Thrifty Thursday: The "Thrifty" Heroines of Jane Austen

When I was brainstorming for this entry, I realized I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to write about. Being the bookworm that I am, I decided to look up the definition of “thrifty” for a little inspiration. Two alternate definitions of thrifty stood out to me: 1) thriving by industry and frugality: prosperous, and 3) given to or marked by economy and good management. After reading this definitions, I found my inspiration, and I began to reflect on the characters in the books of one of my favorite authors, Jane Austen.

In describing her heroines and characters, Jane Austen frequently uses the word “economy”. Indeed, for these early nineteenth-century heroines, one of the finest qualities in a wife was her ability to save her husband or her family money. When we are first introduced to Mr. Darcy, Austen writes, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." In the end, it’s not the snobbish Miss Bingley, with her dismal views on Elizabeth’s petticoat, but it’s Elizabeth Bennett, the sensible woman who wins his heart (and he hers by using his good fortune to help her family). In the final chapter of Pride and Prejudice, which serves as an epilogue as we look into the future of the Bennett clan, we see how Elizabeth was able to use “the practice of what might be called economy in her own private expenses” to be able to send money to her spendthrift sister Lydia.

There are numerous examples of “thrifty” women in Austen’s books. The Dashwood sisters, Marianne and Elinor, in Sense and Sensibility, offer one of the best examples of how important economy is, as Elinor convinces her mother to cut back now that their inheritance is greatly lessened (thanks to Elinor’s sister-in-law). In Persuasion, Anne Elliot is the one who must see to the management of the Elliot home, overseeing the packing up of her beloved home (thanks to her father and older sister’s habits of living above the family’s means). And, of course, there are the eldest Bennett sisters, Jane and Lizzie, who are ever mindful of their expenses but also aware of the imperative for a good match in order to have future security.

It’s interesting to see how Austen uses bad “economy”, or wasteful spending, in opposition to her “thrifty” heroines. We might look to Austen’s own life for the reason, as her brothers’ poor financial matters left Jane, her sister, Cassandra, and their mother to depend on Jane’s writing and the generosity of what her brothers could afford (which was very little). In Northanger Abbey, we realize how immature Catherine Morland is when Henry Tilney comments on the muslin she is wearing (an unfortunate choice which will likely not survive the laundry). There is Anne’s sister, Elizabeth, and her father whose foolish desires to appear wealthy leave the family very poor. We also see the careless Lydia in Pride and Prejudice who wastes money on ugly bonnets and then marries a debtor and gambler, Mr. Wickham (who previously had tried to marry Mr. Darcy’s younger sister in order to inherit her fortune).

Although reality may be far from fiction (the frugal girl doesn’t always find her Mr. Darcy), Jane Austen’s heroines point to a study in character which many young women should try to emulate. It is the Lizzie Bennetts and Anne Elliots of this world which I admire and which I strive to be like. If you’ve read Pride and Prejudice, even if you take Mr. Darcy and Wickham out of the equation, wouldn’t you much rather be Lizzie than Lydia? See? I thought so….

For more on money matters in Jane Austen, check out this blog on Jane Austen's World: Pride and Prejudice Economics: Or Why a Single Man with a Fortune of £4,000 Per Year is a Desirable Husband.