Tool · Flashcards
Card 1 of 67 · 0 of 67 marked known
Every card
Characters · 10
Colonel Brandon
Colonel Brandon is a reserved and steady gentleman of thirty-five, whose quiet dignity serves as the moral backbone of the novel.
character
Edward Ferrars
Edward Ferrars is the quiet and unassuming love interest of Elinor Dashwood in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.
character
Elinor Dashwood
Elinor Dashwood is the oldest of the three Dashwood sisters and serves as the moral and emotional center of Sense and Sensibility.
character
Fanny Dashwood
Fanny Dashwood is a minor yet significant antagonist in Sense and Sensibility, acting as the main force behind the Dashwood women's loss of their inheritance.
character
John Dashwood
John Dashwood is a minor yet thematically important character in Sense and Sensibility, acting as a means for Austen to satirize greed, weak will, and the corruption of family duty.
character
John Willoughby
John Willoughby stands out as the novel's most alluring yet morally ambiguous character.
character
Lucy Steele
Lucy Steele is one of Austen's most sharply drawn antagonists in Sense and Sensibility—a young woman from humble beginnings who primarily uses flattery, selective sharing, and relentless social maneuvering to her advantage.
character
Margaret Dashwood
Margaret Dashwood is the youngest of the three Dashwood sisters, a lively and imaginative thirteen-year-old whose role in Sense and Sensibility may be minor but is still charming and thematically relevant.
character
Marianne Dashwood
Marianne Dashwood is the emotional core and cautionary figure of Sense and Sensibility, representing the novel's key aspects of Romantic sensibility.
character
Mrs. Dashwood
Mrs. Dashwood is the widowed mother of Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret, playing a secondary yet crucial role in Sense and Sensibility.
character
Key quotes · 12
“Elinor agreed with it all, for she did not think he deserved the compliment of rational opposition.”
This line comes from Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, featuring a moment where Elinor Dashwood listens to Robert Ferrars ramble on with self-satisfied arrogance—most likely about the virtues of a small cottage.
Narrator (reflecting Elinor Dashwood's perspective) · Chapter 36
“Esteem him! Like him! Cold-hearted Elinor! Oh! worse than cold-hearted! Ashamed of being otherwise.”
This outburst is delivered by Marianne Dashwood to her older sister Elinor in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility (Chapter 4), after Elinor describes her feelings for Edward Ferrars as "esteem" and "liking" instead of passionate love.
Marianne Dashwood · Chapter 4
“I come here with no expectations, only to profess, now that I am at liberty to do so, that my heart is and always will be yours.”
This declaration is made by Colonel Brandon to Elinor Dashwood, but its true emotional impact is aimed at Marianne Dashwood, the woman he has loved silently for a long time.
Colonel Brandon · Chapter 49
“Marianne's abilities were, in many respects, quite equal to Elinor's. She was sensible and clever; but eager in everything; her sorrows, her joys, could have no moderation.”
This passage is presented by the omniscient narrator in the opening chapters of Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, as she introduces readers to the two Dashwood sisters.
Omniscient Narrator · Chapter 1
“If I could but know his heart, everything would become easy.”
This line is delivered by Marianne Dashwood in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility and captures her deep confusion about Willoughby's true feelings after he suddenly becomes distant.
Marianne Dashwood · Chapter 29
“The more I know of the world, the more I am convinced that I shall never see a man whom I can really love.”
This line comes from Marianne Dashwood, the passionate and romantic younger sister, early in the novel, before she fully understands the consequences of her idealistic views.
Marianne Dashwood · Chapter 3
“I have been too much at my ease, too happy, too frank. I have erred against every common-place notion of decorum; I have been open and sincere where I ought to have been reserved, spiritless, dull, and deceitful.”
This confession comes from Marianne Dashwood, the novel's symbol of Romantic sensibility, during a painful moment of self-reflection following Willoughby's betrayal and her near-fatal illness.
Marianne Dashwood · Chapter 46
“Know your own happiness. You want nothing but patience—or give it a more fascinating name: call it hope.”
This line is delivered by Mrs. Dashwood to her daughter Elinor in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.
Mrs. Dashwood · Chapter 16
“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.”
This passage reflects the narrator's thoughts on Elinor Dashwood in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, specifically after Elinor discovers the painful truth about Edward Ferrars's secret engagement to Lucy Steele.
Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting Elinor Dashwood) · Chapter 37
“I wish as well as everybody else to be perfectly happy; but, like everybody else, it must be in my own way.”
This line is spoken by Elinor Dashwood, the embodiment of reason and composure in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.
Elinor Dashwood · Chapter 17
“To wish was to hope, and to hope was to expect.”
This quietly ironic line appears in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility and comes from the narrator's close third-person perspective on Marianne Dashwood, who embodies Romanticism and unrestrained emotion.
Narrator (free indirect discourse reflecting Marianne Dashwood) · Chapter 3
“It is not time or opportunity that is to determine intimacy; it is disposition alone. Seven years would be insufficient to make some people acquainted with each other, and seven days are more than enough for others.”
This line is delivered by Marianne Dashwood to her more cautious elder sister Elinor in Chapter 12 of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.
Marianne Dashwood · Chapter 12
Symbols · 6
Barton Cottage
In Sense and Sensibility, Barton Cottage reflects the Dashwood women's challenging social situation and their ability to adapt.
Letters
In Sense and Sensibility, letters highlight the struggle between personal emotions and societal expectations, as well as the risks of misplaced trust.
