Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Sense and Sensibily by Jane Austin


When Mr. Dashwood dies, he must leave most of his estate to his son by his first marriage, which leaves his second wife and three daughters (Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret) in hard circumstances. They are taken in by a kind cousin, but their lack of money "fortune" affects the marriageability of both practical and sensible Elinor, and romantic and outgoing Marianne. When Elinor falls for the wealthy Edward Ferrars, his family disapproves and separates them. And though Mrs. Jennings tries to match the worthy and also very rich Colonel Brandon to her, Marianne finds the dashing Willoughby more to her liking. But love has a way of getting lost, and sometimes never comes back. This is a time in life where one must have money ( the man of course) and if the woman is not wealthy she has a hard time finding someone, "for he was rich, and she was handsome." Chapter 8, pg. 32. Many of the poeple only married for money, but these sisters weren't like them and wanted something more. Will love concur all and will the hardships and heartbreak leave true love lost and is a happy ending in the future for both the sister who is all sense and the one who is all sensibility.

1) In this novel money is very important and has a great deal on marriages. If you would get married would money play a role in your decision?

2) Do you think it is fair that most woman back then could not have and control much money even if it belongs to them? How have women changed since that time period?

32 comments:

Kristen R. 11-12 said...

To answer the first question, during that time period, money played a very crucial role in marriages and relationships. It was a way to mark a succesful social standing and gain a respectable reputation by the society. While money is still an important aspect of marriages today, I feel that it is not as stressed as it was in earlier times. In my personal opinion, money would play a slight role in my decision to get married because I would want to know that our lives together could be supported financially. However, in this day in age it is not solely the man's responsibility to provide for his family; it is a more evenly distributed expectation of both sexes to be able to earn a respectable salary. To answer the second question, I do not think it was fair that most women during that time period had little control over issues involving money especially if it was her own. However, with a continuously advancing society, women have gained more and more freedoms and have truly learned to express themselves as individuals. Women in today's world are constantly making huge impacts and contributions and obtaining a much greater sense of control; they are viewed as much more powerful figures than they were in the past.

Kelsey M. 13-14 said...

1. Honestly money would play a role in my decision to who I married. I would need to know they could support half our family. I would not want to have all the financial responsibility on me.

Matt P. 13-14 said...

1. I think it would influence my decision, but it would not be the one thing that deterred me from being with someone.
2. No, it was not fair back then, but women's rights have improved greatly since that time period.

Sarah 5-6 said...

To answer question 1: back in that time period, women in a lower social class tried to find a wealthier man in order to raise their social class. Ofcourse things were different back then because someone's place in society meant a great deal. Things have changed a lot from then to today. Money does play a role in some marriages still but I think it's more rare. In my oppinion I would never marry someone just because they had money because to me that's not even true love, which is what a marriage should have.

Anonymous said...

1) I think money would play a role in who I decide to marry, but not a large one. As long as I am able to pay my bills and be with my husband I don't think it would matter. However, I would not like to be living on welfare starving, and unable to take care of my children.

MaryL11-12 said...

Obviously money is important, but how important depends on the person. Someone who wants all the finest things in the world, yes it'd going to be a factor, but someone who's ok with the bare minimum, it probably wouldn't matter as much. For me, I want to be financially stable and not have to worry about money when I'm older, so yes I'd have to say that money will affect who I marry later on.
Money means power, and there's nothing that men love more than power. So, the way I see it, just give it to them so they shut up already. Since that time however, women have become independent from men, and in some cases today, women are the sole providers in some households, which was completely unheard of back then.

Jacci L. 11-12 said...

1. If I were to get married, I would marry for love, not money. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't question about the money. Of course, I wouldn't want to marry knowing I would struggle for money because it could jeaporidze my marriage. Money is stressful and to struggle just to get enough to pay the bills could strain a marriage and possibly end it. But, love could previal so it honestly depends on whether or not both me and my husband are happy being poor or rich. Selfishly, I would love the money. But I'd rather have a marriage that made me happy for the love and not the money.

