Classics: Pride And Prejudice/Mansfield Park/Persuasion Vol. 1

by Jane Austen

Jane Austen's sparkling and witty novels continue to entrance readers today--as proven by the rapturous reception given the many film and TV adaptations of her work. Pride and Prejudice , Austen's most well-loved story, tells of Lizzy Bennet and her five sisters as they search for true love-a love Lizzy nearly loses because of pride. Fanny, of Mansfield Park , comes to live with her aunt and uncle in their elegant mansion. But she finds herself both out of place and in love with her handsome cousin Edmund. Can shy Fanny win him from the outgoing and charming Miss Crawford? Persuasion , Austen's last final novel, explores the consequences of giving in to the opinions of others, rather than following one's own heart. Delightfully illustrated with delicate line drawings.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction, Literature, Novels, Drama

932 pages, Hardcover

First published May 12, 1976

About the author

Jane Austen was an English novelist known primarily for her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment upon the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots often explore the dependence of women on marriage for the pursuit of favourable social standing and economic security. Her works are an implicit critique of the novels of sensibility of the second half of the 18th century and are part of the transition to 19th-century literary realism. Her deft use of social commentary, realism and biting irony have earned her acclaim among critics and scholars.

The anonymously published Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1816), were a modest success but brought her little fame in her lifetime. She wrote two other novels—Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both published posthumously in 1817—and began another, eventually titled Sanditon, but died before its completion. She also left behind three volumes of juvenile writings in manuscript, the short epistolary novel Lady Susan, and the unfinished novel The Watsons.
Since her death Austen's novels have rarely been out of print. A significant transition in her reputation occurred in 1833, when they were republished in Richard Bentley's Standard Novels series (illustrated by Ferdinand Pickering and sold as a set). They gradually gained wide acclaim and popular readership. In 1869, fifty-two years after her death, her nephew's publication of A Memoir of Jane Austen introduced a compelling version of her writing career and supposedly uneventful life to an eager audience. Her work has inspired a large number of critical essays and has been included in many literary anthologies. Her novels have also inspired many films, including 1940's Pride and Prejudice, 1995's Sense and Sensibility and 2016's Love & Friendship.

Reviews

[Courtney O'Higgins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not going to lie, I saw the movie before I read the book. I know that this is a major don’t, but I can’t do anything about it now. Anyways, I though both were fantastic. The best part about seeing the movie before reading the book was that I wasn’t let down by it, I liked it even more. Usually movies leave plenty of details out, which Pride and Prejudice didn’t escape from, and you’re let down due to reading the book first. In my case, I found the book fascinating because I got to know more about the characters and the plot itself.
This book contained so many themes! I couldn’t help but pick one out of every chapter, every plotline, and every character. Some big ones I noticed were class distinctions and economic status and turmoil, war, changing of the seasons, family and the importance of inheritance, love and betrayal, and most obviously, pride and prejudice. The best part about all these themes is that they were nonstop. They literally kept popping up in every instance. Jane Austin is quite the lady. I really like how she made notice of the difference between men and women, yet showed how they’re exactly the same. Women search for men for support, men search for women for status. It’s really an interesting way to look at it.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants to read it. However, I don’t believe that many guys would enjoy it. It’s a bit of a click flick, well… chick book? Anyways, the only part that was a tad bit confusing was all the relations. The text itself wasn’t hard to follow, but keeping up with all the characters, their backgrounds, their relationships and their family ties that they had going on was somewhat confusing. I had to keep reminding myself of what had happened at the beginning of the book. Nonetheless, Pride and Prejudice was one of my favorites.

