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Title
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I am sorry to find you unwell
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Description
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Here we see Anne visiting her younger sister Mary. Mary is married to Charles Musgrove. Mary requested Anne come visit her at her home, Uppercross cottage for a few weeks before going to Bath, as she was unwell. This image depicts Anne’s arrival at Uppercross, where she finds Mary lying on the couch in a bad mood, claiming that she was alone all morning because her husband was out shooting, and her two sons were unmanageable. Austen tells us that Mary was often in a bad mood because she often pitied herself because she was not as beautiful as her sisters. Anne is eventually able to cheer her sister up and they go to visit the Musgroves at the Great House on the estate. This scene occurs in chapter 5 as noted underneath the title of this image. The characters are shown in the traditional regency style, with Anne and Mary wearing the regency style dress with an empire waist. Their hair is worn tied up, as was tradition for women after their coming out before the queen, signaling her entrance into society. Anne holds her bonnet in her hand. The bonnet had a large brim, used to protect a woman’s face from the sun. These bonnets were a popular style in this era as going for walks were common pastimes. The regency period dated to the early nineteenth century (1811-1820) when George, Prince of Wales, later George IV (r. 1820-1830), reigned as regent for his mentally ill father, King George III (r. 1760-1820). The regency period is associated with the rise of neoclassicism in art and fashion. The same image appears as the frontispiece for the Dent 1893, 1894, 1895, 1896, and 1897 editions of Persuasion.
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Image Creator
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William Cubit Cooke (engraver)
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Identifier
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mta:25586
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Source Name
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Persuasion
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Image
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mta_25586_OBJ.png
mta_25586_OBJ.png