Courtship in Sense and Sensibility

1. What are some of the standard cultural "rules" of courtship that Austen establishes for us within the world of this novel? What constitutes a proper or improper courtship in this world? Did any of the "rules" surprise you when you first read Sense and Sensibility?

2. Which of the female characters adhere closely to the rules of proper courtship, and which ones violate them? What sorts of consequences, positive or negative, are shown to result from these choices? Do women ever break the rules and come out on top anyway? Do they ever follow the rules and live to regret it? (We can think beyond just the heroines, and consider all of the marriageable young ladies in the book: Lucy and Anne Steele, Miss Grey, the Elizas, etc.)

3. For male characters: which guys comply with the standard rules of courtship, and which ones break them, and how do those choices contribute to their getting, or not getting, what they want?

4. Right in Chapter 1, Austen's narrative establishes both (a) the social and economic precarity of women's lives in a patriarchal society, and (b) the fact that some women within this society can wield significant power through their influence over men. How do these themes show up later in the book, in the various courtships of the central characters?

5. Do you tend to read Sense and Sensibility as a didactic novel? If so, what might the moral be?

6. Do you feel that the concluding marriages are satisfying to you as a reader? Do you think the characters will be happy in their future lives? Why or why not?