Austen illustrates repercussions of self-deception in Persuasion

illustration by Samuel Hoar

Self-honesty is a topic rarely spoken about. We are encouraged to be truthful to those around us, but we hardly ever take a step back to examine the lies we tell ourselves. In her novel "Persuasion," Jane Austen crafts a character plagued by self-deception. 

“Persuasion” follows the story of Anne Elliot and her love for the renowned Captain Wentworth. Eight years prior to the novel’s setting, the two are happily engaged, until a friend of Anne persuades her to call the relationship off. Anne spends the novel’s length battling her emotions and vying to rekindle their love. 

As the novel dives into the mind of the protagonist, we learn about Anne’s inner thoughts and struggles. She has difficulty being honest with herself and, consequently, acting on her convictions. Instead of actively pursuing a relationship with Wentworth, she tiptoes around him, convincing herself there is no chance of love between them. 

Anne loves Wentworth, but she is not truthful enough with herself to take action. She convinces herself that she could not marry him, and therefore does not pursue him for eight years. 

We all fall into this trap. We tell ourselves lies about what we want or who we are. Sometimes we require clarity to understand ourselves, but oftentimes, we need to examine our thoughts and determine which of them are true. 

It is easy to stay in a relationship because we believe we need the other person, and it is easy to never try something new because we think we won’t enjoy it. But when we don’t listen to ourselves, we become frustrated. We end up living a life we don’t want. 

Being honest with yourself is hard. Typically, it goes against what you want to believe. Acting on your convictions is even harder. Sometimes you are judged for it. But we need to get real with ourselves about what we want. Anne never felt truly alive until she started pursuing her relationship with Wentworth, and the same goes for us. 

Things get dicey when we add in a Christian worldview. The Bible tells us that the heart is deceitful above all else and our fleshly desires are evil. But if we are following God, His desires will become ours, and the small voice in our head may be the Holy Spirit guiding us. Pushing Him away has greater consequences than just unrest. To complicate matters, we can lie to ourselves about what God is asking of us. We label things as God’s plan to fit our own comforts or agendas. 

Consider the people you hang out with or the college you’re planning to attend. Are your decisions based on lies about yourself, or are you actually following God’s plan for your life? Don’t invent doubt where there is none, but make sure you’re being honest with yourself. 

If you read any of Jane Austen’s novels, make it “Persuasion.” It explores the characters' inner thoughts on a complex level. It will keep you invested in everyone’s passions. It’s about love, longing, foolishness and hidden motives, and it has plenty of witty humor sprinkled throughout. 

“All the privilege I claim for my own sex (it is not a very enviable one: you need not covet it), is that of loving longest, when existence or when hope is gone!” Austen wrote.