Mansfield Park (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) [Paperback]

Jane Austen (Author), Amanda Claybaugh (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2005

Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics:

All editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.

 

From its sharply satiric opening sentence, Mansfield Park dealas with money and marriage, and how strongly they affect each other. Shy, fragile Fanny Price is the consummate "poor relation." Sent to live with her wealthy uncle Thomas, she clashes with his spoiled, selfish daughters and falls in love with his son. Their lives are further complicated by the arrival of a pair of witty, sophisticated Londoners, whose flair for flirtation collides with the quiet, conservative country ways of Mansfield Park.

Written several years after the early manuscripts that eventually became Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park retains Austen’s familiar compassion and humor but offers a far more complex exploration of moral choices and their emotional consequences.

 

Amanda Claybaugh is Assistant Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University. She also wrote the Introduction and Notes for the Barnes & Noble Classics edition of Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Though Jane Austen was writing at a time when Gothic potboilers such as Ann Ward Radcliffe's The Mysteries of Udolpho and Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto were all the rage, she never got carried away by romance in her own novels. In Austen's ordered world, the passions that ruled Gothic fiction would be horridly out of place; marriage was, first and foremost, a contract, the bedrock of polite society. Certain rules applied to who was eligible and who was not, how one courted and married and what one expected afterwards. To flout these rules was to tear at the basic fabric of society, and the consequences could be terrible. Each of the six novels she completed in her lifetime are, in effect, comic cautionary tales that end happily for those characters who play by the rules and badly for those who don't. In Mansfield Park, for example, Austen gives us Fanny Price, a poor young woman who has grown up in her wealthy relatives' household without ever being accepted as an equal. The only one who has truly been kind to Fanny is Edmund Bertram, the younger of the family's two sons.

Into this Cinderella existence comes Henry Crawford and his sister, Mary, who are visiting relatives in the neighborhood. Soon Mansfield Park is given over to all kinds of gaiety, including a daring interlude spent dabbling in theatricals. Young Edmund is smitten with Mary, and Henry Crawford woos Fanny. Yet these two charming, gifted, and attractive siblings gradually reveal themselves to be lacking in one essential Austenian quality: principle. Without good principles to temper passion, the results can be disastrous, and indeed, Mansfield Park is rife with adultery, betrayal, social ruin, and ruptured friendships. But this is a comedy, after all, so there is also a requisite happy ending and plenty of Austen's patented gentle satire along the way. Describing the switch in Edmund's affections from Mary to Fanny, she writes: "I purposely abstain from dates on this occasion, that everyone may be at liberty to fix their own, aware that the cure of unconquerable passions, and the transfer of unchanging attachments, must vary much as to time in different people." What does not vary is the pleasure with which new generations come to Jane Austen. --Alix Wilber --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up-Jane Austen paints some witty and perceptive studies of character.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Barnes & Noble Classics; Mansfield Park (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) edition (August 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593081545
• ISBN-13: 978-1593081546
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 5 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (307 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #442,100 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Though the domain of Jane Austen's novels was as circumscribed as her life, her caustic wit and keen observation made her the equal of the greatest novelists in any language. Born the seventh child of the rector of Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775, she was educated mainly at home. At an early age she began writing sketches and satires of popular novels for her family's entertainment. As a clergyman's daughter from a well-connected family, she had an ample opportunity to study the habits of the middle class, the gentry, and the aristocracy. At twenty-one, she began a novel called "The First Impressions" an early version of Pride and Prejudice. In 1801, on her father's retirement, the family moved to the fashionable resort of Bath. Two years later she sold the first version of Northanger Abby to a London publisher, but the first of her novels to appear was Sense and Sensibility, published at her own expense in 1811. It was followed by Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1815). After her father died in 1805, the family first moved to Southampton then to Chawton Cottage in Hampshire. Despite this relative retirement, Jane Austen was still in touch with a wider world, mainly through her brothers; one had become a very rich country gentleman, another a London banker, and two were naval officers. Though her many novels were published anonymously, she had many early and devoted readers, among them the Prince Regent and Sir Walter Scott. In 1816, in declining health, Austen wrote Persuasion and revised Northanger Abby, Her last work, Sandition, was left unfinished at her death on July 18, 1817. She was buried in Winchester Cathedral. Austen's identity as an author was announced to the world posthumously by her brother Henry, who supervised the publication of Northanger Abby and Persuasion in 1818.