[Em]

love Jane Austen

[Anneli · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Mansfield Park, 3.83⭐️)
Täs oli nii paljo hahmoi et kesti ekat 150 sivuu tajuta ketä on ketä mut sen jälkee tä kävi paljo paremmaks ja mielenkiintosemmaks, it was all fun and games ennen ku vikal kolmel sivul se meni naimisii sen serkun kanssa🥲💀
(also tääl goodreadsin kuvaukses lukee tollee selvästi et she was in love with her cousin jos ihmettelette miten en tienny et se menis naimisii sen serkun kaa mut mun kirjas se ei lukenu mitenkää tollee so)

[Melissa Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Complete Illustrated Novels of Jane Austen (Volume 1) includes the books; Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park and Persuasion. I have always been curious about the works of Jane Austen and have been recommended her by numerous people. I began this book with very high expectations as I know that they are all classics and are loved by many.

Pride and Prejudice:
I had a hard time making a positive connection with the characters in this story. I found myself more annoyed by many of them especially Miss Bingley. There were times I was confused as to who was speaking and thought that the conversations dwindled on and on. Most of the plot moved along so slowly that I had a hard time keeping any interest in it. This was especially true during the dialogues between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. I had to force myself to continue reading, in hopes that it would get more interesting. It wasn’t until nearly half way through the story that I began to connect with Elizabeth. Although Mr. Darcy did somewhat redeem himself in the end, I didn’t find him to be as amazing as he is portrayed to be in popular culture, which was a let down. I had hoped that he would be the type of character that I would remember and fall for, so to speak. All in all I was very disappointed in Pride and Prejudice.

Mansfield Park:
After reading the Pride and Prejudice I now have an understanding of Jane Austen’s writing style. Unlike Pride and Prejudice I have not heard very much about Mansfield Park, so I did not know what to expect. However after not being thrilled by the first book, I must admit my hopes weren’t very high for this one either. I found the plot for Mansfield Park to move along and get to its point faster than I expected. Early on in this story I found that there was very little character development in terms of the personalities of the main characters. I found myself wishing for more of this and more physical descriptions of the characters. Although I found the main character Fanny to be quite dull, she was the underdog and I was rooting for her happiness. Throughout the story I couldn’t help but wonder if being raised at Mansfield, hindered Fanny’s development rather than helped it. Had she stayed with her family she might not have been the timid anxious young woman she was. I found that the story of Mansfield Park kept my interest more than that of Pride and Prejudice, however I didn’t have an overly strong connection with any of the characters.

Persuasion:
Persuasion is the third and final story in this book and is another that I knew little about prior to reading it. After somewhat enjoying Mansfield Park I had some hopes of enjoying Persuasion as well. However I found the plot to be somewhat bland. It wasn’t until the final chapters of this story that I began to make somewhat of a connection with Anne. Again, like in the previous two books I found that the character development lacked. It wasn’t until near the end that I felt as if I was starting to get to know the main character (Anne). I didn’t find the characters in this story to be nearly as annoying as those of the previous two books, which was a positive change. I found this book to be the quickest read out of the three and possibly the one that kept my interest the most.

It took me quite a while longer to complete this book, than I had hoped. After reading Pride and Prejudice I couldn’t seem to force myself to read the other two stories straight through, so I read other books in between. I had hoped that I would enjoy these classics more, but was very disappointed. Perhaps my expectations were far too high and I just didn’t connect with the style of writing. Needless to say I won’t be rushing out to read any more of Jane Austen’s novels.

[Bridget Coyne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently re-read "the six" - Jane Austen's six published novels (Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion). I was prompted to re-read Austen each after having read Helena Kelly’s book “Jane Austen The Secret Radical”. As it happens, this year is the 250th anniversary of the year of Jane Austen's birth, so it was a good year to re-read the novels. (A few years ago I read Michael Suk-Young Chwe's "Jane Austen, Game Theorist" which I recommend as a "good read.") Whether reading the novels through the lens of Kelly's thesis that Jane Austen was a radical, or reading as Chwe posits that Jane Austen was a game theorist (before the term was invented) and "prized strategic thinking", or reading for the sheer pleasure of it, Jane Austen's novels absolutely delight. I would encourage all to read (for the first time) or to re-read Jane for the writing alone. The words sparkle on the page.

[Hayleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pride and Prejudice - This will always be my favourite book.
Persuasion - I enjoyed this and I wanted to really love it, but there were some characters and actions that I found lacking. I will say though, that I really connected with Anne and wanted her to be happy.
Mansfield Park - I've seen less than positive views on this book, but I actually really enjoyed most of it. The ending was disappointing and felt very rushed, especially when so much happened near the end!! Even though I found Edmund sweet and caring to Fanny, I was siding more with Henry, BUT THEN THE END!! Why must you do this to me Jane Austen?! WHY?!
All in all, these three are probably my favourite Austen novels out of the ones I've read.

[Siri Graff · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Mansfield Park) Great book, easy to read without too much unnecessary fuss. I liked the protagonist’s personality, sweet and relatable. Unlike today where all female leads have to be feisty and strong and all of that. Certain things about the ending didn’t age well, but that’s to be expected with books this old.

[Realini Ionescu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Persuasion by Jane Austen

10 out of 10





In a recent documentary, Capital, based on the now classic Capital in the 21st Century by arguably one of the most influential economists of the day, Thomas Piketty, there is a passage on…Jane Austen and her époque, wherein the guests argue that it was impossible at that time for people from different social strata to even conceive of getting together, never mind actually form alliances or god forbid marry someone who belonged to a different class…they did not even exist in that way for each other and we could agree with the experts in Capital and therefore dismiss Jane Austen, or we can look and see that she makes at times the same point, as in the beginning of the novel, where we find that the heroine, Anne Elliot, was going to marry the man she loved, her fiancé, naval officer Wentworth, only for Lady Russell and Anne’s father, Sir Walter Elliot, to oppose the marital vows, on the grounds that Frederick Wentworth had only ‘himself’ to argue in favor, and no wealth or nobility to make the case for him.



Thus we can see that Jane Austen makes clear that differences of status would make bonds based on, created by deep feelings if not impossible – which is the argument made in Capital – at least very difficult and only Persuasion and perseverance, nobility, character strengths, loyalty, seriousness and real love – as defined among others by Thomas Mann, who has a character in a short story that is aghast at the frequency with which we utilize and diminish the word, which means so much that is not covered by what we find in the real world – make possible a connection between a man and woman – there was no place for rainbow vows at that time, as there is no such possibility on many lands now.

Anne Elliot appears to be the archetype of the Wonder Woman, making us think of Penelope from the Odyssey – though there are alternative perspectives on that ancient figure, with feminists arguing that she has not stood there waiting for the absent, estranged husband to arrive from his journey, while Alberto Moravia argues in his Magnum opus, Contempt http://realini.blogspot.com/2016/11/c... that first of all, Ulysses had wanted to depart for the famous war and then he would deliberately prolong his return journey, philandering, because he was not eager to get back.



She has become engaged to the officer and then stopped from marrying her, but she would wait for another seven years, loyal and dedicated to the man she loves, suffering when she thinks he avoids her, as he returns, now a wealthy captain, having achieved so much that he is not a persona no grata anymore, his acquired status satisfying those artificial standards of the time – on the other hand, I still feel that we are wrong in promoting the silly proverb or saying ‘opposites attract’ - there is even a song by Paula Abdul that insists on the same theme – because for long term relationships, it is better – if not essential and sine qua non – for the two parties to be quite similar and not say one supporting the extreme right and the other being center left, one reading as much as I do, while the other being a fan of soap operas and no reading, beyond magazines….what could the two have to talk about…for more you should read the ultimate expert, John Gottman, author of the quintessential Seven Principles to Make Marriage Work http://realini.blogspot.com/2015/07/t...



