sense_and_sensibility理智与情感总结

Marriage is a matter of one’s sense and sensibility Sense and Sensibility was Jane Austen's first published novel. Although Sense and Sensibility is similar to her other novels in plot, tone, and type of characters, it differs from the others in its representation of the courtship of two sisters rather than one heroine, there are two. In the novel, Elinor Dashwood, a nineteen year old woman of sense and Marianne Dashwood is her seventeen year old sister with sensibility. Elinor is subdued and quiet while Marianne is emotional and romantic. The two main characters’stories about finding a happy marriage inspire readers to read the novel again and again and think about the theme of it, which may be the reason for the popularity of the novel.
Sense and Sensibility begins with the widowed Mrs. Dashwood and her three daughters—Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret—being ousted from their home when the new owner, John Dashwood and his wife, Fanny, move in John Dashwood, Mr. Dashwood's eldest son from his first marriage, inherits his father's entire estate, under the laws of primogeniture. The Dashwood women are given a home, Barton Cottage, on the estate of Sir John Middleton, a distant relative. One visitor to the area, Colonel Brandon, is interested romantically in Marianne, but he does not fit her ideal of a romantic hero and she ignores him. However, another visitor to the area, Willoughby, matches her expectations and she falls in love with him. Meanwhile, Elinor becomes disappointed that the man in whom she is interested, Edward Ferrars who is Fanny Dashwood's brother, a young clergyman, does not call on her as she had expected. Other guests at the Middletons' include the Palmers and the Misses Steele, who, like the Dashwood sisters, are dependent upon others to avoid slipping from gentility to poverty; the younger of whom, Lucy, reveals to Elinor that she is secretly engaged to Edward Ferrars. Although bitterly disappointed, Elinor promises to keep the secret and bears this news with fortitude. In London, Marianne discovers that Willoughby is going to marry for money and reject her entirely. When Lucy Steele reveals her secret engagement to Edward, he is disinherited in favor of his younger brother, Robert. Returning to Barton, Marianne falls ill at the Palmers' estate. Willoughby arrives, concerned about Marianne, and confesses to Elinor that he loves Marianne and must now suffer an unhappy marriage. At Barton, Marianne recovers and Elinor learns that Edward has been freed from his engagement. Upon learning of Edward's disinheritance, Lucy turns to his brother, Robert, as the better prospect. Edward, having accepted Colonel Brandon's offer of a position, proposes to Elinor, and Marianne comes to see the virtues of the colonel and marries him.
Some critics agree that Sense and Sensibility reflects Austen's own experience in terms of her role as a woman in her family and in post-Revolutionary society. Austen's situation as a young woman mirrored that of the Dashwood sisters at the outset of the novel: after her father's death, Austen, along with her mother and sister, were forced to rely on the benevolence of relatives for financial support. Although the novel is not autobiographical, Austen understood the position of women who were deprived of the means to earn an income but needed to maintain their social standing. This predicament was also reflected in the Steele sisters, who were without parents and
were wards of their uncle, but who relied on coquetry and intrigue which was considered vulgar in post-Revolutionary society for social advancement. The worst of court culture which mainly refers to artificial politeness and social games is demonstrated through the Dashwood and old Mrs. Ferrars.
All of this accords with the post-Revolutionary society in which Austen lived. "Sensibility," the indulgence of personal absolutes regardless of social conventions and laws, is viewed widely as a major source of Revolutionary transgression; "sense" is often opposed to Revolutionary theory. The triumph of sense over sensibility in the novel establishes the value of conventional feminine virtues, a position also espoused by other writers in the aftermath of the Revolution. Elinor and Marianne's "sense" triumphs and suffering bring happiness in the end.
It is obvious that Austen places emphasis on “sense” rather than “sensibility”. In my opinion, sense stands for reality and sensibility stands for romantic love. When facing cruel and complicated reality, romantic love may whither just like a flower fades. It is pitiful but it is a general law of life. Marianne is a typical example. At first, she falls in love with Willoughby because he matches her expectations. They both love Shakespeare’s poet. And they both appreciate Shakespeare’sonnet 116. They even recite the first few lines, such as “L et me not to the marriage of true minds. Admit impediments. Love is not love, which alters when it alteration finds. Or bends with the remover to remove: O, no! It is an ever-fixed mark that looks on tempests and is never shaken;” This poem definitely proves that Marianne and Willoughby are too romantic. So, they break up out of money. Willoughby marries another rich girl instead of poor Marianne, a countryside girl. But Marianne is very lucky for she meets Colonel Brandon who falls in love with at first sight. What’s more, he doesn’t mind who Marianne chooses and he still loves her until the end. At last, he wins Marianne’s heart and they get married. As for Elinor, she is very reserved and she keeps her love to herself. To tell the truth, she is the one who deserves admiration for she is the eldest in the family of four women. As she is the eldest, she has to be strong and support the family. And she has to put up with things that are unfair to them. When Lucy Steele reveals her secret engagement to Edward, on one hand, she has to keep it a secret, on the other hand, she feel sorrowful for she will lose her lover, Edward. Indeed, she suffers a lot. However, both she and her sister, Marianne are paid back by life. They both have a happy marriage.
The ending of the novel is a little bit ideal. What if Colonel Brandon changes his mind? And what if Lucy doesn’t fall in love with Robert and she marries Edward? If these two conditions become true, the two sisters will end up with a tragedy. However, there is a solution to avoid the tragedy that is to marry somebody out of a great amount of sense and a little sensibility. Obviously, Marianne thinks about love and marriage with sense at last. Thus, she marries Brandon. And Elinor expresses her true love to Edward though she is usually a symbol of sense. Marriage is a matter of sense and sensibility. Only sense, or only sensibility is not a wise choice. Only to bear a great amount of sense and a little sensibility in mind can a happy marriage be nurtured.。