Bondage in Jane Austen’s
Mansfield Park
by Loraine McGee
In Mansfield Park, Jane Austen interweaves nuances related to the name Ward, which bind the women and their children in the novel to patriarchal rule. The individuals within the family are dependant upon the Sir Thomas for subsistence, and the women are also prisoners of circumstance built into society’s social hierarchy, dooming them to obedience because of the ideology of male superiority. Additionally, Austen utilizes symbols of oppression throughout the literary work. Three of these symbols surface as common elements in daily life. A book, necklace, and lock allude to underlying issues prevalent in society. As a result, Austen’s novel is a story about patriarchal bondage in the early nineteenth century.
In the first sentence of the book, the reader is informed that Miss Maria Ward of Huntingdon is raised to the station of baronet through her marriage to Sir Thomas Bertram. As defined in the Oxford English Dictionary, the word “ward” refers to the “guardianship of a child, or other person legally incapable of conducting his [or her] affairs” or “one who is under the protection or control of another.” As Sir Thomas’ ward, Lady Bertram—under the official care granted by the laws of marriage—enjoys the luxuries of the wealthy, but at the same time, she is bound to the regulations of her husband’s patriarchal rule. Even though Lady Bertram is an aristocrat with a title, she is thought to be unable to make intelligent decisions, and is considered a second class citizen in a male dominated world.
Miss Ward, the second sister, finds “herself obligated” to marry the clergyman, Mr. Norris, who is a friend of Sir Thomas (Austen 3). Mrs. Norris not only becomes the property of her husband, who works for Sir Thomas, but she also is bound to the generosity of her brother-in-law for her survival after her husband dies. At this time, women were considered the property of their husbands and dependent upon his financial support or that of another male family member. Even if a woman earned money through sewing or other talents, the family patriarch had the right to control all household earnings. Therefore, the women in the story are under the protection of Sir Thomas for their continued existence and have become his wards through his own desire and society’s traditions.
The third sister, Frances Ward, rejects her family of orientation, marries a Marine, and becomes a prisoner of poverty and family. Francis Ward becomes Mrs. Price, but the connotation of her maiden name remains with her as she is trapped in a culture of poverty. Another description of “ward” in the OED is explained as “the condition of being a prisoner.” With a disabled alcoholic husband and an expected ninth child, Mrs. Price sees no way out of her situation, and appeals to Lady Bertram for help. As a result, Fanny Price moves to Mansfield Park and becomes an additional ward of Sir Thomas. Francis’ two older sisters and her eldest daughter remain true to the Ward maiden name by becoming the responsibility of Sir Thomas—if not by law at least by social customs—and becoming duty-bound to Sir Thomas’s patriarchal authority.
Upon returning from the family estate in Antigua, Sir Thomas demonstrates his patriarchal authority, which constrains the actions of the entire family. Sir Thomas represents the conservative aristocrat who rejects the contemporary view of his family in regards to the theater. After removing all evidence of the theater in the billiard room and restoring it to what Sir Thomas believed to be “its proper state” (Austen 147), he “was in hopes . . . to wipe away every outward memento of what had been, even to the destruction of every unbound copy of ‘Lovers’ Vows’ in the house, for he was burning all that met his eye” (emphasis added Austen 149). The print version of “Lovers’ Vows” is a symbol of Sir Thomas’ unbound children (Austen 149). Sir Thomas perceives his family as unrestrained and incapable of rational decisions and, therefore, the former must step in and remove all dangers from invading his children’s values. Sir Thomas exhibits this tyrannical behavior to assert his power over the family. As Ruth Bernard Yeazell claims in “The Boundaries of Mansfield Park,” Sir Thomas’ “gesture firmly re-establishes those boundaries . . . restoring a space that had been profaned” (137). In doing so, Sir Thomas remains as the sole ruler of his domain, wiping out all that he deems as a threat to his authority.
One of the most interesting links to bondage in the book can be examined through the symbolism of the necklace. The symbolism is twofold—chain and link. According to the OED, a “chain” is “a connected series of links passing through one another or otherwise joined together, so as to move on each other more or less freely and thus form a strong but flexible ligament.” This pleasing definition resembles the bond to Edmund Bertram that Fanny desires—marriage—when the former requests the latter’s acceptance “of this little trifle—a chain for William’s cross” (Austen 204). Consequently, Henry Crawford proposes marriage to Fanny but she refuses him. On one hand, Fanny wants to be linked to Edmund, but on the other hand, Crawford is determined to coerce Fanny into marriage through a responsibility to her uncle.
