For my book I read Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. I was not planning on reading it, but I got the whole Jane Austen collection for Christmas, so I decided to. The reason I picked Sense and Sensibility is because I have seen the movie over 10 times because I love it so much, so i figured I should read the book. The book is now one of my favorites, which I figured would happen since it is such a great story. While I was reading the book, I decided to track all the times they use the word sense and the word sensibility. I thought it was interesting because the older sister, Elinor is the one who is supposed to have sense, while Marianne, the middle sister has the sensibility. First I looked up what each word meant. Sense: sound practical intelligence; Sensibility: keen consciousness or appreciation. At first the two words seem alike, which does not make sense because the two sisters are so unalike.
Elinor hides all of her emotions. She supposedly is an "old maid" because she is 19 and has not married yet, but "she was stronger alone; and her own good sense so well supported her, that her firmness was as unshaken, her appearance of cheerfulness as invariable, as, with regrets so poignant and so fresh, it was possible for them to be" (Austen). She is in love with Edward Ferrars, but she does not show it. She does not want to let her emotions show because she is worried that she will be disappointed. She is very careful in everything that she does. "Sense will always have attractions for me" (Austen). But doesn't she also have sensibility? She definitely has sense; she is very smart and practical. She sees the negative in things because she understands that they are there.
Meanwhile, her sister Marianne is the opposite. She falls in love with Willoughby, and everyone knows it. Instead of hiding her feelings, she lets everyone know them. She falls deeply in love in a matter of days and she has a strong appreciation for art and music. She is a romantic and always described with sensibility. "Her sensibility was potent enough!" (Austen). When Willoughby leaves her, she becomes an emotional wreck, crying all the time and not getting out of bed. She fell in love with him because he also had an appreciation for art and music. He loved Shakespeare. "His person and air were equal to what her fancy had ever drawn for the hero of a favourite story; and in his carrying her into the house with so little previous formality, there was a rapidity of thought which particularly recommended the action to her. Every circumstance belonging to him was interesting" (Austen). For Marianne, Willoughby was a hero to her and she immediately fell in love with him. For Elinor, she truly fell in love with Edward. He was very nice to her family and did not care about being distinguished. He was funny, but not very handsome. Elinor did not care because she had the sense to see his true character, which is what she fell in love with. Marianne always told Elinor that Edward has no sensibility because he had no appreciation for anything. He didn't appreciate art, or music and that upset Marianne, but it did not bother Elinor. These sisters are so different in so many ways yet the two words used to describe them are almost the same.
If somebody were to have both sense and sensibility they would be a very well off person. I think that Elinor has both of these traits and although Marianne always told her she needed to be more emotional, Elinor understood what made her happy and she went with that. Marianne had the sensibility, but she did not have the sense. "Marianne Dashwood was born to an extraordinary fate. She was born to discover the falsehood of her own opinions, and to counteract, by her conduct, her most favourite maxims" (Austen). In the end, both girls end up getting married. Elinor marries the man that she had always loved, Edward. MArianne marries Colonel Brandon, who she at first wrote off as being way too old because she did not have the sense to understand that he was truly right for her and loved her deeply. By choosing Colonel Brandon, she finally shows that she is capable of having both sense and sensibility.
This book was very good and I am very happy with my choice!
