Jane Austen’s Persuasion is a novel of manners, a work of fiction that reflects the customs, traditions and values of a particular social world. The social world Austen presents in the novel is 19th-century England, in all of it nuances and particularities.
Austen was also known for her use of the marriage plot, a type of story centered around courtship, and is often thought of as a pioneer of the form. The marriage plot was a popular source of entertainment for the middle class, and coincided with the rise of the novel as a popular art form. The marriage plot typically ended in, as the name suggests, marriage. Marriage, in 19th-century middle and upper class England, was seen as a means of elevating one's security or status in society. Certain characters in the novel, for example, are able to achieve greater independence by marrying into wealth. Marriage was particularly important for women because they often had little means in society outside of the institution to be financially independent or secure.
Austen presents an atypical marriage plot in Persuasion. Unlike her other works, the novel engages with love in later stages of life. The novel is centered around Anne Elliot, who at 27 is considered to be in her "second spring” and a bit “old” for marriage. Her romance with Captain Frederick Wentworth is delayed until her later years. Other characters—Mr. William Elliot and Mrs. Clay for example—also seek love or marriage later in life.
