Persuasion Block2:
     -Veronica Gottsch
     -Michael Lastowski

March 21,2011:  Chapters 1-2. Leader is Mike.
     The novel started off slowly.  The central character as of now is Sir. Walter Elliot a widowed man with three daughters: Elizabeth, Anne,and Mary.  Since the death of Sir.Elliot's wife, Lady Russell has been helping the family.  The conflict presented at this point is the fact that the Elliot's are living a life style they can no longer afford,yet they are reluctant to change their ways.

-The novel already is unique.  It usually is a single mother struggling to raise her children,however here it is a single father raising 3 women.  Men often have trouble raising a daughter, in this case 3, and it is even more difficult for Sir. Elliot to do it alone. 
-There is some irony at this point.  Itis ironic that Sir. Elliot is living beyond his means, yet refuses to cope with it.  He is too accustomed to his lavish lifestyle to adapt.
 It will be interesting to see in further reading how this is resolved. We are also curious as to how Anne will become the main protagonist

March 23, 2011: Chapters 3-10, Leader is  Mike.

     Today we discussed the importance of social class within the novel. Sir Elliot is uneasy about moving because he feels too strongly about his status. Anne refuses to marry Captain Wentworth because he is below her social class. Yet now he has joined the navy and improved his status, causing Anne to pursue him.  This theme seems to be a trademark of Austens for it is also represented in Emma.  Today, social class is much less of an issue than it had been in the past.  However in 19th century England, it provided boundaries and guidelines to which people were to wed, converse, and even dance by. 
     Captain Wentworth is an interesting character in his abilities to woo ladies and to act as the life of the party.  He is also introduced later in the novel and is the subject of the various dialogues regarding marriage.  This character type also appears to be a trademark of Austen's, for he is similar to Frank Churchill of Emma; an attractive young lad, who enters the story and catches the attention of Emma.  Perhaps Jane Austen had a man like this in her own life.

March 27, 2011: Chapters 11-14, Leader is Veronica.

     For this discussion, we talked about the impact Anne has on the people around her. It is evident that Captain Benwick has some sort of appreciation or feeling for Anne. We conclude that this must be due to her inspiration of his new toned poetry and her calm behavior when Louisa injures herself from falling down the stairs. Anne takes charge during the emergency... It appears as though the walks taken serve as a symbol of love so far throughout the novel. Women use walks as a way to pursue Captain Wentworth, believing alone time will perhaps cause him to form an interest in them. Captain Benwick uses walks as a way to spend time with Anne in private. It is interesting

March 28, 2011: Chapters 15-18, Leader is Mike.

     In chapter 15, Anne converses with Mr. Elliot, who proceeds to flirt with her and show great interest.  His intentions are questionable though, for the family thought he would purse Elizabeth and his wife had only recently died.  Anne falls for his charm and is pleased that he shows her attention.  This is interesting, because Anne had previously fallen for Captain Wentworth, but is now flirting with Mr. Elliot.  Is Anne really in love with the Captain, or just desperate for a respectable man?  Sir. Walter Elliot seems also to be pursuing a new woman, Lady Dalrymple.  He feels that is important to maintain a high status in his new environment and the best way to do this is to marry a woman of equal class.  It is clear at this point that this family cares far too much about their reputations and their status.  They care little of love and more about money and appearance.  Anne, although a woman of good nature, perhaps values this the most.  She would not take Captain Wentworth when he was poor and scoffs at the idea of having Mrs. Clay as her new mother.  This is a similar theme in Austen's other
novels, such as Emma. 
     Chapters 17 and 18 are the most important of the novel.  Here, Anne begins to change for the better, after encountering an old friend Mrs. Smith.  She declines to go to the party, in order to help her old friend.  This is one of the few instances where Anne has put aside class, as Mrs. Smith is now poor, to do what is good and right.  It is also revealed that Mr. Elliot intends to court Anne, yet she has mixed feelings on the matter.  She is finally using reason when it comes to love, instead of putting class first.  She is suspicious of Mr. Elliot, the player, and hesitant towards advancing with him.  Mr. Elliot appears to be much more of the Frank Churchill type than Captain Wentworth, who appears to be more like Mr. George Knightly.  My prediction for the end is that Mr. Elliot will run of with a minor character, surprising Anne, but she will end up with Captain Wentworth. 

March 29, 2011:  Chapters 19-24. Leader is Mike.
     The story ended just as I had predicted.  Mr. Elliot is discovered as a hustler and is rumored to have run off with Mrs. Clay.  Anne and Captain Wentworth profess their love for one another and all is well and happy.  It was interesting to examine at the end the contrasts between the different characters, most notably Mr. Elliot and Captain Wentworth.  Mr. Elliot is a greed stricken man.  He caused Mrs. Smith to fall deeply in debt and plans to inherit Kellynch hall.  He is controlling, fake and has the wrong intentions.  Captain Wentworth is the opposite.  He is a noble, proud naval officer who is familiar with committment.  Although his social status has risen, he has kept his thoughts on love the same and actually loves Anne for who she is, not her professions.  These characters are opposites and portray the different aspects of love.  There is another contrast between Sir. Walter Elliots views on marriage and the views of the Crofts.  Sir. WAlter Elliot has traditional views on marriage, believing that it is more about status, than love and that the male should wear the pants.  The crofts on the other hand are an older, happy married couple.  When taking their carriage rides, they both use the reigns symbolizing the equality between them.  Their views clearly differ from that of Sir. Walter Elliot.