Sense and Sensibility Neo-classicism vs Romanticism

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austin was a moralistic novel depicting the two main forms of attitudes at that time; the neo -classics and the romantics. The period in which it was written, nineteenth century England, was laden with social etiquette and customs imposed on people of that time; and thus the characters of Jane Austins novels. The novels two main protagonists; Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, exemplify the Neo classical era and the romantic era, respectfully. Jane Austin instils Neo-classic and romantic ideals in Elinor and Marianne as to present a view of each attitude and to further enhance the discrepancies of social nineteenths century England. Neo- Classicism derived from the 17-18th centuries intellectual pursuit into†¦show more content†¦and she could have no lasting satisfaction in the company of a person who joined insincerity with ignorance (p108) Throughout sense and sensibility, Elinor is shown to be fair and just in her personal judgements. Elinor is also distinguished for her ability to self govern her feelings. The neo classics disprove of one indulging in feelings and believe one should instead conceal them, suffering silently. An example of this can be seen when Edward breaks Elinors heart, thus Austin places Elinor and Marianne in parallel situations. Marianne, the romantic, focuses solely on her own feelings and disregards the feelings of others. However, Elinor follows Neo Classic ethics by remaining a pillar of support for those who depend on her. She does not withdraw away and contemplate her life but instead carries on with the duties she undertook since the beginning of the novel. She continually self sacrifices her desire to the needs and benefit of those around her, showing a magnanimous concern to others while silencing her own feelings; dealing with issues with an unbiased outlook: She was very far from wishing to dwell on her own feelings, or to represent herself as suffering much, any otherwise than as the self command she had practised since her first knowledge of Edwards engagement... (p220) A major example of her self-sacrifice can be seen when Elinor agrees to bear theShow MoreRelatedSense and Sensibilty by Jane Austen2297 Words   |  9 PagesSense and Sensibility by Jane Austen is a satirical clash of the two cultural movements: †¯Romanticism, a movement focused on how imagination and emotion are more important than reason and formal rules, and Classicism, a movement centered on the qualities of formal etiquette, logic, and rationality. Austen focuses on the moral and social attributes of each, mainly their concepts on love. †¯She portrays these traits in all the characters in the book, mainly the two oldest Dashwood sisters, Elinor andRead MoreRomanticism versus Neoclassicism2775 Words   |  12 Pagestradition, society, intellect and formal diction, Romanticism allowed people to get away from the constrained rational views of life and concentrate on an emotional and sentimental side of humanity. In this movement the emphasis was on emotion, passion, ima gination, individual and natural diction. Resulting in part from the liberation and egalitarian ideals of the French Revolution, the romantic movement had in common only a revolt against the rules of classicism. There are obviously a lot of distinctions