which was called a gown). Hence there are also references in Jane Austen to the dress of a man.
29. arrangé: French for “arranged.” It likely has a connotation of overly studied.
30. Contemporary standards emphasized the virtue of sitting upright; lolling on a sofa or bed, unless one was sick or elderly, was frowned upon. Lady Russell’s apparent propensity for sitting upright indicates her highly correct manners, a point underlined by having someone as formal and as concerned with manners and appearance as Elizabeth call her excessive in this regard.
31. Visiting cards, in addition to being used to introduce oneself and establish contact, could be used to indicate one had called on an acquaintance.
32. fair by: fair to. “By” is used elsewhere where we would now use “to.”
33. Because “morning” then meant most of the day, he is basically saying one should not visit her when daylight allows one to see her well—existing means of artificial light provided only dim illumination.
34. Rouge was sometimes used by women at this time. In the eighteenth century cosmetics, including rouge, had been popular, especially am
ong very wealthy and fashionable women, as well as among some men. By the early nineteenth century cosmetics had begun to fall out of favor, though many still used them discreetly. A principal reason was the growing taste for a simpler and more natural look, in clothing and hairstyles as well as facial appearance. A popular beauty guide from 1811, The Mirror of Graces, advocates such a look and strenuously denounces white makeup, widely used in the previous century. The author does say, however, that rouge, because it simply replicates the natural redness of the cheeks, can be tolerated, though not recommended, when it comes to women who have lost that natural redness. Lady Russell might be among those who take an even stricter view, though we cannot know whether she actually uses no cosmetics—almost anyone might fall short of the mark there in Sir Walter’s eyes—or whether, if she does not, it results from disapproval or from simple unwillingness to take the trouble.
35. White Hart: one of the leading inns in Bath at the time. It was on Stall Street, opposite the Pump Room (see note 85) in the center of Bath (see map). This picture was made near the former location of the White Hart.
36. They would normally receive guests, especially just two guests, in only one drawing room, but since they wish to show off their possessions to Charles and Mary they are now taking them to the other drawing room.
37. regaling: gratifying or delighting.
38. Mary presumably likes to play with revealing information about a wedding, which the news turns out to be. At the same time, her disapproval of Charles Hayter, the groom in one wedding, may make her reluctant to reveal much about it, and this could account for the confusion described.
39. The official shooting season for the two principal game birds, partridges and pheasants, extended from September 1 until January 31. There was a strong taboo among country gentlemen against killing birds out of season, a taboo reinforced by a fine of 5 pounds, a substantial sum, per bird killed.
40. Mrs. Harville may think the trip will take his mind off Captain Benwick’s forgetting Fanny Harville so soon; Captain Harville will later show himself to be much grieved on his sister’s account.
