Sense & Sensibility, chapter 18: Awkward Sibling Hug?

One of the things that make Sense & Sensibility so accessible is its sibling relationships. The bond between Marianne and Elinor isn’t romanticized or out of the ordinary; it’s messy with a firm foundation. And really, isn’t that the best you can hope for in life?

So it makes sense that Marianne would be just as attentive to Edward’s strengths and weaknesses as a potential partner for her sister as Elinor has been to Willoughby’s. Neither man is quite what each sister would hope for the other, but the Dashwoods consider these men as potential brothers-in-law. Marianne’s approval of Edward, I’d argue, is more valuable than Elinor’s approval of Willoughby: Marianne is often so self-absorbed that she doesn’t seem to take in most people. The fact that she’s putting her romantic woe away to engage with Edward is not something to sneeze at.

We also get the return of Marianne the Matchmaker. In her zeal to “promote their happiness,” Marianne makes a couple innocent blunders. Leaving Edward and Elinor alone together results in Edward scurrying away to take care of his horses (no stable at the Dashwoods’ means his horses are staying in the village). Later, Marianne spots a ring with a lock of hair on Edward’s finger, resulting in embarrassment all around.* Feeling guilty—especially on seeing Edward’s altered mood—she “severely censure[s] herself” for the discovery, displaying a tactful awareness that she doesn’t often show.

Side note: Elinor’s reaction to the ring is something to watch. She’s almost delighted with the discovery. Though not instantly convinced the hair belongs to her, she seems to view this as the most likely possibility (forget Fanny, am I right?), supposing that it “must have been procured by some theft or contrivance unknown to herself.” And somehow, the thought of Edward clipping a bit of her hair off is flattering rather than intrusive. In looking for proof that he’s still into her, Elinor temporarily falls into the same trap as Marianne and Mama Dashwood: Elinor wants it to be true so much that not only are her blinders on, but she’s willing to excuse a potential breach of propriety. Elinor is more like her family than we might think.

Elsewhere, Edward does a better job of keeping his spirits up. In discussing the natural scenes around them, he shows appreciation for Marianne’s love of the “picturesque” while maintaining that it’s not an aesthetic he personally values. He prefers a scene that “unites beauty with utility,” but then offers a perfect description of a picturesque view: “full of rocks and promontories,** grey moss and brush wood” that has “the soft medium of a hazy atmosphere.” Marianne soberly admonishes the use of “jargon” (smart girl), and Elinor suggests that Edward, jokingly insisting that he “know[s] nothing of the picturesque,” instead “affects greater indifference and less discrimination” to avoid pretension. David M. Shapard muses that “Elinor is misunderstanding Edward a little here” based on her apparent lack of knowledge of the picturesque aesthetic, but I wonder if it’s something else. I wonder if Elinor is expressing bitterness about Edward’s hot-and-cold attitude toward her and what sort of pretension he’s keeping up in that regard. While I think bitterness would be an understandable reaction, I also know that’s not one of Elinor’s chief traits, so this interpretation may be a shot in the dark. She later laughs at a more obvious joke Edward makes, so she’s not that angry with him.

However, this discussion also sheds some more light on Marianne’s character. In describing her intense feelings, she says, “[S]ometimes I have kept my feelings to myself, because I could find no language to describe them in but what was worn and hackneyed out of all sense and meaning.” Words fail, in other words. Which offers a much-needed explanation for why she’s been so tight-lipped about Willoughby. To talk about her feelings for him would, in her mind, render those feelings less meaningful. Her silence about their love is in itself an expression of love. And this philosophy also stops her from talking about her expectations for the future in full detail. Even though it’d be super helpful for the rest of us …

She does allude to this expectation to Edward when Sir John and Mrs. Jennings come over to tease her about Willoughby’s absence. I mean, to meet the gentleman with an “F” and tease Elinor. I mean, to invite them to dinner. Well, they get a lot done. Anyway, Edward sees Marianne’s obvious reaction to Willoughby’s name and cracks a pretty harmless joke, only for Marianne to hint “the time will come, I hope…” when they will meet. Edward realizes he underestimated her feelings and regrets his joke. Thus each character has made the same blunder toward each other: they hit on a clue to one another’s private relationships. Of course, Marianne is proud of her love while Edward … we’ll get to that.

Next time, Edward exits and the Palmers enter. 

Credit to the above illustration goes to Sara Menetti.

*Edward’s explanation that it belongs to his sister would check out; Marianne wears a lock of Old Dead Henry’s hair in a necklace. Wearable hair locks are not solely romantic in nature.

**A point of high land that juts out into a large body of water or a headland. The vocabulary of the picturesque aesthetic really does get in the way.