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#7 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

#58 in Books > Romance > Historical

#81 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Literary

#7 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

#58 in Books > Romance > Historical

#81 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Literary

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

84 of 86 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful story July 10, 2000

By N. Gargano VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I am a new reader of Jane Austen and after reading the other reviews of this book, I was a little scared to read this one so I saved it for last. I was so surprised how much I liked it. Fanny, the main character, is someone I could relate to in ways that many other readers apparently have not been able to. Unless you grow up in a home where you are made to feel unwanted, and have a Mrs. Norris as an aunt in Fanny's case or a stepmom in my case, it would be hard to understand Fanny. Take it from me,the character is very real in many ways and not the wimp or doormat that many other reviewers find her. Alot of people said this book of Jane Austen's is her deepest because of the social issues she tackles. I will have to read it again to pick up on more of that, I was so busy focusing on Fanny's situation and understanding her feelings, knowing how her situation affected her responses, that I missed things. I look forward to reading it again. I think others will enjoy it too,don't be put off by the other reviewers. Of course, I look forward to rereading all my Jane Austens.

119 of 125 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved and Hated September 18, 2001

By Bowen Simmons

Format:Mass Market Paperback

"Mansfield Park" has always been Jane Austen's most controversial novel.

The heroine of the book is Fanny Price, a powerless and socially marginal young woman. To almost everyone she knows, she barely exists. As a child, she is sent to live with the family of her wealthy uncle. Her parents give her up without regret, and her uncle only takes her in because he is deceived into doing so. Fanny's wealthy relations, when they deign to notice her at all, generally do so only to make sure she knows of her inferiority and keeps in her place. Fanny is thus almost completely alone, the only kindness she receives coming from her cousin Edmund. Forced by circumstances to be an observer, Fanny is a faultlessly acute one, as well as the owner of a moral compass that always points true north.

Those who dislike "Mansfield Park" almost invariably cite Fanny as the novel's central fault. She is generally accused of being two things: (1) too passive, and (2) too moral.

The charge of passivity is perplexing. Surely it is evident that for her to challenge those in power over her is extremely dangerous - in fact, when she finally does challenge them, on a matter of the greatest importance to her and of next to no importance to them, she is swiftly reminded of the weakness of her situation by being deported back to the impoverished family of her parents, who receive her with indifference.

The charge of morality is easier to understand - many readers feel themselves being silently accused by Fanny, and they don't like it. The interesting thing is that those same readers often enjoy "Pride and Prejudice", even though it is evident that the same moral standards are in place in both books. So, why do readers feel the prick of criticism in one and not the other?...

Part of the answer is that in "Mansfield Park" the stakes are higher, which squeezes out the levity of "Pride and Prejudice". Elizabeth Bennet, the heroine of "Pride and Prejudice", can afford to smile at the follies of others - they are not dangerous to her (at least she thinks not - she comes to think differently before the book is over). Fanny, however, can seldom afford to laugh. Vices that are funny in the powerless can be frightening in the powerful. Fanny's vulnerability to the faults of others is clear to her, and she suffers for it throughout "Mansfield Park".

Another part of the answer is that attractions that are combined in "Pride and Prejudice" are split in "Mansfield Park". In "Pride and Prejudice", Mr. Darcy is both rich and good; in "Mansfield Park", Henry Crawford is only rich. In "Pride and Prejudice", Elizabeth Bennet is both witty and good; in "Mansfield Park", Fanny Price is only good. Readers who liked "Pride and Prejudice" because it had a rich man attracted to a witty woman, will either find nothing in "Mansfield Park" to engage their enthusiasms, or, as is not uncommon, they will actually find themselves drawn to the book's sometimes-antagonists, the Crawfords.

