Volume 2: Chapter V

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Chapter V Summary:
We are introduced to a new character, Mrs. Smith, who is an old friend of Anne's who lives in an awful situation. Her husband died two years prior leaving her in large debt. She later contracted rheumatic fever and was left crippled. She makes a living by selling her needlework. The Darlymples choose to host a party at the time of Mrs. Smith's visit and the Elliots are invited. Anne declines to visit Mrs. Smith and Sir Elliot is apalled by her decision to "waste" her time with someone of such a lower social class who is essentially excluded from society. At the party, Lady Russell talks with Mr. Elliot and concludes that Mr. Elliot is interested in Anne, not Elizabeth.

Chapter V Analysis:
Mrs. Smith's inclusion into the book is another example of how much of a struggle it is for women who don't have a social partner, especially when they fail to provide for themselves by other means. This chapter also posseses another example of differences in social class. Anne's decision to bail on the party to visit her "unworthy" friend infuriates her father, who has through the book consistently disaproved of his daughters association with "lesser" people. Finally, Lady Russell's discovery also reveils a plot set up for the rest of the book and introduces the competition for Anne between Wentworth and Elliot.