2. I don't believe it's fair for anyone. I'm not being sexist because anything that rightfully belongs to someone, especially as something as important as money, should be given to the person who owns it. Women should have equal rights as men, and back then, they didn't. So the right of having or controlling money as a woman was out of the question. Today, women have changed A LOT when it comes to having and controlling money. We work just as hard as men, and even though there are still businesses out there that pay women less than men, we still get our money and choose to do with it as we please.

allie s 11-12 said...

i agree with all of you. Money to me isn't so much important, but as long as i have enough to get by and survive then i don't care. And also woman have changed alot because we control money, and we work just as hard as men work. We have control of the money that is ours.

Amanda Z. 11-12 said...

1. I would, without a doubt, marry for love but I think that money should be a little bit of a factor because financial situations are a huge reason for divorce and failed marriages.

Vanessa D. 13-14 said...

1.) If I were to get married money would not play a role in my decision. I do not like the fact the money rules many decisions people make, it actually drives me crazy. I think when you marry someone it should be out of love. If I meet someone who has no money but they are a good person and I love them, I would consider marriage. I'm very independent and I would much rather support myself financially instead of having someone else support me.

Emily C. 13-14 said...

1. I believe that money would play a role to some extent. not to the point where i am only searching for men with money, but I need to make sure my husband will have money to support me and our family. I would marry for love first, but I also would need to make sure my husband has enough money so we can get by.

Cassie M 11-12 said...

1. Even now, money plays a big role in relationships. Many divorces are caused by financial struggles and the stress/other effects of keeping up with things. Money is one of the things someone had to think about before getting married. For example, a couple not planning on having a big family would not need as much money as one that does. Personally, money would affect my decision, but other factors matter much more. I would never marry just for financial security. Many have done this throughout the years without thinking it through. I care more about whether or not I would want to live with this person for the rest of my life.

Hayley D said...

1. I think that the most important factor in marriage is love, but money is slightly a contributing factor. As long as you and your spouse can pay your bills and have a little money saved up in case of an emergency, I feel that is all you really need. I would never marry someone just for the money, that isn't what marriage is all about.
2. I don't think that it was fair how the money was controlled back then and luckily, things have greatly improved for women. Today woman have just as much control over their money as men do.

Kali D. 13-14 said...

1. I think money would play a role in my decision for marriage, but not a very big one. It would feel good to know that someone could take care of me financially so i would not have to worry a great deal.

Kara K. 5/6 said...

Money would not be the decision maker when getting married to me. However, you need to be with someone that will allow your family to have a roof over their heads and feed them. I do not need a rich mman, but I need someone that will be able to take care of me if my job is not making much money at all.

Joe K. 11-12 said...

Money would play no role in my decision to get married or not. Money will come and go, but love lasts forever. Money to me plays no role because you dont marry someone for financial gain, you marry for happiness. It doesnt matter how rich or poor they are, its all about being able to wake up everyday next to them and be happy just to see their face.

Betsy C 1314 said...

I think that money does play a little bit of a role, only because if you and your potential husband/wife had none at all, times would be very tough. It might be a better idea to wait until money is less tight to tie the knot. Other than that money really shouldn't play a role in the decision, if you really love the person.

Julie S. 5-6 said...

I think that money would play a certain role in my marriage. Less how much they currently have and more with their plan of being able to support a family. I don't think it would be a huge factor but it would be a part of my decision.

Leah A 5-6 said...

1. If I were to get married I don't think money would take a role in my decision. I would choose to marry someone because I loved them. In making a choice to marry someone I would think about who they are to determine. Yes, it would suck to be poor, but I believe that if you truly loved someone, you both could work things out and find a way to survive financially.

Alexander C. [13-14] said...

