On the Sidelines

As I read through the first half of Mansfield Park, I, like Elise, noticed Fanny’s “helpless, intimidated, and passive” nature. Like many of the other novels we’ve read this semester, Mansfield Park features a woman controlled by the characters around her. With Adeline Mowbray, we encountered a female protagonist who at least tried to make her own decisions and defy the societal constraints placed on her. Fanny, however, returns to the status quo by allowing things to happen to her. She lacks a voice and is continually ignored by the other characters. Her cousin Edmund is the only one who cares about her and advocates for her. When Edmund isn’t around, Fanny fades into the background and reacts to the decisions of her family members. As a result, Edmund feels responsible for Fanny’s well-being and blames himself when his family takes advantage of her. When Mrs. Norris overworks Fanny one day, Edmund “was still more angry with himself. His own forgetfulness of her was worse than anything which [his mother and aunt] had done” (Austen 100). He is also the one who speaks up and demands that Fanny have a horse. Although she never has a voice, without Edmund, Fanny is invisible. A perfect example of Fanny’s position on the sidelines at the Rushworths’ home when she is left alone while the other characters wander around the estate without her. Situated in the shade, Fanny is visited by her relatives at different times, but she remains stationary, forgotten by Edmund and Miss Crawford. Like Austen’s other novels, the female character lacks agency, but this time, the narration focuses less on Fanny’s internal actions and allows Fanny to sit idly by, uncomplaining, while the other characters determine her fate.