In an arranged marriage, the patriarchal relative negotiates the marriage and the woman is given away as property to her husband. As seen throughout the realm of history, the woman is compelled to obey male authority. If Fanny must choose a type of bondage, she is delighted that Crawford’s chain can not be threaded through “the ring of the cross” but Edmund’s necklace fits perfectly (Austen 212). Therefore, Fanny “join(s) the chain and the cross, those memorials of the two most beloved of her heart” (Austen 212), and wears them as a symbol of love. She also wears Henry’s chain given to her by Mary Crawford as a sense of duty, acknowledging the gift from a friend. In the end, Fanny’s choice of bondage as foreshadowed by the necklace comes to fruition when she marries Edmund. Fanny loves the generosity behind Edmund’s gift, but as seen at the end of the story, Fanny considers Edmund’s character as the valuable asset to their bond of marriage. In short, since Fanny must marry, she happily chooses her bondage to Edmund.
Furthermore, a “chain” is “employed to restrain or fetter” (OED). When a person thinks of the word fetter the shackles of slavery immediately come to mind. This definition would suit Fanny’s feelings for an unwelcome marriage with Crawford. Fanny is excited about the gift from Mary, until Fanny realizes that the necklace was originally a gift from Henry. Initially, Fanny believes that she is choosing a necklace brought on by the friendship of the two women. However, Miss Crawford urges her to select a specific necklace. Once Fanny accepts the necklace, she informs Mary that the former would think of her each time she wears the necklace. Much to Fanny’s horror, Mary enlightens Fanny that she “must think of Henry,” adding to Fanny’s dismay by saying, “I make over to you all the duty of remembering the original giver” (Austen 203). The stress of being linked to Henry causes Fanny to doubt her friend’s kindness, and Fanny dreads the “wished for” chain—now a symbol of an obligatory remembrance (Austen 204). As another foreshadowing of the necklace, Sir Thomas expects to compel Fanny to accept Henry’s proposal and be linked to him in marriage out of duty. However, Fanny undermines Sir Thomas’ authority by defying social norms and refusing to marry Crawford.
Moreover, Miss Maria Bertram is bound by society’s rules for women. A slip in her behavior can ruin her reputation and future chances for a life of leisure like her mother. Mr. Rushworth holds the key to the lock on the iron gate of the “ha ha” where Maria exclaims, “that ha ha, give[s] me a feeling of restraint and hardship” (Austen 78). In “Slipping into the Ha-Ha: Bawdy Humor and Body Politics in Jane Austen’s Novels,” Jill Heydt-Stevenson argues that in this scene Austen “undermines those ideological foundations that disguise and romanticize oppression” as seen by the “patriarchal expectations of female behavior” (315). Also, through matrilineal inheritance Maria becomes heir to the implication of her mother’s maiden name. Maria is like the lock’s “ward,” described by the OED as “each of the ridges projecting from the inside plate of a lock serving to prevent the passage of any key.” Maria teases Crawford, but he does not possess the key—a marriage proposal—that can penetrate her unexplored female entry. Furthermore, Maria is just another protrusion in a family of Wards rising up to rebel against male authority and its influence. However, in a world without women’s rights, her rebellion eventually dooms her to a life of hardship as foreseen in the “ha ha” scene (Austen 78).
In conclusion, Austen’s novel educates the reader on the dominant ideology that supports the authoritative male in society, resulting in a repressive class system. At the beginning of the book, Austen alludes to Sir Thomas’ West Indies estate, a reflection of the worst type of bondage—slavery. The undertone of slavery parallels the situations of Sir Thomas’s family in the novel. The family members are constrained and they rebel against authority and society’s norms, but there are consequences that result from resistance to laws of patriarchy in a male constructed society. However, in Fanny’s case, her resistance eventually works to her advantage as the true characters of the Crawfords are revealed. As a result, Fanny willingly bonds to Edmund in marriage. While Austen’s novel, published in 1814, addresses the suppression of the family, her story of bondage makes a statement about gender inequality and the assumed superiority of the patriarch in the European aristocratic estate system forty years prior to the onset of the women’s suffragette movement in which women were later imprisoned in the early 1900’s for defiance against legal authority. By addressing the false consciousness of society, the novel attempts to debunk the ideology that devalues women and supports the power of the patriarch and the first born male no matter how incompetent he may act. Thus, Austen’s novel encourages the reader to strive for independence within the realm of society’s limitations.
Works Cited
Austen, Jane. Mansfield Park. New York: Oxford UP, 2003.
“Chain” and “Ward.” Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989.
Heydt-Stevenson, Jill. “Slipping into the Ha-Ha: Bawdy Humor and Body Politics in Jane Austen’s Novels.” Nineteenth-Century Literature 55.3 (Dec 2000): 309-39. JSTOR. 10 Oct. 2008 <http://www.jstor.org/stable/2903126>.
Yeazell, Ruth Bernard. “The Boundaries of Mansfield Park.” Representations 7 (Summer 1984): 133-52. JSTOR. 21 Nov. 2008 <http://www.jstor.org/stable/2928460>.
