Guzman 1

Jacinto Guzman

Mrs. Gracesqui

World Literature

12 March 2018

Late 18th Century and Early 19th Century History in Northanger Abbey

“She has made me miserable forever… I can never expect to know such another woman! Dearest
Catherine, beware how you give your heart.”

– James Morland, Northanger Abbey

When money and social status are the only things that a person looks for in a relationship

it may end in tragedy for the ones who felt they were receiving true love, as James Morland says

in a letter to Catherine explaining that his relationship ended with Isabella Thorpe because she

left him for someone who is wealthier than him: Captain Tilney. Furthermore, Austen’s

Northanger Abbey shows how John Thorpe and Henry Tilney portray socially acceptable men

and gender roles in early 19th century England. Moreover, Isabella Thorpe portrays a socially

acceptable woman, while Catherine Morland represents a woman who does things the way she

believes is correct, without caring if it is socially unreasonable.

John Thorpe portrays a socially acceptable man who is rude toward the feminine sex,

which was typical for wealthy men to do in early 19th century England. John Thorpe is selfish

and rude toward Mrs. Thorpe and his sisters. John addresses Mrs. Thorpe at the archway of the

Pump-yard by asking her, “where did you get that quiz of a hat, it makes you look like an old

witch?” (Austen 32). John has no regret in greeting his mother this way and does not apologize

after greeting her with a bad attitude. Although Mrs. Thorpe does not mind the comment, it could

be considered rude calling his mother an “old witch” even as a joke. Soon after greeting Mrs.

Thorpe with that horrible comment, he greets his sisters and “asked each of them how they did
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and observed that they both looked very ugly” (Austen 32). His mother, nor his sisters are

offended by his “manners”, so this must mean that they are accustomed to his rude personality.

Wealthy men in that time had “the cool possession of privilege entitl[ing] them to disparaging

banter” (Johnson 313). In early 19th century England, wealthy men like John Thorpe had a

socially acceptable right to verbally insult women without having to contemplate whether what

they said was too harsh or just enough to be a funny comment. John Thorpe represents himself as

a man whose manners are so unimportant that he does not greet his mother nor his sisters with

polite manners, making him a representative of higher class men in early 19th century England.

Additionally, John Thorpe represents a man who is careless toward his friends and family

and boasts about how his belongings are better than other people’s belongings, similar to what

wealthy men did in early 19th century England. John Thorpe, being the cocky young man that he

is, brags about how great and advanced his carriage is. When John takes Catherine for a ride in

his carriage, he knows that James Morland’s carriage, the carriage in which James and John’s

sister are riding in, is old and unsteady and could be a real danger to James and Isabella.

Catherine is fearful of what could happen to her brother and friend and tells John to “turn back,”

to ensure that James and Isabella would not get into an “accident” (Austen 43). John responds by

saying that “they will only get a roll if it does break down; and there is plenty of dirt, it will be

excellent falling” (Austen 43). John is careless enough to not “turn back” toward his friend and

sister to make sure they do not get into any “accident”. Wealthy men were “trapped in the

stereotypes of masculinity” and repeatedly showed off how good they were at being a “hunter,”

how good their carriages were, how much they could drink, and/or how they showed “boldness”

when they were riding (Gilbert and Gubar 280). Higher class men, like John Thorpe, in early 19th

century England liked to brag and be focused on the masculine things, such as having a modern
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carriage and healthy horses. Additionally, John Thorpe takes Catherine on a ride on his carriage,

knowing that James and Isabella’s carriage is not “safe”. John Thorpe bragging about his

carriage and not ensuring safety on his friends when they were in an old carriage show what

makes him a representative of a wealthy early 19th century man.

Similarly, Henry Tilney represents a socially acceptable man who makes fun of the

feminine sex, which was normal for early 19th century men to do in England. At “Beechen Cliff”,

when Catherine tells Eleanor that “murder and everything of that kind… will soon come out in

London”, Catherine is talking about a novel that is shortly to be released in London (Austen 77).

