Why I Love Fanny Price from Mansfield Park

March 18, 2016March 19, 2016 by Emma W.

Mansfield Park is not only the longest of Austen’s six novels, it is also widely acknowledged to be the most moralistic. Fanny Price, the book’s heroine, is not saucy like Elizabeth Bennet or frivolous like Emma Woodhouse or prone to flights of fancy like Catherine Moreland or susceptible to persuasion like Anne Elliott or…well, you get the picture: Fanny Price is serious, reserved, obedient, down-to-earth, humble, unobtrusive, kind, well-mannered, not prone to gossip, and has strong, unwavering values. She might be a goody two-shoes if she weren’t so intent on making herself practically invisible beside the wealthier relations who have taken her in, as a kind of charity case, and raised her to be an educated lady—though decidedly not as an equal. Fanny’s goodness renders her the least intrinsically likeable of Austen’s heroines—she makes none of the mistakes that endear the other heroines to us—but it also makes her, in my opinion, the most admirable. Here are some reasons you should admire her, too (and read Mansfield Park in the first place):

She’s incredibly constant. She’s loved the same guy since she was, like, 10. So, yeah, pretty much the opposite of the character Tay plays in her “Blank Space” music video. I’d like to see that kind of loyalty transferred to friendship.
She’s no snob. Although she was taken from a poorer, more humble home to Mansfield Park, a large house and property, at a young age, Fanny never fancies herself “better” than her family. In fact, her brother William, an up-and-coming naval officer, remains her closest and dearest friend, despite the difference in their manners and education.
Not only does she have principles, she sticks to them…and she’s only 18. Can we just take a moment to appreciate that? I’m 27 and I’m still sorting out what I believe, much less already applying that to my behavior. When I was 18, I was an Amy Schumer-level trainwreck, who believed I could save friendships after with a dozen fancy cupcakes.
She’s perspicacious af (yup, reading Austen’s totally expanding my vocab): Fanny’s the only one in the family who sees from the start that Henry Crawford is a vain, selfish, fickle flirt, and that his sister Mary is an opportunist, and gossip without a moral compass. Fanny calls them out as and everyone thinks her claims ridiculous until—surprise!—Henry and Mary prove themselves to be entirely despicable.
She would never bring another woman down to get what she wants. Even though she’s loved Edmund forever AND she sees through Mary Crawford’s sweet, aristocratic exterior AND has tons of opportunities to tell Edmund that Mary’s pretty awful, Fanny keeps her mouth shut. Better to let him see it on his own than try to win him over via less than honest means.
She loves to read and introduces her younger sister, who’s been deprived of a good library, to the joys of great literature. The scene where they read together had me like [this].
She stands up for herself and what she wants. Fanny’s scared of her uncle and aunt, to whom she owes her education, her sensibility, and all of her present material comforts—AND YET, when her uncle tries to persuade her to marry the later-to-be-proved-despicable Henry Crawford, she stands her ground. And she stays on that ground, even when he calls her ungrateful.
From what I’ve read of Austen, Fanny seems to be the closest reflection of Austen’s own personality. I’ve always felt that liking, for instance, Emma Woodhouse best is like liking Audrey Hepburn best for her role as Holly Golightly, which was famously very far from Hepburn’s actual character. What you like in that case is the persona, not the person.
She’s serious. Too often women, especially in Austen’s time, were raised to be amusing, to create entertainment and a pleasant atmosphere for men. Fanny doesn’t give into that pressure. She’s not afraid to be serious, thoughtful, intellectual.