Who Is Lady Russell?
The motherly friend who persuaded Anne
Lady Russell was the closest friend of Anne's late mother and serves as an advisor to the Elliot daughters. Of the three sisters, she cares most for Anne and has watched over her like a mother.
Eight years ago, when 19-year-old Anne became engaged to Wentworth, a naval officer with no fortune, Lady Russell opposed it, believing Anne was too young and the future too uncertain, and she persuaded Anne to break it off. The novel's title, Persuasion, comes from this event. As the story opens, she draws up a practical plan of savings for the debt-ridden Sir Walter, and she shares Anne's worry about Mrs. Clay going with the family to Bath.
She values rank and caution, but she is no villain; she is shown as someone who acted out of love for Anne. Her character makes readers ask what good advice really is.
Episodes featuring this character3
NEWEpisode 1
Please Stay Out of the MirrorPersuasion
In a grand house sinking under debt, Anne Elliot, the middle daughter, is the one no one in her family listens to. Her vain father and older sister insist they can't possibly give up a single horse or servant. In the end the family decides to let the house and move to Bath. Then, at dusk, a single word drifts through a doorway — "navy" — and for one moment, Anne's eyes waver.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 2
My Ex's Sister Is Moving Into My HousePersuasion (Jane Austen)
While her family turns choosing a tenant into a comedy, settling on a navy admiral, 27-year-old Anne Elliot ends up saying a name before anyone else can. It belongs to the man she gave up more than seven years ago. Out on the woodland path, she remembers the summer she was nineteen, and quietly accepts that his sister is about to live in her home.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 3
Every Night, They Praise the Man I LeftPersuasion (Jane Austen)
Her family leaves her behind because "no one will miss Anne if she stays." So Anne goes to her sister's house three miles away, where everyone soon treats her as the one person who'll listen to their complaints. But in that house, the name of the man she gave up eight years ago starts coming up every night, and always as praise.
19 pages