Fanny Price

For the Maugham character, see Of Human Bondage.

Fanny Price
Billie Piper portraying Fanny Price in the 2007 ITV television adaptation of Mansfield Park
Maiden name	Fanny Price
Gender	Female
Height	small
Age	10 at the beginning of the novel, 18 at the end
Income	None
Education	By a governess
Rank	None
Primary residence	Mansfield Park after leaving her small home in Portsmouth
Family
Romantic interest(s)	Edmund Bertram
Parents	Mrs. Francis 'Fanny' Price and Mr. Price
Sibling(s)	the major ones of which are William, Susan, Tom, Sam, Richard, Rebecca, and young Betsey

Fanny Price is the heroine in Jane Austen's 1814 novel Mansfield Park. Austen describes Fanny Price as "extremely timid and shy, shrinking from notice", and repeatedly reinforces that Fanny is shy, timid, and afraid of everyone and everything.^[1]

Fanny's arrival at Mansfield Park

Fanny Price is the eldest daughter of an obscure and poor retired Marine lieutenant in Portsmouth, who is father to eight other children. Fanny's mother's sisters, the wealthy Lady Bertram and Mrs Norris, offer to take her in and bring her up at Sir Thomas Bertram's estate, Mansfield Park in Northamptonshire. Upon her first arriving in Mansfield, she is intimidated by her new home and her cousins (Thomas, Edmund, Maria and Julia), and is very homesick. None of her cousins are very obliging to her except Edmund, the younger son, who befriends her and helps her adapt to her new life. Mrs Norris, who prefers her richer cousins, constantly emphasises her inferiority, while Fanny's female cousins make fun of her apparent ignorance. As she grows, she finds Edmund to be a considerate companion and confidante, and she also becomes attracted to him. As a child, Fanny is described as being small, not a striking beauty, with an awkward but not vulgar air and a sweet voice.

As an adult, Fanny is pretty with a good figure and countenance but tires quickly from any exercise, including dancing. Fanny is a quiet and conscientious character, timid, who is frequently walked over by her more vibrant and forceful relatives and reluctant to giving her own opinions or asserting herself. She is intelligent and insightful and lives by a strict moral code that has made some Austen reviewers consider her to be "priggish". Kingsley Amis described Fanny as "morally detestable".^[2] Other critics point out that she is a complex personality, perceptive yet given to wishful thinking, and that she shows courage and grows in self-esteem during the latter part of the story. Austen biographer Claire Tomalin argued that "it is in rejecting obedience in favour of the higher dictate of remaining true to her own conscience that Fanny rises to her moment of heroism."^[3]

The arrival of the Crawfords

When Fanny is 15, her uncle Norris, the local clergyman, dies, leaving the Mansfield living for Edmund, who is intended to be ordained soon; however, Edmund's elder brother, Tom, has been living too extravagantly, and the living has to be sold to repay his debts. A priest named Dr. Grant and his wife move into the parsonage. Fanny's Aunt Norris is compelled to take a small home in the village. Dr. Grant's wife has a half brother and sister, Henry Crawford and his sister Mary Crawford, whom she cherishes but has been unable to see frequently, because they lived in London. However, they finally come and stay temporarily at the parsonage in order to get away from their London home, where Mary must share a house with her uncle's mistress. The Crawfords are elegant, and both captivate the attentions of the Bertram children, who are no longer subject to the discipline and gravity of Sir Thomas, their father, who has gone to Antigua with Tom to settle some business involving his property there. Both Maria and Julia Bertram are attracted to Henry Crawford, although Maria is engaged to a Mr. Rushworth, a dull, unintelligent, but very rich man. Mary Crawford originally decides to try to captivate Tom Bertram, as he is the older brother and heir to the estates and baronetcy, but he proves to be more interested in his horse racing pursuits. She then becomes more interested in Edmund, who quickly becomes attached to her in turn, as he sees her as congenial and pleasant. Fanny is jealous of Mary Crawford and finds Henry Crawford's attentions to and flirtations with the engaged Maria Bertram to be inappropriate.

