According to some sources, the novel Persuasion was not
titled by Jane Austen but by her editors, since she died before titling the story.
However, one can see why the title is suitable. The power of convincing, or persuading
people is quite expansive in that the choices one makes as a result affect a lot of
people. Sometimes the choices made after being persuaded are only in the interest of one
party involved, and someone will always come out losing
out.
First, it was persuasion what determined the fate of
Anne when she was persuaded to quit her courtship with Cpt. Wentworth for his lack of
money. As a result, she spent years as a spinster and regretted much having being
persuaded.
Equally, her friend Mrs. Smith was persuaded by
Anne's own father to indulge in their riches to live a pretty much "dandy" lifestyle,
and due to this persuasion, the Smiths became almost bankrupt as well as Anne's father
Sir Walter Elliot.
In all, one could say that Austen is
sending out a message of warning for all the possible moments one will face and people
will try to convince us of doing something that they think may be for our own good, when
in fact it is for their own benefit. In the case of Anne, she would have made her
family, which holds a Baronet, quite embarrassed if she had married Wentworth because he
was poor. It was not so much for the good of Anne, but for the appearances of the
family that they suggested this to her. For that reason, persuasion is a double edge
weapon and needs to be treated carefully.
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