However, Eleanor misinterprets what Catherine is saying and believes she is talking about a real-

life event that will occur in London. Henry notices that Eleanor is thinking of one thing while

Catherine of another. He “laughs” and says to the two girls, “come, shall I make you understand

each other, or leave you puzzle out an explanation as you can?... I have no patience with such of

my sex as disdain to let themselves sometimes down to the comprehension of yours [the female

sex]” (Austen 77). Henry notices that both girls are confused, but he does not decide to clear

things up right away, instead, he makes jokes first and “laughs” about Catherine and Eleanor’s

inability to comprehend each other. Men in that time showed “the characteristic masculine

activity… is measurement… of words” (Johnson 314). Men, also “[dictate] the parameters of

words” (Johnson 314). Wealthy men in early 19th century England used their choice of words to

maltreat women. Henry manipulates Catherine and Eleanor by using his words to make fun of

when they get confused about the novel they are discussing. Henry Tilney verbally maltreating

Catherine and Eleanor makes him a representative of wealthy men from early 19th century

England.
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Furthermore, Henry Tilney represents a socially acceptable man in early 19th century

England who believes that women’s powers are limited. When Catherine Morland and Henry are

talking about marriages and dances, Henry tells Catherine that a “man has the advantage of

choice, woman only the power of refusal” (Austen 51). Henry believes that a man’s job is to

make the choices in a relationship, and a woman’s job in a relationship is limited to refusing

whatever the man proposes. Furthermore, Henry thinks that a woman does not have the power to

make choices on her own. In the 1790s, women’s “propriety” was normally not viewed by men

in notable way (Johnson 312). Wealthy men in early 19th century England did not value or notice

a woman’s decorum. Henry proves himself a man who does not value “propriety” in women

when he states that women only have the “power of refusal,” thus he represents the wealthy men

in early 19th century England.

While Henry Tilney represents a high class early 19th century man, Isabella Thorpe

represents a socially acceptable woman who only seeks monetary value in people and shows no

regret for cheating on someone after finding out they are not rich. When Isabella and Catherine

Morland are discussing Isabella’s engagement plans Isabella makes Catherine believe that she

seeks no interest in money. However, when Isabella is informed that her fiancé’s father, Mr.

Morland, is not going to give them much money annually, she says to Catherine, “everybody has

their failing you know, and everybody has a right to do what they like with their own money”

(Austen 93). Isabella is referring to the Morland family, more specifically Mr. Morland, not

having enough money to give to his son a salary that is comfortable enough for her and what she

feels is the necessary amount of money for a year. Then, when Isabella realizes that the Morlands

are not as rich as she expects them to be, she leaves James and does not care that she leaves him

“miserable for ever” and decides to get engaged to Captain Tilney (Austen 139). In early 19th
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century England, it was considered that “a wife with a dowery is better than none, and this

dowery must be in gold, for, as it is pointed out… wealth of the mind counts in the female sex as

a kind of poverty” (West 261). Women who were wealthy was a benefit in a relationship but

women who were smart and looked for core values in a relationship were not considered a

benefit. Also, it was considered “shameful” to be a woman who went “husband hunting,” but

many women still did it because there was “every reason why one should join in on the hunt”

(West 261). It was considered disgraceful for a woman to be looking for husbands only because

they could provide for them, however, it was normal for women to do it. Isabella Thorpe is like

early 19th century women because she prefers to live with the status of being wealthy, rather than

to be loyal to her husband, not caring if whoever her husband is rich or not. Additionally,

Isabella goes around searching for men to get engaged only because of their monetary value,

even when it was poorly viewed by society to “hunt” for a husband. Isabella Thorpe is a woman

who looks for monetary value in marriage, which makes her a representative of typical early 19th

century women.

Additionally, Isabella Thorpe represents a typical early 18th century woman who does

what is expected of her, instead of doing what is correct. When Isabella tries to convince

Catherine to go to Clifton, Catherine declines her invitation because she already has plans to go

on a walk with Ms. Tilney. John Thorpe goes to Miss Tilney and makes up a lie about why

Catherine cannot go on the walk. When John tells Catherine what he does, she says, “I cannot

submit to this. I must run after Miss Tilney” (Austen 68). When Isabella hears that Catherine is

about to leave, she helps John grab a “hold of one hand” (Austen 68). Isabella’s manners are

usually polite, but when she sees Catherine not agreeing with her she joins her brother in

grabbing her. Both John and Isabella grab Catherine at the same time, so if Isabella would not
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have grabbed Catherine, John would have not been happy. In early 19th century England, Dr.

John Gregory wrote a letter to his daughters telling them to “be cautious in displaying your good

sense. It will be thought you assume a superiority over the rest of the company” (Gregory 220).

Early 19th century women were expected to keep quiet even when something they knew was

wrong was being done. Isabella Thorpe knows that convincing Catherine only using her words is

the best thing to do, however, when Isabella sees that Catherine does not pay attention to what

she says, she does what John expects her to do and forces Catherine physically, to stay. Isabella

Thorpe does what is expected of her and represents the kind of woman that John Gregory wanted

his daughters to do: keep quiet so that others do not think you are better than them.

