Austen, Jane. Northanger Abbey.

Summary

Trip to Bath: Catherine Morland, aged seventeen, is the eldest daughter out of ten children of Mr Richard Morland, a clergyman, and his wife. The family lives in Fullerton, Wiltshire. Catherine accompanies Mr and Mrs Allen to a six-week-long stay in Bath. Catherine's first social event is an unexceptional ball at which she is not able to dance for a lack of partner. At a tea table she meets Mr Henry Tilney, a Gloucestershire clergyman in his mid-twenties, with whom she engages in conversation. Mrs Allen meets her former schoolfellow, Mrs Thorpe, and her three daughters, Maria, Anne, and Isabella. Miss Isabella Thorpe, aged twenty-one, immediately becomes Catherine's affectionate friend. Mrs Allen devotes her time to dressing, Mrs Thorpe to praising her children, and Catherine with Isabella indulge in reading novels.

Forming Attachments: Isabella is fond of Catherine's eldest brother James. He arrives to Bath together with Isabella's brother John Thorpe. Isabella is pre-engaged with James for a ball, while Catherine is to dance with John. Isabella enjoys the evening, but the self-centred John neglects his partner and prefers to talk with his companions about hunting and horses. Catherine must refuse Mr Tilney who asks her for a dance because she is obliged to wait on John. Mr Tilney dances with another girl instead. At the next ball, Catherine hopes for Mr Tilney to ask her for a dance. He does so, but when he is leading Catherine to the floor, John appears to claim Catherine. John takes it for granted that Catherine will wait for him when he pleases to dance with her. Mr Tilney disapproves of John's rudeness. He compares dancing to marriage in that in both cases the partners are bound to exclusive devotion to each other and nobody is supposed to intrude.

Coach Drive: Catherine is pleased to meet Mr Tilney's sister. Miss Eleanor Tilney invites Catherine to join her for a country walk. The walk is prevented by rain and Miss Tilney does not appear at the appointed hour. Isabella, James, and John call to take Catherine for a ride in an open coach. Catherine intends to stay at home in case Miss Tilney arrives after all, in spite of the muddy roads. John informs her that he just saw Miss Tilney driving away, on which Catherine consents to the ride. The airing is disagreeable for Catherine because John's idea of conversation with a lady is boasting off with his skills as a coachman and with his horses. Catherine happens to catch the sight of Miss Tilney walking with her company. She immediately asks John to stop the coach so that she could make her apology and explain herself, but John pays no attention to her pleads. Catherine comforts herself only with the goal of their ride, Blaize Castle, which she idealizes under the impression of Gothic novels reading. They fail to reach the Castle for they had set off too late in the afternoon so that they must return.

Country Walk: Catherine pays a visit to Miss Tilney to apologize herself for having broken their engagement for the walk. Miss Tilney has herself denied. Catherine sees her a few moments later stepping out of the door with her father, General Tilney. Catherine is anxious to defend herself. An occasion occurs when she meets the Tilneys in the theatre. Miss Tilney explains that it was her father who made her to deny herself and accompany him for a walk instead. Catherine and Miss Tilney are reconciled and another day is agreed on for the walk. Catherine is distressed by the appearance of the same company who spoilt her the occasion for the walk the other day. Isabella, James, and John press Catherine to accompany them to Clifton. Isabella appeals to Catherine on the basis of their friendship. James is angry with his sister because he wishes to please Isabella. John calls at the Tilneys and invents a message on behalf of Catherine, claiming that she cannot go. Catherine cannot bear to be thought of as rude and runs to explain herself, which she duly does and has her explanation accepted.

Isabella's Engagement: James proposes to Isabella who happily accepts. The consent of parents on both parts is obtained, but the marriage must be delayed for two or three years so that Mr Morland could gather the sum he promises to provide for the couple. Mr Morland's settlement is as generous as he can afford, but Isabella is disappointed by both the delay and the amount of the sum. Isabella shifts her attentions to Henry Tilney's unprincipled elder brother, Captain Frederick Tilney. Catherine is alarmed by Isabella's behaviour on behalf of James, though she innocently inscribes Isabella's flirtation to her ignorance. Catherine appeals to Henry and asks him to talk to Frederick in order to save him from disappointment. Henry cannot assist her, but assures Catherine that Frederick is aware of Isabella's engagement and that his leave soon expires, on which he will have to return to his duties in the army. Isabella informs Catherine that John took liking to her, the news of which Catherine receives with a genuine surprise. Catherine denies having ever encouraged John and declares that he is not the man whom she would think of as a husband.

