In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion, nature provides a place where the characters can make discoveries about themselves and show their true personalities to others. Let's look at this in more detail.
In Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennett dashes through puddles and mud to get to her sister, Jane, at the Bingleys' home. Jane has become ill, and Elizabeth could not care less about water or dirt at that moment. She is totally devoted to her sister and willing to do whatever she must to care for her. The tells us something important about Elizabeth, but other characters, like Mr. Bingley's sisters, judge her harshly for not keeping up appearances.
Elizabeth tends to take long walks outdoors when she is upset or agitated, and it is on one of these walks when she is joined by Mr. Darcy , and they finally come...
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to an understanding. It seems that nature gives Elizabeth an opportunity to reflect, to gather her thoughts, and to discover her true feelings about people and situations.
We might also note that Elizabeth begins to fall in love with Mr. Darcy because of the natural beauty of Pemberley. She loves the estate as she tours it with her aunt and uncle, and she begins to think more and more fondly of Mr. Darcy and even imagine herself, just a little, as the mistress of Pemberley.
In Persuasion, the Anne Elliot finds a new take on life through her encounters with the sea. She moves beyond her typical routines and confined circle at home and discovers new interests. The sea even changes her appearance some, working to return her to the “bloom and freshness of youth.” Anne begins to rediscover herself at the seashore in the fresh breeze. Near the sea, Anne finds solitude but also fellowship. As the sea ebbs and flows, so does Anne in many ways as she tries to discover what she wants out of life.
What is the importance of nature in Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion?
In Pride and Prejudice, nature seemingly provides space for the characters to reveal their authentic selves.
Consider Elizabeth's reaction when Jane falls ill while visiting the Bingleys. Elizabeth rushes to her sister's side, dismissing the expected social protocols of the time, and arrives at Netherfield in "poor form." The other women scoff at Elizabeth's seeming lack of decorum:
"I shall never forget her appearance this morning. She really looked almost wild.”
“She did, indeed, Louisa. I could hardly keep my countenance. Very nonsensical to come at all! Why must she be scampering about the country, because her sister had a cold? Her hair so untidy, so blowsy!”
“Yes, and her petticoat; I hope you saw her petticoat, six inches deep in mud, I am absolutely certain; and the gown which had been let down to hide it not doing its office.”
A little dirt and "untidy" hair are not Elizabeth's primary concerns. Instead, she is compelled to join her sister and help care for her through her illness. This scene reveals Elizabeth's independent spirit and her willingness to defy societal expectations in order to protect her beloved sister.
You might also consider the walks which take Lydia into nature fairly regularly. Unlike her older sisters, Lydia is impulsive and irrational, and her walks through nature reveal her increasingly promiscuous behavior. Eventually, she runs away with Wickham because she is determined to overshadow her older sisters' popularity.
When Elizabeth feels particularly overwhelmed, she often takes walks to clear her head. It is on one such walk that Darcy offers her a letter which details his knowledge of Wickham's past and his own regret from meddling in Jane and Bingley's affairs. When Elizabeth reads the letter, she "walk[s] on" as she processes the information. Nature provides clarity for Elizabeth as she spends a great deal of time reflecting upon Darcy's words:
After wandering along the lane for two hours, giving way to every variety of thought—re-considering events, determining probabilities, and reconciling herself, as well as she could, to a change so sudden and so important, fatigue, and a recollection of her long absence, made her at length return home.
As you consider the way nature influences the plot in Persuasion, you might consider similar points of conflict which reveal truths about characters and intent particularly because they occur in a natural setting.