2. Since the dawn of human civilization, the female gender has been oppressed. Women have overcome so many obstacles recently that shows that they are equal to men. There are millions of successful businesswoman all over the world, which is evidence of this general sense of accomplishment.

Kaitlyn S. 13-14 said...

1. I don't think that money would play a role in who I married. I want to live simply anyways so low income would not bother me. What would bother me is if the person has no drive and doesn't want to help provide. There is a difference between doing a job you love while earning little cash and just trying to bum it out on someone else.
2. I'm not sure if women knew much about financials back then but I don't think it was fair . Today many women are perfectly capable of handling themselves and should definitely be able to have equal control of the cash. Since that time many women have taken on careers that would before be solely mens' jobs. Being a single woman in this society isn't as looked down before as it was and single women even have some empowerment and it's reflected in songs, shows, etc.

Courtney R 5-6 said...

1) I think that money would play only a fraction of a role in my decision to get married. I believe that even though "love conquers all," it is sensible to at least think about money. I don't believe I'd have to be filthy rich, but I would want to make sure my future husband and I would have enough money to get us by.

2) No, I don't think that is fair at all. Women were never given many rights in that time period. I believe that women back then would be able to handle their money and not waste it, just as women can do today.

Kelsey M. 11/12 said...

2) Woman were treated unfairly in many ways throughout history, so I am not surprised that they were unable to control any of their money. This is a violation of civil rights because they made this money, and it belongs to them. Women should be equal to men and should be able to have control of their finances because if not if they get a divorce, their husbands could take everything from them. Today, women have better jobs and are able to control their finances. They don't have to share their money with anyone unless they want to, and they have the same rights as men.

Unknown said...

1). Back then that's how society worked: no one married for love and that was not unusual. Today, nearly everyone (hopefully) marries for love, so no, money wouldn't be a factor.

2). Back then women didn't have rights, they weren't respected, and they were expected to stay home. Even if they had money, it was inherited not earned, so there would be no reason to have money. Not necessarily fair, but that was societ. Obviously women have changed since the civil rights movement/ women gaining the right to vote, own land, earn the same wage as any man.

Heather M. 13-14 said...

During this day and age, i believe that most people marry for love than they do for money. This was not the case in earlier time periods because many women then married strictly for money. If i were to get married today, i would marry for love, and money would not be a deciding factor in who i end up marrying.

Natalie S Mods 5-6 said...

1) If I were to get married, money would play a small role in my decision. I do not expect the person I marry to have a ton of money or to completely provide for me. I do however expect that the person I would marry would be willing to work hard to make a decent living.
2)I do not think it was fair that women could not have or control money, it is completely unequal and sexist. Luckily, things have changed quite drastically and women can control and have their own money. There are still some issues with fair pay but things have come a long way with money equality and equality in general.

Rachel T said...

1. If I were to get married right now money would definitely not play a role in my decision making. People should get married for reasons other than money because if money is the only reason two people get together, then when the money is gone, there will be nothing left to hold them together.

Justin B. 11-12 said...

1) Money would play a role in my decision. Like others have said I would want to know that we could support a family. I would also want to know what income tax bracket they are in because married couples get various tax breaks. I would also have to find out how they felt about issues like separate/combined finances, etc.

2) Of course women didn't get control of their money once they were married back then, they couldn't even own property unless they got it when their husband died. Obviously that is changed today with women able to be independent and successful as a result of the women's rights movement.

Kyle P. 13-14 said...

If I were getting married I would want to be in a pretty stable career so I could provide for my wife so I guess money would matter to me.

Megan D. 11-12 said...

Money would not play a huge role in deciding who I want to marry simply because possessions do not make me as happy as experiences. I would rather spend time laughing with someone I love than spend time buying things.
And being a woman, I do not think it was fair to discriminate against woman. We have proven ourselves to be equal to men.

Dana G. 13-14 said...

#1. Money would not play a big part in my decision to marry someone. As long as we could both get buy and are happy, that's all that would matter to me.

Mrs. Sherwood said...

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