Northanger Abbey: Catherine accepts the invitation to stay with the Tilneys in their house at Northanger. Her attractions are both Mr Tilney and the fact that the Tilney home is a Gothic abbey. She travels in a curricle with Henry, who pleasantly teases her by inventing a fanciful Gothic story of what she probably expects to happen to her in the Abbey. Catherine is surprised to find the Tilney seat very unlike what she imagined. Once a cloister, it was converted into a modern, comfortable living place far from any resemblance to the setting of Catherine's favourite Gothic novels. Despite this, Catherine's imagination is roused by too much reading and she sees mystery lurking round each corner. She examines with great expectations an ancient chest and a Japan cabinet in her room, but is embarrassed to find that the former contains nothing more interesting than a counterpane and the latter no secret manuscript but old washing bills. Catherine then fixes her fancy on the mystery of the late Mrs Tilney's death, whom she suspects to have been murdered by her husband or kept constrained in a secret chamber by the same. She examines Mrs Tilney's apartments, finds nothing extraordinary, and is surprised in her expedition by Henry. Henry guesses her thoughts, and Catherine's fancy gives way to shame for herself.

Catherine's Marriage: Catherine receives a letter from James who informs her that Isabella broke their engagement in preference for Captain Tilney. Henry and Eleanor assure Catherine that their brother could not think of marriage with Isabella. This is confirmed in a letter by Isabella herself who claims there was a misunderstanding between her and James and asks Catherine to write James on her behalf. Catherine sees through the artifice of her professed friend and gives her up. Catherine's pleasant stay and her deepening attachment to Henry is unexpectedly put an end to by General Tilney's ordering her to leave the house immediately. General is strict with his children but he has always been kind to Catherine, who is not aware of her offending him in any way. Catherine travels alone in a post-chaise. General's breach of hospitality is explained by Henry, who arrives to see Catherine several days later. General was convinced by John Thorpe that Catherine is a wealthy heiress, therefore he decided to marry her to his son. The same person, on his being rejected by Catherine, later informed General about Catherine's actual conditions. Henry is independent from his father, he owns a nice house in Woodston, therefore he can propose to Catherine, who happily accepts. Catherine's parents wish to obtain at least a formal consent to their marriage from the groom's father. Several months later, General is appeased by Eleanor's marriage to a wealthy Lord. His consent is consequently obtained and Catherine is married to Henry within a year from their first meeting.

Analysis

Gothic Heroines: The novel follows the successful entrance into society of its young, innocent, and ignorant heroine. At the same time there is a clever, witty satire of various contemporary social phenomena underlying the whole of the narrative. The very beginning parodies the vogue for Gothic heroines by denying its protagonist all aspirations for becoming such. Catherine is not a beautiful damsel in distress but a plain creature, not very bright, and with no exceptional talents. Her mother does not die after her birth, her father does not struggle with poverty, and she does not fall in love with a mysterious man-foundling. When she sets off for the world, her way is perfectly uneventful, with no robbers, abductors, or any other kind of lustful villains.

Exaggerated Sentiments: At many places the novel pokes fun at the fashion of exaggerated sentiments. On Catherine's leaving home for the first time, there are no desperate tears on the part of the mother and no grave urges for regular correspondence on the part of the sister. On the other hand, Catherine's friend Isabella is a living heroine of a sentimental novel. When Catherine arrives at their appointment five minutes later, Isabella is in greatest distress imaginable. She declares that she has been waiting "these ten ages at least" and cries that she has "an hundred things to say", which is nothing less that she was afraid it would rain that morning and that she had discovered a nice hat in a shop (p. 28). The comedy of artificial manners is brought to perfection for instance in the scene of Catherine and Tilney engaged in polite social conversation:

"Then forming his features into a set smile, and affectedly softening his voice, he added, with a simpering air, 'Have you been long in Bath, madam?'

'About a week, sir,' replied Catherine, trying not to laugh.

'Really!' with affected astonishment.

'Why should you be surprised, sir?'

'Why, indeed!' said he, in his natural tone -- 'but some emotion must appear to be raised by your reply, and surprise is more easily assumed, and not less reasonable than any other. -- Now let us go on. Were you never here before, madam?'" (p. 15).

Novels: Catherine and her friends occupy themselves with reading Gothic novels. Their favourite is Ann Radcliffe's The Mysteries of Udolpho. Austen defends novel reading and novel writing, both of which were scorned at the time. She does so both in the voice of the narrator and in the voice of Henry Tilney, who is a reader of Gothic novels as well as other genres. Catherine, as a typical representative of the female sex, dismisses serious reading. She never reads histories because they contain instruction, which she equals to torment. Henry, on the other hand, favours both entertainment and instruction. In the very choice of a good-natured but simple-minded heroine, the narrator suggests that women are expected to be nothing but beautiful, whereas men are supposed to supply the reasoning faculty:

"The advantages of natural folly in a beautiful girl have been already set forth by the capital pen of a sister author; -- and to her treatment of the subject I will only add in justice to men, that though to the larger and more trifling part of the sex, imbecility in females is a great enhancement of their personal charms, there is a portion of them too reasonable and too well informed themselves to desire any thing more in woman than ignorance." (p. 102)