Having dealt with why some people dislike "Mansfield Park", it remains to deal with why other people like it. Its central attraction is the skillful blending of the story of Fanny Price herself, which is the Jane Austen's adaptation of the "Cinderella" archetype, and the story of the other characters, which are of the great Christian themes of fall and redemption.

"Cinderella", is of course the story of hope for the powerless. It has been subject to a certain amount of well-intended misreading in recent decades, but the motive for that misreading really concerns an accident of the eponymous story - the sex of the main character - rather than its real theme, which is universal. "Harry Potter", for example, shows how easily and successfully the Cinderella archetype can be applied to a male protagonist.

Fall and redemption is the other story of "Mansfield Park". At the start, the characters other than Fanny are fallen or falling. Some are so corrupt that we are have no hope for them; their presence is purely malign, endangering those not so badly off as themselves. Others have fallen far, but are not quite so far gone that we do not have hope for them as well as fear of them. Finally, there are those who are only beginning to fall, whose danger is all the more alarming for it.

In "Mansfield Park", these stories are not just side by side, they are interwoven. Jane Austen's Cinderella saves not only herself, but also saves - and almost saves - others as well. All but the worst characters in the book are drawn to the goodness in Fanny, even while they yield to the temptations that threaten them. The book has real tension in that we don't know who will make it and who will not. Those who feel sympathy for the Crawfords are not entirely misreading the story - we are not wrong when we sympathize with a drowning man clutching at a rope thrown to him. Where we can go wrong is not when we wish not for the drowning man to be pulled to shore, but when we wish for the person at the other end of the rope to be pulled in after him. Read more ›

68 of 71 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Austen's best, but still wonderful June 18, 2004

By Debbie Lee Wesselmann TOP 50 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

After having read (and loved) Jane Austen's more famous novels EMMA and PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, I found MANSFIELD PARK a true delight. Fanny Price is taken in by her wealthy aunt and uncle as charity to her more lowly-married mother, and is raised with her cousins with the idea she needs refinement and education to become as good a woman as her lesser social standing will allow. Fanny is nervous and self-effacing, struggling with her new situation until her cousin Edmund makes her feel more at home. Gradually, she feels like a part of the family, although the nagging sense of unworthiness always asserts itself. As cousins marry and suitors appear, as scandals arise and emotions become known, Fanny finds herself in the equivalent of a Victorian soap opera.

Fanny is undoubtedly one of Austen's less assertive characters, although she does mature into a woman who knows what she wants and will accept no less. I loved Fanny and her honesty, the little girl who fears the stars in her eyes and still manages to grow up into a respectable - and respected - woman. Her complexities are subtle and understated, making the reader work at times to understand her motivation, although anyone who has felt like an outcast even once, or anyone who respects honesty, will identify with her. In true Austen fashion, the observations are witty, with pointed social analysis and cynicism dressed up in sly humor. Fanny's aunts in particular are skewered, but no one, not even Fanny, is spared.

Readers picking up this novel for the sheer delight of it will find it difficult to put down, as its language is accessible and free-flowing.... Students and book club members who must pay closer attention to themes and other literary issues may want to consider the role social standing and money play; the evolution of Fanny's character (and whether she is sympathetic); the techniques Austen uses to evoke humor; and the courtship protocol for Victorian England and how the characters both work within, and violate, the social rules.

I highly recommend this book for teenagers and adults alike, especially those whose literary tastes run toward the classics. Read more ›

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Never; He Never Will Succeed With Me..." July 11, 2005

By R. M. Fisher TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

Out of all Jane Austen's wonderful novels "Mansfield Park" is perhaps her most widely-debated. With a heroine who triumphs through her utter passivity, uncomfortable themes of familial power and corruption, and sub-text on slavery, it is rightfully described as "Austen's most complex and profound *and* her least likeable novel." As well as this is Austen's own declaration that "Mansfield Park" was her favourite work. To say it is unique is an understatement.

