Persuasion Social Class

Naila Parker Sanchez
Persuasion Essay
Strassberger
In Jane Austen's novel Persuasion, the reader easily gains an understanding of the social classes and its structure during the time period surrounding 1814 to 1815. During this time period in Britain, social rank determined your position in society, your wealth, and how people respected you. The Industrial and Agricultural Revolution caused social class to change in Britain and threw off the balance of society. To add on to multiple changes, the Napoleonic war also brought new French ideals that changed society in Britain.
Prior to the French Revolution, common people and low class civilians had no say in government. In the 1740s, the lower class, also known as the “Third Estate” (Marx, 2014)
demanded a right to have a voice, and were soon able to convince the french king to hear their demands. Eventually, this led to the creation of a constitution which was “largely influenced by the lower class”(Marx, 2014). Following these actions, the Jacobian Rule came to power and created the “Committee Of Public Safety”. The Jacobians allowed for equality and liberty of the lower class causing a restructure in societal classes (Marx, 2014). At this point, the lower class, french people wanted equality between all. Nobles and royals no longer has the upperhand in society. The French Revolution was built upon the commoners and lower class that eventually altered their social classes, giving them more say in government and equality in society. Despite these advancements and strong influence around Europe, Great Britain strongly opposed the French Revolution and the uprising of the lower class. Pursuing an aristocratic rule in 1815, British Parliament passed its Corn Law to raise tariffs (Marx, 2014). These tariffs made it difficult on common workers to distribute goods, lowering their positions in society due to low wealth. Great Britain was a global power at this point and feared the influence of the Jacobian Rule because of its potentially disastrous effects on society. Following the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars, fear caused Britain to raise taxes on goods in order to have a tighter control on social class hierarchy. This meant that the only people who were successful and economically stable in society were those of wealth, from royal families, or landowners. Great Britain refused to have French ideals influence societal ranks.
During the early 1800s the highest class in Britain was considered those of royal families, landowners, aristocrats, and baronets. The middle classes consisted of lawyers, clergy, doctors, and those of higher education. The lower class consisted of the common people who worked in factories or mines and a separate class for those in the navy and military. (Thomas, n.d.). Due to the Industrial revolution, many lower class workers took on jobs in factories or mines. Those who worked these jobs had poor working conditions and many workers were either far too young or too old and were earning very little wages (Helmer, n.d.). Also, women were considered part of the lower class and rarely had any say in society. Many women worked seamstress jobs, manual labor jobs, or were at home mothers. Women were not seens as a value to society unless they were part of royal families or commonwealth.
In the early 19th century those who were at the top of social ranks and who controlled most of Britain, were landowners or those who came from royal family lineages. As the industrial revolution made its way into English culture, people began working manufacturing jobs which created more job opportunities in the cities (Helmer, n.d.). This time period opened up the middle class and allowed for there to be a division between those who were educated yet still not paid as much and those who were uneducated and poor. (Helmer, n.d.) The rise of a middle class changed Britain's societal ranks and forced pressure on Parliament to give the common people more say and representation in the government (Helmer, n.d.).
Connecting this history back to Persuasion, Sir Walter Elliot and his three daughters were part of the upper class social rank in Britain. The reader can infer this as Austen tells that the family’s home is located in Kellynch Hall, a wealthy neighborhood. While Sir Walter Elliot is also a baronnet, making him part of the upper class, his wealth is derived from his first wife. In order to keep up with his status and image, Sir Walter spends his money on luxuries which eventually puts him into debt.
The Royal family seems to only interact with people from their social rank to maintain their image and status. In Chapter 3, a conversation between Sir Walter Elliot and Mr. Shepherd, Sir Walter Elliot only wants to rent out his home to a tenant who is as good looking, young, and of same social rank as him. He believes only those who fit the criteria are worthy of living in his home. Sir Walter Elliot argues that sailors are not fit to be tenants of his home because of how their faces have aged from sea weather saying, “they are all knocked about, and exposed to every climate, and every whether...It is a pity”(pg 21). This is a clear example that shows how the lower class at the time was not considered valuable or part of society and how the navy and military were not seen as fit in Sir Walter Elliot’s eyes. Instead of looking for someone who is hardworking, Sir Walter Elliot wants a tenant who is good looking. This ties back to Sir Walter Elliot wanting to keep up his upper class image and wanting to hide the fact that he is in debt. He tries to hide his financial status in fear of ruining his image and destroying his social rank.
Another example of how social rank plays an important role in Persuasion is when Lady Russell pressures Anne to marry someone else in her social rank, and not Sir Wentworth. Sir Wentworth did not meet the criteria and although he is described as “such confidence, powerful in its own warmth, and bewitching in the wit” (pg. 27), which was more than enough for Anne to fall in love with him, Lady Russell did not permit her to pursue him because she was not fond of his wit and his low social rank. Although Anne was in love with Sir Wentworth, Lady Russell persuaded her to marry a man of her rank in fear that it may ruin her status and value.
Comparing social classes from the 19th century to today, it is a drastic difference.
Modern day society is very different from British society in the 19th century because it is more laid back and people are not so worried about financial status. One can marry outside of their social class and they will not be looked down on for doing so. In Persuasion, Sir Walter Elliot can not bear to think of going down a social rank in fear of embarrassment of being in debt. Today, if this sort of situation were to happen to any common person, society would most likely be accepting rather than disappointed. Although many people who are upper class citizens may come from wealthy families, it is very possible that one can work their way up to the top even if they started from a low social rank. Today, we still carry specific social class labels, yet they are not as strict as they were before. Today the majority of US citizens are part of the middle class and are highly respected citizens that have a say in everyday life. Even lower class citizens still have complete rights to vote and have say in society and
government.

Works Cited
Marx, T.
(2014, April 03). Social Class and Revolution. Inscriptions Journal. Retrieved from http://www.inscriptionsjournal.org/social-class-and-revolution/
Thomas, P. (n.d.). Social Changes Before 1815. Fashion Era. Retrieved from http://www.fashion-era.com/social_changes_before_1815.htm
SparkNotes (n.d.). Europe 1815-1848. Spark Notes. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.sparknotes.com/history/european/1848/section2.rhtml
(n.d.). 19th Century England Social Hierarchy. Hierarchy Structure. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from http://www.hierarchystructure.com/19th-century-england-social-hierarchy/
Helmer, M. (n.d.). 19th Century England: Society, Social Classes, & Culture. Study. Retrieved February 15, 2017, from
http://study.com/academy/lesson/19th-century-england-society-social-classes-culture.html