116 pages • 3 hours read
Jane AustenA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
The plot of Sense and Sensibility is set around the turn of the 19th century, when the rational Enlightenment thinking that dominated British 18th-century culture (detailed in Immanuel Kant's What is Englightenment?) found itself in competition with an opposite tendency that idealized rugged nature, sentimentality, and spontaneity. Austen dramatizes these opposing traits in her novel, principally in the sister protagonists but also in the minor characters.
The Enlightenment's prioritization of reason over emotion and empirical study over spontaneous action or displays of feeling are evident in Elinor’s character and behavior. Like an Enlightenment-era scientist or empirical philosopher (such as John Locke or David Hume), Elinor closely observes the new people in her life before judging their character and entrusting them with her feelings. While this makes her cautious in love, it also endows her with a deep wisdom and generosity, as she does not take people at face value or let herself be dictated to by stereotypes.
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