Fanny Price is only a child when she is sent from her impoverished home to live with her aunt at the grand Mansfield Park. A quiet child, Fanny is overwhelmed by her wealthy and privileged family and is painfully homesick - a condition that the Bertrams cannot possibly understand. Hasn't she been removed from a life of near-squalor and no prospects? But the noble-yet-cold Sir Thomas Bertram, his child-like wife Lady Bertram, his self-centred eldest son Tom and his daughters Maria and Julia are not cruel to Fanny in the way that the evil step-family was cruel to Cinderella - simply misguided and so removed from her situation as to not understand the first thing about her. But from her second aunt, the loathsome Mrs Norris, Fanny receives only criticism and thinly-veiled scorn. Only the youngest son Edmund, with ambitions to become a quiet country clergyman, shows genuine compassion and sympathy to her, and soon the cousins are as close as siblings.

Fanny grows into a young woman, but keeps her timidity - which hides a bright mind and a clear sense of right and wrong. From London come the glamorous Crawford siblings - the rakish Henry Crawford who shamelessly flirts with Maria, even though she is engaged to one Mr Rushmore, and the witty Mary Crawford, who soon captivates Edmund.... This is much to Fanny's heartbreak since she has been secretly in love with Edmund for years, and she cannot help but distrust the dazzling Crawfords.

It is not an understatement to say disaster strikes when Mr Crawford proposes to Fanny, as for her the attentions of such a man are utterly unwelcome. Unwelcome suitors are standard fare in Austen's previous novels, such as Mr Collins to Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Elton to Emma Woodhouse, but here the situation takes on a darker tone. Firstly, because Austen's previous uses of this plot-turn are usually played for laughs with the suitor as a comical buffoon, and second because her heroines are well able enough to reject such men. For Fanny however, the experience terrifies her and one can feel her distress and conflict as her family pressure her into marriage against the utter conviction of her heart. Like a bird in a cage, Fanny is completely helpless.

Austen is renowned for poking fun at contemporary issues with her ingenious wit, and "Mansfield Park" is concerned with the disillusions of the upper-class: the belief that superior educations, convenient marriages, good manners and breeding and sparkling wit automatically make a morally good person. As such, whilst the Bertram family live their lives with the complete assumption that they are decent people, Fanny's modesty and self-discipline ensures that her character is superior to each and every one of them. The saying "the moment you believe you are a worthy person is the moment you cease to be one" caters nicely to Austen's ideal, and her general themes of conservatism, modesty and quiet reflection.

All of Austen's heroines are diverse in a central, particular way. For instance, Emma of "Emma" is the only one removed from the pressure of making a financially secure marriage, whilst Anne of "Persuasion" is the only one who is at a more mature age than the others. In this way, all of Austen's novels have a unique individual young woman as its protagonist. And so what is Fanny Price's particular trait? You may think that it is her timidity, but more surprising is the fact that Fanny is completely infallible. Throughout the course of the story Fanny's judgement never falters, nor is she ever once proved incorrect. She is a positive angel, and as Edmund says at one point: "We have all been more or less to blame... every one of us, excepting Fanny."

As well as this, Austen turns her eye onto the topic of family and home-life, in a particularly bittersweet way. Fanny continually suffers from displacement - first at Mansfield Park, and later in the novel when she returns to her family home in Portsmouth to find it is not the idealistic family home she half-remembers. It is a poignant, but too-often true sensation that many contemporary readers may relate to: the return to your childhood home only to find that it isn't really "home" anymore.

In this Penguin Classics edition, Kathyrn Sutherland and Tony Tanner provide excellent Introductions/Appendixes to the work. Even if you usually skip over these sorts of things, I highly recommend taking the time to read them, as Tanner in particular sheds new light over several episodes in the novel: for example the metaphorical connotations in the family's walk through Rushmore's gardens, and the foreshadowing prevalent in what appears to be a simple game of cards.

Despite its controversy, "Mansfield Park" is perhaps my favourite Austen novel (I still haven't read "Northanger Abbey", so I can't truthfully make that claim yet) and though Fanny is not as spunky or spirited as many readers would like or are used to, it is actually quite refreshing to have a shy and introverted protagonist who wins the game of life; who advocates the real importance of morals and goodness. You don't need to be a strong feminine role-model to be a good person. Read more ›