Norland Park
In Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen, Norland Park highlights the painful struggle between emotional ties and social expectations.
The Lock of Hair
In Sense and Sensibility, the lock of hair represents the risky nature of romantic sentimentality and how easily these tokens can be misinterpreted or manipulated.
The Pianoforte
In Sense and Sensibility, the pianoforte represents the struggle between true emotion and societal expectations, reflecting the challenging situation of skilled women in Regency society.
Willoughby's Gift of a Horse
In Sense and Sensibility, when Willoughby offers a horse to Marianne Dashwood, it highlights the risky allure of romantic excess and the dangers of accepting gifts that cross social boundaries.
Literary devices · 12
Irony
Austen's irony drives the novel's core message.
Juxtaposition
The novel revolves around the pairing of Elinor and Marianne, whose differing temperaments are constantly set against each other.
Dramatic Monologue
Willoughby's late-night confession to Elinor in Cleveland serves as a dramatic monologue that reshapes the reader's perception of the entire story leading up to that point.
Free Verse
Though Sense and Sensibility is a work of prose fiction, Marianne's spoken and written expressions intentionally mimic the rhythms of Romantic free verse, setting her apart from Elinor, whose voice is characterized by Austen's more structured prose.
Extended Metaphor
The novel uses a prolonged metaphor of illness and recovery to illustrate the dangers of unchecked sensitivity.
Motif
Money and its specific amounts serve as a recurring theme that grounds every romantic storyline in economic reality.
Epistrophe
Austen uses epistrophe—the repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses—for comic and satirical effect in her characters' dialogue, especially those with circular reasoning.
Understatement
Austen's use of understatement is so characteristic that it defines her style.
Apostrophe
Marianne's address to Norland — "Dear, dear Norland!
Parallelism
Austen's prose style uses parallelism to highlight moral comparisons.
Pathetic Fallacy
Austen uses pathetic fallacy in a measured way, primarily to highlight Marianne's inclination to interpret nature through her own emotions — and to subtly poke fun at this tendency.
Conceit
The novel's main idea links its two title concepts—sense and sensibility—with its two main characters, Elinor and Marianne.
Vocabulary · 27
entail
A legal arrangement that forces an estate to be inherited only by a specific line of heirs, preventing the current owner from leaving it freely to whoever he chooses.
noun · Chapter 1
ill-disposed
Having a bad or unkind character; inclined toward selfish or ungenerous behavior rather than goodness.
adjective · Chapter 1
sanguine
Cheerfully optimistic and confident about the future, even when circumstances give little reason for such hope.
adjective · Chapter 2
compact
Neatly and efficiently arranged within a small space, with nothing wasted or sprawling.
adjective · Chapter 2
defective
Falling short of what is expected or required; here, failing to look like a proper picturesque cottage because it was too regular and tidy.
adjective · Chapter 2
resources
The activities or interests a person relies on to fill their time and give their life meaning or pleasure.
noun · Chapter 3
humoured
Indulged someone's wishes or whims without resistance, going along with whatever they wanted to keep them happy.
verb · Chapter 3
countenance
The overall expression and look of a person's face, especially as it reveals their character or intelligence.
noun · Chapter 4
address
The manner in which a person speaks and presents themselves in social situations; their bearing and way of approaching others.
noun · Chapter 4
animated
Lively, energetic, and showing strong feeling or enthusiasm in one's manner and expression.
adjective · Chapter 4
ardour
Intense enthusiasm and passionate eagerness, especially in feeling or in the pursuit of something deeply desired.
noun · Chapter 5
captivating
So attractive and charming as to hold someone's attention completely and win their admiration or affection.
adjective · Chapter 5
peculiar
Distinctive or special; here meaning any particular or notable quality that sets someone apart in an impressive way.
adjective · Chapter 6
intimacy
Close personal familiarity developed over time spent together, which allows a person's true qualities to become apparent.
noun · Chapter 6
esteem
Deep respect and high regard for someone based on their moral worth and good qualities, distinct from romantic love.
noun · Chapter 6
delineated
Described or pictured in precise detail; here, sketched out in the imagination as an ideal.
verb · Chapter 7
idolised
Admired and treasured something with an almost worshipful intensity, treating it as perfect and beyond criticism.
verb · Chapter 7
agitation
A state of anxious inner disturbance and nervous unease that shows itself in a person's voice or manner.
noun · Chapter 8
vexation
A feeling of frustration and irritated annoyance, especially at a situation one cannot openly acknowledge or escape.
noun · Chapter 8
perturbation
A state of mental agitation and emotional disturbance that makes it hard to stay calm or think clearly.
noun · Chapter 9
jointure
A legal provision of income or property settled on a wife to support her after her husband's death, paid to her as a widow.
noun · Chapter 9
flatter myself
To believe or hope something favorable about oneself or one's situation, often used politely to soften a claim or request.
phrase · Chapter 10
injustice
Unfair and undeserved harm or wrong done to someone, here the cruel treatment Marianne suffers through Willoughby's deception.
noun · Chapter 10
conjectures
Guesses or conclusions formed without firm evidence, based on incomplete information and reasoning from what little is known.
noun · Chapter 12
do homage
To pay respectful attention or tribute to someone; here used ironically to mean going to visit or pay court to a woman.
phrase · Chapter 12
self-destruction
The act of bringing about one's own ruin or death; here used to mean that dying from grief would have been a kind of moral self-killing.
noun · Chapter 13
impulse
A sudden, instinctive urge to act that comes before conscious thought or deliberate decision.
noun · Chapter 14