While Isabella Thorpe represents a woman who only does what is expected of her,

Catherine Morland represents a young woman that does things her way even when most of

society would have found it unreasonable for a woman to act like Catherine. When Isabella is

speaking to Catherine about her marriage plans, Catherine tells Isabella, “I hate the idea of one

great fortune looking out for another. And to marry for money I think the wickedest think in

existence” (Austen 86). Unlike many of the characters, Catherine is a person who truly keeps her

word, because characters like John Thorpe, Isabella Thorpe, and General Tilney all care about

the monetary value a person has. In late 1792, Mary Wollstonecraft responds to John Gregory’s

letter to his daughters when she says, “There would be no end to rules for behavior, if it be

proper always to adopt the tone of the company” (Wollstonecraft 224). If women were to always

do what the “company” around them did then there would not be any proper person who says

what they believe. Catherine is only woman that states that she does not care about money in a

relationship and means it. She does not care whether people like General Tilney think poorly of
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her because of how much money her family has, thus she represents a woman who is brave and

who does not care about what late 18th century British society thinks about her.

Furthermore, Catherine Morland represents an early 19th century British young woman,

who says what she believes is correct even when a person close to her finds her actions rude and

unreasonable. When Catherine wonders around Mrs. Tilney’s quarters, she is found by Henry

Tilney, who has just arrived from his other house. Catherine tells Henry that Eleanor tells her an

interesting fact about their mother; “her dying so suddenly… and you [Henry] none of you being

at home−and your father, I thought−perhaps had not been very fond of her” (Austen 135).

Catherine thinks that, according to what Eleanor tells her, General Tilney was not always loving

with their mother, so it is possible that General Tilney has something to do with her death. Henry

explains that his mother died of a “seizure… [that] was sudden” (Austen 135). Henry sees what

Catherine is trying to explain to him and corrects her instantly. In the late 18th century Mary

Wollstonecraft stated that “when a woman has sufficient sense not to pretend to any thing which

she does not understand in some degree, there is no need of determining to hide her talents under

a bushel” (Wollstonecraft 225). A woman should not have had to be worried if they were wrong

because they still had “talents” that they should had not been afraid to show. Catherine is wrong

when she states that General Tilney is Mrs. Tilney’s killer. However, Catherine shows “sufficient

sense” to at least bring up the idea that the General killed Mrs. Tilney. What Catherine does is

something that a young woman from that time was told not to do, like John Gregory telling his

daughters that “every species of indelicacy in conversation [is] shameful… to us [men]”

(Gregory 221). Catherine knows that she has every right to say what she believes is correct, even

if it is not right, she still does what late 18th century society tells her is “shameful,” thus she

represents a woman who is brave and can stand up to people like Henry and John Gregory.
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So, John Thorpe and Henry Tilney are representatives of men who are rude to females,

brag about their possessions, use their words to maltreat girls, and believe that women barely

have any power, similar to what the actions of men in early 19th century England. Additionally,

Isabella Thorpe portrays a young woman that only pursues people’s monetary value and does

everything that is expected of her, similar to what women in early 19th century England did. Not

only does Isabella Thorpe only pursue people’s monetary value, but also, she does not care if the

person she is in a relationship with is hurt because she left them for another person’s wealth. In

contrast, Catherine Morland represents a young woman who is brave and disagrees with the

stereotypes other characters inflict upon her. Also, Catherine Morland proves early 19th century

British stereotypical men, like John Gregory, wrong of saying what women should and should

not do for men.

Works Cited
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Austen, Jane. “The Text of Northanger Abbey.” Northanger Abbey, Edited by Susan Fraiman,

W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2004, pp. 5−174.

Gilbert, Sandra, and Susan Gubar. "Shut Up in Prose: Gender and Susan in Austen’s Juvenilia

(1979)." Northanger Abbey, Edited by Susan Fraiman, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc,

2004, pp. 277-293.

Gregory, John. “From ‘A Father’s Legacy to his Daughters (1774).’” Northanger Abbey Edited

by Susan Fraiman, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2004, pp. 220-221.

Johnson, Claudia. "The Juvenilia and Northanger Abbey: The Authority of Men and Books

(1988)." Northanger Abbey, Edited by Susan Fraiman, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc,

2004, pp. 306-325.

West, Rebecca. "The Feminism of Jane Austen (1932).” Northanger Abbey, Edited by Susan

Fraiman, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2004, pp. 259-263.

Wollstonecraft, Mary. "From ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792).’" Northanger

Abbey, Edited by Susan Fraiman, W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2004, pp. 222-225.