When choosing a husband or wife, one usually does so by undergoing
a long courtship with a potential partner.
During this courtship, many private meetings are arranged in which one
gets to converse with the other person, getting to know their most intimate
selves, allowing a person to make the decision whether or not this particular
partner is the one best-suited for them.
In the society which Austen depicts in Northanger Abbey, the characters are not able to have one-on-one
meetings with each other. Every
opportunity for courtship is done at a public event, such as at a dance. Thus, Austen portrays many of the pivotal
scenes between Henry and Catherine while they are dancing. While it is difficult for modern-day readers
to imagine a world in which their future happiness relies on a country dance,
Austen uses the character of Henry Tilney to describe how choosing a dancing
partner follows the same rules as choosing a marriage partner, indicating his
interest in a future relationship with Catherine.
Catherine,
being naïve, is unaware of the significance of choosing a dancing partner when
she first arrives at Bath. It is the
shallow, society-obsessed Mrs. Allen who laments Catherine’s lack of partner
most. Mrs. Allen states over and over, “I
wish I had a large acquaintance here with all my heart, and then I should get
you a partner. I should be so glad to
have you dance” (p. 9). While it might
seem as if all Mrs. Allen is lamenting is her young friend’s lack of a dancing
partner, one could read into this statement further and discover that she feels
as if, as she is her chaperone, she is in charge of finding a suitor and
future-husband for her young charge. By
stating that she would be so glad to have her “dance,” she is also stating that
she would be glad to have her married.
As this is Catherine’s first foray into society, and being from a small
country family, this opportunity might be her only chance to meet an eligible
young man and make a good marriage.
Being
that Henry Tilney was the first man, and dancing partner, that Catherine meets
in Bath, one might expect him not to be the person that Catherine chooses in
the end. However, from the start, Henry
makes his interest in Catherine known to the reader. While they are dancing their first dance,
Henry dictates to Catherine what he wishes her to say about him. He states, “I danced with a very agreeable
young man, introduced by Mr. King; had a great deal of conversation with him—seems
a most extraordinary genius—hope I may know more of him” (p. 12). With this statement, Henry Tilney does what
he does for most of the novel and forms Catherine’s own mind for her. She will have trouble forgetting Mr. Tilney
after he has expressly made it known to her that she should wish to see him
further. This statement ensures that
this dance will not be there last.
After
their acquaintance is furthered, Henry goes so far as to directly discuss the
relationship between dancing and matrimony.
He refers to a dancing partnership as a sort of “contract” that both
parties enter into, stating, “I consider a country-dance as an emblem of
marriage. Fidelity and complaisance are
the principal duties of both” (p. 58).
Once a woman has given her partner her word to dance, she must keep it,
just as in marriage, which is a topic of some interest for Mr. Tilney since
John Thorpe tries to disturb this agreement.
Henry goes into further detail of the similarities between dancing and
marriage as he states:
“You will allow, that in both, man has the advantage of
choice, woman only the power of refusal; that in both, it is an engagement
between man and woman, formed for the advantage of each; and that when once
entered into, they belong exclusively to each other till the moment of its
dissolution; that it is their duty, each to endeavour to give the other no
cause for wishing that he or she had bestowed themselves elsewhere, and their
best interest to keep their own imaginations from wandering towards the
perfections of their neighbors, or fancying that they should have been better
off with anyone else” (p. 59).
As Henry describes it, marriage and dancing are perfect
mirrors of one another. At first,
Catherine cannot accept to think of them in the same way but as Henry delves
into the topic further, she begins to think very strongly of the implications
of dancing and marriage. Once again, Henry begins to form Catherine’s
mind. Although Catherine has not yet
realized it, Henry has chosen her as his partner in life. As Jane Austen states, “no young lady can be
justified in falling in love before the gentleman’s love is declared, it must
be very improper that a young lady should dream of a gentleman before the gentleman
is first known to have dreamt of her” (p.15).
Through
their public meetings and conversations at dances, Henry and Catherine are able
to discover that they are suited for matrimony.
Although they are forced to fall in love in a public setting, the similarities
between marriage and dancing allow Catherine and Henry to witness the merits of
the other, testing their constancy, ability to support each other, and their
overall joy in the other’s company.
I’m impressed with your thorough discussion, and like that you pointed out some connections in Northanger Abbey that I’d not thought enough about. One thing in particular that struck me was when you say “With this statement, Henry Tilney does what he does for most of the novel and forms Catherine’s own mind for her.” While this is true, I had not really thought about it in that way, but now I’m wondering how we as readers still love Henry Tilney even though (in general) we mostly dislike men who try to tell women what to think. Perhaps we can excuse him because he is confident and a gentleman, and we should place the blame on Catherine for being so naïve and so willing to be told what to think. I suppose that explains why it’s Elizabeth Bennet, and not Catherine Morland, who is the most beloved Austen heroine.
ReplyDeleteAlso, in The Jane Austen Guide to Happily Ever After, there is a section that talks about how women of that day were lucky that there were classy social events like dances to help meet potential suitors, and that we modern women are unfortunate for not having the same opportunity. Somehow, to me, balls sound more desirable than clubs for meeting a future husband.