Mansfield Park

von Jane Austen

Mansfield Park thematically centers on the issue of morality in three different layers of society: the aristocratic Bertrams, the fashionable, city-dwelling Crawfords, and the down-and-out Prices. Although the protagonist, Fanny Price, is merely a poor, shy relation, more than willing to be marginalized by the effusive Bertrams and the sophisticated Crawfords, she surpasses them all through her innate sense of morality and familial duty. Although she loves Edmund Bertram, she keeps her feelings to herself because she realizes he loves Mary Crawford. She refuses to manipulate him into thinking otherwise, even though she herself realizes Mary is manipulative and disingenuous. Furthermore, although she has the opportunity to marry Henry Crawford, she forgoes the chance to be rich and socially elevated in hopes that she will find true love.