What's FID got to do with it?

Passage from Persuasion: 

           Frederick Wentworth had used such words, or something like them, but without an idea that they would be carried round to her. He had thought her wretchedly altered, and, in the first moment of appeal, had spoken as he felt. He had not forgiven Anne Elliot. She had used him ill; deserted and disappointed him; and worse, she had shewn a feebleness of character in doing so, which his own decided, confident temper could not endure. She had given him up to oblige others. It had been the effect of over-persuasion. It had been weakness and timidity. –Chapter 7, page 57 (near the end)

            In this instance of free indirect discourse, Jane Austen expresses the internal turmoil of either Anne Elliot or Captain Frederick Wentworth. It may also express both sides’ feelings simultaneously. How exactly does Austen achieve these ambiguous focal points through her writing?

            Let’s go with the case for Anne Elliot’s focal point. If we see this passage as her line of thought, she has a very extreme opinion on what Wentworth’s thoughts of her are. Since all of her past feelings for him have suddenly resurfaced, she is not sure how to deal with them. So upon hearing that she apparently was “‘so altered that he should not have known her again’”(57), her thoughts immediately jump to the worst possible conclusion of Wentworth’s opinions about Anne. Firstly, Anne suspects that he only said those things about her because he assumed those words would be held in confidence (as if Wentworth were confiding in Mary). Going under the assumption that the conversation was a secret, Anne believes that “he had thought her wretchedly altered” and had “spoken as he felt” when given the first opportunity to do so. When comparing “wretchedly altered” to the secondary account given by Mary, her sister never mentioned the word “wretchedly” but only said “‘You were so altered he should not have known you again’”(57). That sentence does not necessarily mean Wentworth thought she looked wretched and so disfigured that she was horrendously unrecognizable. It just meant that he did not realize it was her because she does not look like her 19 year old self.

            In addition to thinking that Wentworth thought her ugly, she also thinks that he “had not forgiven” her because of the way she treated him in the past by “[deserting] and [disappointing] him”. She undeniably had strong feelings for him, and he for her, but since she was so influenced by people who she was close with, Anne backed away from their engagement, thereby letting Wentworth down. By being on the fence so much about their relationship – by “[giving] him up to oblige others” – she had exposed how feeble, weak and timid she was. She compares her personality to Wentworth’s “decided, confident temper” and concludes they are not compatible, or that her personality was something he “could not endure”. She believes her personal faults let her be over-persuaded by others and by her own self while also over-persuading Wentworth to cut off the relationship. Essentially, she imagines that Wentworth holds a grudge against her because of how their romantic history ended.

            Now let us see how this passage can be read from Wentworth’s lenses. If we take this passage at face value, his feelings towards Anne are incredibly harsh. The usage of “wretchedly altered”, “not forgiven”, “deserted and disappointed”, “shewn a feebleness of character”, and “to oblige others” among other things all accuse Anne for her faults. This overly-critical tone suggests Wentworth is still not over Anne or that this facet of his personality is not revealed much to other characters in this book, if at all as seen by his warm reception into Uppercross. Later he reveals to his sister the quality he is searching for in the woman he will marry: “‘A strong mind, with sweetness of manner’”(58). This certainly supports the fact that Wentworth’s and Anne’s personalities did not match well and was reason enough for them to break up.

            If we had to choose one, I personally am more convinced that this is written from Anne’s focal point; everything is blown out of proportion as her mind spins from Wentworth overload. I also think Wentworth would not go to such extents in describing another person. Of course, the most complete view is if we say it is written ambiguously in order to show that there are always multiple experiences to every situation and the readers should take that into account in order to obtain a complete understanding. This passage also alludes to gender roles in the 18^th century. Anne behaves in a conflicting manner due to the expected standards for women: prudent, always virtuous, but eventually married. Therefore, due to the opposing opinions of her family and friend, she rejects Wentworth despite her positive feelings towards him. Wentworth on the other hands seems to want a “manlier” woman; he wants a woman who is decisive and has a “strong mind” – qualities expected from an 18^th century man.