Loyalty In Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey

Northanger Abbey Many people at one point in their lives get caught in a pickle. This happens quite often in baseball but it happens in other places too. In Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey, Catherine, the protagonist, finds herself in a pickle. Catherine has to choose between siding with her brother or her friend, which ultimately represents’ Jane Austen’s theme: loyalty to family is worth more than loyalty to friends. Catherine befriends Isabella out of a sense of duty to her older brother James, who is best friends with Isabella’s older brother John. Because the two men are best friends, Catherine feels obligated to get to know Isabella for her brother’s sake. That way, she can relate to his situations and understand him if he ever needs
When Catherine went to Bath, a bustling city, her company was limited. However, Mrs. Allen, her chaperone, was always trying to find more people to join their company. Mrs. Allen was predominantly worried about how she looked publicly and Austen uses this to show the real reason for making numerous friends and acquaintances. Mrs. Allen uses her “friends” to appear like a high class citizen, which she is often mistaken for being. On the opposite side of the spectrum, when James writes home about marrying Isabella, his parents give him their blessing even though Isabella is not the best “investment”. They, as well as Catherine, are worried that people will think lowly of James because he is marring a lower class citizen. However, they still support his decision. These examples demonstrate the weakness of friendship and the strength of family. By using Catherine’s conflict of choosing between friendship and family, Austen unveils a conflict between desires & ambitions and obligations. A friendship with Isabella was what Catherine desired, however her familial obligation to James was more important. This strong emotional conflict gave the novel and underlying purpose and lesson: stick with family because they will always be