One aspect that has attracted this reader’s attention, among others, is the role that sickness plays in the Jane Austen books and given that this author is such a Sacred Monster of Literature, it might be fun to look on the net and find that there are thousands of treaties and research papers on this issue…ladies have their love life changed, and sometimes that of those around them, once they fall ill, as in Pride and Prejudice http://realini.blogspot.com/2020/06/p... , Sense and Sensibility http://realini.blogspot.com/2018/11/s... and Persuasion...

The humor in the chef d’oeuvre is sophisticated, enchanting, as evident in the character of Sir Walter Elliot, an infatuated, self-centered man, who spends a lot of time taking care of his looks, to the extent where he is asking his daughter, Anne, about the reasons for which she looks so good when they see each other, after an interval, in Bath – where the wasteful man has had to move and allow his mansion and property to be rented to an admiral, because the finances of the household are so stressed as to require emergency actions – and when the woman says that she has added nothing to her complexion, has not done anything to change the natural look, the man insists that she must have used at least one formula.



His vanity is emphasized by the staggering number of mirrors and when the admiral moves in, the tenant does not make changes, expect for getting rid of the multitude of objects that were crowding the place, in order to satisfy the narcissism of Sir Walter Elliot…the man is about to engage in a project that is anathema, as aforementioned, a union – perhaps marital – with Mrs. Clay, the latter having no money or noble extraction to justify become the spouse of an aristocrat…she would be supervised and deterred by Mister Elliot, a young man with atrocious behavior, responsible for the destitution in which Mrs. Smith – a friend of Anne – lives (at least in part) and who wants to marry Anne, eventually, that is only after he will have been made wealthy by a spouse with no name, but a huge fortune…

Apart from Mister Elliot – who wants to have written in the marriage contract which he thinks is his due a passage about his would be father in law, Sir Walter Elliot, obliging the latter to stay unmarried to Mrs. Clay…a bizarre and vicious pretense – there are some other objectionable, rather unpleasant, if not altogether loathsome characters…one is Mary Musgrove and one scene in particular made the under signed think of Cinderella – one of her children is sick and when her husband, Charles, declares that he would go to an event, since there is nothing he can do to help the child, Mary is aghast and says how on earth – well, not in this way, anyway – would the father now if the boy is not going to be worse, but when Anne offers to stay with the patient, the irresponsible, hypocritical mother changes tune and has a stand which is at 180 degrees and departs to enjoy herself, leaving her son in the care of another…

Here and elsewhere, we have the feminist theme, albeit the term for that age does not appear to signify much…Anne says that Charles Musgrove could not possibly stay to care for his sick child, because this is not in the realm of men – not in those words – and though I dare say there is something in the notion that women are better at caring for the sick, children and all – since few, if anybody reaches this point – the established norm today would be to equal the capacities and say we are all the same.

[theWeirdLady]

Mansfield Park:- Too many plot twists as anyone would expect
from an Austen novel!


I also saw the movie after reading it. 1999 one. The characters were so different
from how they were portrayed in the book

Sir Thomas was so strange. Mr Price turned out to be a pervert in the movies. He was ignorant, extremely vain and useless person, husband, father. But never a pervert in the book!
William didn't even exist in the movies!
There were some gruesome scenes about slavery and Tom was portrayed differently than book.
And Fanny said YES to Crawford in the movie! She NEVER did so in the book!

The movie was SO different from the book. The last three chapters were so unexpected. Will sure read it again.


Persuasion:- Next on my agenda. Haven't read yet.

Pride and Prejudice:- Absolutely loved loved loved it! Elizabeth Bennet is my HOT FAVOURITE!
I am way too much in love with this book to write an unbaised review ;)

[TheBookishBrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Classic Romance with Wit and Charm

⭐️ Overall Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Category Breakdown:

Characters: ⭐ 8/10

Plot: ⭐ 7/10

Writing: ⭐ 6/10

World Building / Setting: ⭐ 7/10

Enjoyment: ⭐ 7/10


I listened to Pride and Prejudice on audio, and while I enjoyed the charm and wit of the story, I found the older writing style a bit hard to follow at times. That said, the romance between Elizabeth and Darcy was sweet, and I can see why it’s such a beloved classic. The social commentary and humor added depth, and overall, it was a cute story, even if it took some effort to get through.

