The Perfect Woman ImageAnne Elliot Introduction Jane Austen is an outstanding female novelist in English literature in the 19thcentury. She is compared to “the Shakespeare of prose ” by Macaulay and her works are deemed as the last but the most beautiful flowers in the masterpiece-blending literary garden of the 18th century. Persuasion is Jane Austens last completed novel which is the most thoughtful and mature one. Its mature embodies the heroine Annes marriage view and her special characteristics. Anne s Marriage View In Austen s early works, the heroines decide their marriages in terms of their sense. While in Persuasion, Austen illustrates her points about marriage and stresses that both love and money are of equivalent importance in marriage. At 19, Anne falls in love with the intelligent middle-class Wentworth who has no property or status, but soon their love is denied by Annes father and her godmother Mrs. Russell. Annes sense directs her to refuse Wentworth s proposal so they break up. However, when they meet again 8 years later, industrious Wentworth has been a captain and earned his fame and fortune then they realize they still love each other deeply. Eventually Annes sensibility leads them to marriage. Anne has suffered lots of agony due to her over-caution and conservation, which cannot guarantee her boon, but thanks to her sensibility, the lovers can come into the marriage hall happily. Anne s Special Characteristics Anne differs from other characters in Austen s novels. Other heroines like Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice, Elinor in Sense and Sensibility are young attractive ladies below 20 years old and their love stories last about one year. While the story begins, Anne is 27 years old and has experienced over 8 years poor love, so she is the eldest and most mature heroine in Austen s writing. Undoubtedly, it is virtues and capability but not beauty or youth that make her more eminent. Anne is loyal to love. As a girl, she has broken up with Wentworth on the advice of Lady Russell, however, her love to Wentworth remains as before. She rejects her cousins proposal, she becomes thin and pale and her youth has vanished because she loves Wentworth all the time. Even other beautiful young girls are pursuing him, her love doesnt fade. Anne is always obliging to the people around. She visits and comforts her old friend Mrs. Smith instead of alienating her even after she gets married, Anne, together with her husband, helps Mrs. Smith settle down. At a ball, in order not to interrupt others dancing delightfully, Anne plays accompaniment on the piano tearfully. When encountering Captain Benwick, who feels grieved due to his fiances early death, she consoles and enlightens him, repressing her own pain of the lovelorn. Anne is unruffled and decisive as well, her capacity to handle matters far exceeding those gentlemen. When Louisa falls off the stairs and loses consciousness, people are in a mess: some faint, some scream, some scare out of their wits. It is only Anne that can stay calm as if she is the right one to give others instructions. Why is Anne so different from other characters? There are some social factors as well as Austen s own ones. The age of romanticism comes, which is the glorification of instinct and emotion, a deep veneration of nature, and a flaming zeal to remark the world. Austen is influenced greatly and she is familiar with the works of Byron, Shelley, and Keats. Thus Annes uniqueness is impacted by romanticism. According to Austens own experience, she remains single throughout her life, because she rejected a man without financial security. She has been keenly aware of the pain of over-caution which brings her into dilemma and she is utilizing the unique Anne to persuade us that love and money are equally important in marriage. Conclusion Persuasion, as Austen s last work, has obvious breakthrough in its characterization and marriage view. Austen shows Annes delicate love to Wentworth, her merits and virtues, shaping Anne, the most unforgettable, perfect heroine among Austens masterpieces.