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Jane Bennet isn’t an Old Maid
10 responses to “Jane Bennet isn’t an Old Maid”
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Bethany always writes so sensibly. The graph is also clever, perfectly demonstrating the pressures that Charlotte is under, that Caroline is without. The order of assets – I write cynically here – might have started with wealth and connections rather than with beauty and youth, but maybe that’s because I’m a woman rather than a guy (?!)
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I didn’t put the assets in any particular order, but I probably should have put wealth first, now that I think about it. And thank you!
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This “Spinster’s Numeration Table” is somewhat later than Austen (published 1837), but it’s a fun* look at how some people of the period might have viewed unmarried women. https://www.mimimatthews.com/2017/10/09/the-spinsters-numeration-table-a-guide-for-nineteenth-century-men/
*For a certain value of fun.
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Interesting! I see that 24 is called the peak and full bloom.
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So, if Mr Bennet had been a very responsible father, he would’ve saved 50 a year AND re-invested the income from Mrs Bennet’s inheritance, thus giving their daughters a comparable fortune to their mother?
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Yep, he could have done that. But of course, they saved absolutely nothing instead.
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Very interesting! The age that they are considered “on the shelf” seems so young! I am 54 so I must be practically past my “sell by date”!lol
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It does make sense that 35 would be the upper limit, since most men were looking to have heirs. Marrying someone in their early 20s gave you a good chance at several children.
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Emma’s former governess and best friend Miss Taylor, whose wedding is discussed at the very beginning of the novel, must be at least in her mid to late thirties when she marries Mr Weston.
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Yes, though I do think she probably would have been considered out of the market.
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