If you enjoy classic literature and slow-burn romance, this is definitely worth a read!

[Booklover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pride and prejudice by Jane Austen is my abselotely favourite book. The first impression that i got from the book was that its the most revoulutonary and feministic book. The fact that a women like Elizabeth could turn down a man like Mr. Darcy at that time is amazing, and shows how strong Elizabeth are. I love it because Elizabeth has such a strong, inspiring personality. She is smart and knows what she wants. And is like the main role in most of Jane Austens books. Which is why i also adore Jane Austen and her writing.

[Kili Abby · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think it's fair to conclude that I am not a classical literature girl. I couldn't connect with this. Ngl I did enjoy a few scenes with Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth but it was way too slow for my liking. I feel like I wasted 2 days of my life by reading this. I'll try to reread some other time cause I know this book can be amazing. Don't kill me. Anyways this is what I get for trying to be like rory gilmore lmao

[Nubia Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listen I love this story and I LOVEEEE the 2005 movie but who what going to tell me this is written in THIRD PERSON. UGHHHH and wdym you’re going to refer to people of the same family as almost identical names. WHICH MISS BENNET BRO LIKE OMG. Too many names to remember, agonizing read tbh. Might revisit it but not any time soon.

[Jane Austen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A full review can be found here:
https://www.janeausten.co.uk/oxford-w...

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good.

[Imeralrs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love thte boook love the movie tooo💕

[Giselle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing read love reading jane

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Captain Wentworth is no Darcy and that's a hill this reader will die on.

[Happy Reader 2022 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it. Will reflect on this & re-read it again & again during my life. It will be my 'comfort & hug book' when life is challenging.

[r. · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is my rating for mansfield park ok

[Steve J]

First published January 28, 1813

[Ilene Winslet · Rating 5 out of 5]

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE 🔛🔝

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glad I'd seen a film version of this, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I found Austen's style of writing difficult to get into. The punctuation and long sentences took a bit of getting used to

[Agnieszka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mansfield Park

[Glenda Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

part of my read a classic challenge and really enjoyed it.

[Lauren Spangler · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, let me start by saying this book was a hundred times better than 1984, in my opinion. It had a much more interesting plot line, and I didn't find it painful to pick up and actually read by my own volition. The olden days kind of language was new, and sometimes complicated and somewhat confusing, but after the first few chapters I just kind of got used to it, and it became a lot easier and smoother to understand (without having to stop and backtrack every paragraph or so).

As for theme, and why this book is considered an "AP book", we could start by simply evaluating the title of the novel. Pride and prejudice are both quite substantial themes on the parts of Elizabeth and Darcy. Mr.Darcy in the beginning is critical (or 'prejudice') of Elizabeth's social standing, and is held back to some extent by pride in his own wealth and standing. Elizabeth is also prejudice to an extent of judging Mr.Darcy unfairly in the beginning of the book based on his cold, almost snooty attitude toward her, which is the result of him pushing her away due to her social standing.

Another theme, probably the most apparent of them all in this particular book, is love. The driving base and plot line of this entire story is the romance between Elizabeth Bennet, a girl of relatively low social standing in a class based society, and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, the wealthy and highly regarded master of Pemberley. At first, the love of Elizabeth and Mr.Darcy is slow and cautious in the beginning, almost as if they were trying to convince themselves not to fall for one another, due to certain circumstances. As in all great love stories, however, love conquers in the end, and Elizabeth and Mr.Darcy overcome their struggles and obstacles to be together.

