A LOVE LETTER TO MANSFIELD PARK FROM OUR LITERACY AMBASSADOR, ASHLEY CAMBERS - ALSO KNOWN AS MS OHIO UNITED STATES 2019!
When it comes to female empowerment, Fanny Price seems an unlikely heroine. A poor relation who is bullied throughout most of the novel, Fanny is quiet and unassuming and the furthest thing from what we want in a modern heroine.
Instead, Mary Crawford is the character who sparkles across the page, reminding the reader of Elizabeth Bennet and demonstrating female agency. However, Jane Austen knows what she is about by making Fanny the star of her story. Mansfield Park flips the expectations of Pride and Prejudice on its head as characters you expect to change and redeem themselves don’t.
In many ways, Mansfield Park is a coming of age story. Throughout the novel, it is Fanny who grows up, coming into her own, and displaying female empowerment. At only eighteen, she finds the strength to stand up to her awe-inspiring uncle and refuse an eligible marriage. Henry Crawford, much like Mr. Wickham, has the power to please, but Fanny doesn’t trust Mr. Crawford after observing his flirtations with her two cousins.
Fanny and Edmund in the 2007 television adaptation. Credit: ITV
The Crawfords offer an interesting counterpoint to Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Wickham, and Mr. Darcy. Lively Mary Crawford demonstrates misguided principles, but her admirer, Fanny’s cousin Edmund Bertram, excuses her behaviour, blaming it on her past home life. The engaging Henry Crawford is an acknowledged flirt who does very little to hide the fact that he is pursuing two sisters, one of whom is engaged. Yet, his behaviour goes unnoticed by most of the characters because they see him as a gentleman, and a gentleman would not behave that way.
Had Mary overcome her pride and dislike of the clergy and married Edmund, she would have been the heroine of Mansfield Park, but she does not. Had Henry Crawford changed his ways and proved himself constant and honorable, he would have eventually won Fanny’s respect and love. In a sense, he could have become the Mr. Darcy of the story, overcoming his faults and marrying the heroine, but that doesn’t happen either. Instead, Henry runs off with Fanny’s married cousin, and Mary blames Fanny for the situation while admitting she doesn’t see why everyone is upset over adultery.
While the Crawfords are the force that moves the story along, it is Fanny who transforms from the scared little girl at the start of the novel to a young woman who is appreciated at Mansfield. Her steadiness of character and constancy in her love for her cousin is rewarded when Edmund realizes he loves her, too.
Theatrical release poster for the 1999 film adaptation. Credit: Miramax/BVI
While I cannot speak for the readers of Jane Austen’s time, steadiness and constancy are not traits modern readers would use in describing a strong female character. We want boldness and bravery and lots of girl power. The 1999 film version of Mansfield Park attempted to bring Fanny up to date by turning her into a writer with a sense of irony. As much as I enjoy that movie, I cannot think of it as Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park because it departs so much from the book. The 2007 TV miniseries, which I also enjoyed watching, attempted to be closer to the book but lost the wit and complexity that make the novel so brilliant. It is hard to translate Regency values to a modern audience, and this is why I think the novel is worth exploring. The adaptations gloss over the fact female empowerment is a complex issue that is just as often quiet as it is loud.
As a woman who competes in beauty pageants, I know a thing or two about confronting a society’s view on female empowerment. In the United States, popular opinion often paints beauty pageants as antiquated and antifeminist. While the media focuses on body issues, objectification, and women in bikinis, what is overlooked is the fact that pageants encourage women to speak out on issues that are important to them and to get involved in their communities. Just as Fanny led her quiet revolution of holding to her beliefs, women in pageantry lead their own quiet revolution making a difference in their communities while wearing a sash and crown. We can all be feminists by supporting other women and acknowledging that female empowerment is not just one thing. By reading the works of Jane Austen, we can discover that some situations call for an Elizabeth Bennet and others for a Fanny Price.
© Ashley Cambers - Ms Ohio United States 2019 and Jane Austen Literacy Foundation Literacy Ambassador
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Image credit: Miramax/BVI