The impropriety of a theatre

The elder son, Tom Bertram, now back from Antigua, decides that the party should undertake some amateur theatricals at Mansfield Park. He arranges for a small theatre to be built in the billiard room. All apart from Fanny and Edmund are enthusiastic, and the play Lovers' Vows is chosen after much discussion. Edmund and Fanny think the performance to be improper as the play has some risqué lines and has inappropriately romantic lines between unmarried couples, and they endeavour to persuade the others to abandon the project. Edmund, finally, feels compelled to participate because he feels that a stranger should not be requested to perform in a rather suggestive scene with Mary Crawford. Fanny continues to refuse despite being pressed by the rest of the party and her aunts. She does act as a prompter and helps them rehearse their speeches. A few evenings before the performance, Sir Thomas arrives home early from Antigua and puts an end to the play. Sir Thomas is upset with most of the party, but Edmund informs him, "All of us have been more or less to blame except Fanny."

Henry Crawford and Fanny

Maria Bertram falls in love with Mr. Crawford's flirtations, despite her engagement to Mr. Rushworth, who she cares little for and only wishes to marry because of his wealth. However, when Mr. Crawford leaves Mansfield indefinitely to see to his estate and stay in London with his uncle, Maria marries Rushworth. When Mr. Crawford finally returns, he decides to amuse himself by courting Fanny, showing her attention and kindness, in order to make her fall in love with him. Gradually, her goodness grows on him and he finds himself falling in love with her in earnest. Fanny, in love with Edmund and with a bad opinion of Mr. Crawford's character, does not appreciate his attentions. Sir Thomas begins to realize that Mr. Crawford is in love with Fanny, and approves—it would make a very good match for a penniless girl such as Fanny. Mr. Crawford dances with Fanny at a ball, and later tries to gain her favour by facilitating the promotion of her favorite brother, William, to lieutenant in the Royal Navy. But when he proposes to Fanny, she rejects him due to her love for Edmund, his scandalous flirting with Maria and Julia, and because his behavior has made her believe he has no principles. The refusal angers Sir Thomas, who demands an explanation. Fanny cannot tell anyone of her secret love of Edmund, nor reveal to Sir Thomas Crawford's scandalous behavior towards Julia and Maria. Therefore Sir Thomas believes her to be simply selfish and willful. He remonstrates with Fanny quite severely for her ingratitude for what he has done for her. Fanny is emotionally overcome by this, but still refuses Crawford, as he continues to court her.

A scandalous affair

Fanny is sent by Sir Thomas back to her family in Portsmouth, so that she can better understand the benefits of what seems to him to be an ideal match with a wealthy suitor. Crawford visits Fanny in Portsmouth and she finds that his love for her is apparently constant and he does not disparage her poor family. She begins to think upon him more favorably, believing he has genuinely changed. Crawford then goes to London, where Maria is staying with her husband. At the same time, it seems that Edmund is moving towards marriage with Mary Crawford, despite her denigration of his desired profession of clergyman. It appears Mary truly loves Edmund. And Edmund told Fanny, "She is the only woman in the world whom I can think of as my wife." As the story begins to seem like it will resolve with Edmund marrying Mary and Fanny marrying Crawford, the story abruptly changes as Crawford, caught in a compromising position with Maria, elopes with her. Newspapers inform the general public of the scandal. Edmund, heartbroken, visits Mary Crawford in London. He is horrified to see that she does not regard the scandal as too terrible. Her character's lack of morals is exposed at last, and he realizes he can never marry her. Edmund and Fanny return to Mansfield Park; Edmund finally realises that he does love Fanny and is delighted to find that she has always loved him and they are married.

Portrayals

• Katie Durham Matthews as the young Fanny, and Sylvestra Le Touzel as the grown Fanny in the 1983 British television serial.
• Hannah Taylor Gordon as the young Fanny, Amelia Warner as the teenage Fanny, and Frances O'Connor as the grown Fanny in the 1999 film adaptation.
• Julia Joyce as the younger Fanny, and Billie Piper as the grown Fanny in the BBC television serial in 2007.

References

1. ^ Emily Auerbach, Searching for Jane Austen, Univ. of Wisconsin, 2006.
2. ^ Kingsley Amis, What Became of Jane Austen?, 1963.
3. ^ Claire Tomalin, Jane Austen: A Life (New York: Vintage, 1997), p. 230.