A very good book, in my opinion, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who has not yet read. :)

[B J Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

As this book has just celebrated 200 years since publication, and I’m not that much younger, I thought it was high time I read it and found out why its popularity is so enduring. None of the dramatisations had whetted my appetite; I found them slow-paced and tedious.
The book turned out to be engrossing. There’s no denying that it’s slow-paced: so slow that very little actually happens, but it still manages to be entertaining. The whole book is a social commentary, although dealing with a very narrow stratum of English society. There are no pickpockets, moneylenders or starving orphans. Even the poorest in the cast of characters have servants.
Mr Bennet is a ‘gentleman’ i.e. he has inherited enough property to allow him to live on the income it generates. His problem is that he has only inherited a life interest and on his death the estate must pass to a male relative. He has five daughters, but no son. A distant male relative will inherit and the daughters’ only hope of a secure future is to make a ‘suitable’ marriage.
The slow pace allows the characters to be fully, and brilliantly, developed. Mr Bennet is very endearing and Mr Collins hilariously appalling. What came as a surprise was the humour, although that didn’t conceal the biting mockery of a social system that condemned young women to a life that consisted of nothing but embroidery, art, music – and the pursuit of a husband.
I now understand the longevity.
I bough the Kindle version as part of Jane Austen Collection: Her Complete Works for only 77p. The only formatting issue is the occasional disappearance of the space between words, which is easily ignored.

[Shelumiel Delos Santos · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really savoured this piece of a novel. Austen’s keen annotation of 19th century English society—checked with almost pure officious and ostentatious civility—and its foundation tempered with her wit and satirical tastes is just too good for me. So seldom was I in a torrent of emotions—at times frivolous, at times vehement—as this. Her fashion in relating Mr. Darcy’s self-struggles with his feelings towards Elizabeth and her reluctance as to acknowledge it was such as to elevate my fancy. Pride And Prejudice is akin to a fenced garden, filled with delicate roses, but with a closer scrutinizing, comes into view menial shrubs and rotten floras.

It recounts the story of the Bennet family, with Mrs. Bennet’s chase of accomplishments for all her five daughters, set in a backdrop of the landed gentry. It is followed through Elizabeth’s, second to the siblings, lively, opinionated point of view.

I would further venture to allude that Pride And Prejudice candidly refers to Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, respectively. The former’s forbearance, as it appeared to Lizzy, is all that is marked with pride and self-conceit, which may well be credited to the latter’s prejudices and misapprehensions. Moreover, the amorous and romantic theme of Pride And Prejudice may not be as violent as that of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights or as tragic as Shakespeare’s Romeo And Juliet but is of the same, if not superior, remarkable quality.

[Brittiani Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pride and Prejudice has always been one of my favorite books. I first got a hold of it in the fourth grade. Back then I didn't understand it. The language was hard to grasp, the characters were one dimensional, and I didn't quite understand what the deal was with Mr. Darcy. The only thing that I could hold onto was Elizabeth Bennet. There was a girl that I could admire, a character who seemed very real to me. She was spunky, and full of a fire that admired. I wanted to be Lizzy. The book took me forever to finish, and when I was done I didn't care if I ever read another word from it again. I put it down, and that really should have been that. Sometimes characters stay with us though. Certain characters are impossible to forget, and they live on in our lives, popping up when we least expect it and teaching us things. That was what Elizabeth Bennet did for me. I never quite forgot her. I re read the book again in high school, and I read again once a year. It lives on my shelf, and in my life, because I understand it and relate to it ways that never quite go away. I know now what it is truly about.

[Christina Nailah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pride and Prejudice is a book that is full of gender and social stratification. It is a book that once you pick it up, you do not want to put it down. There is never a dull moment when it comes to matters of the heart. This book is full of romance, comedy, and drama. It is also a guide at learning how to be argumentative in the most civil way. There are many different characters in this book but the main two, Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy, will grab your attention early on. A rough exterior or what appears to be arrogant may indeed be the result of something that happened in your past or just someone misjudging who you are. Pride and Prejudice is a good example of not judging a book by its cover. A sweet solider may not be as sweet as we think. An arrogant man may be looking for love.