Persuasion: Prose style
17 lenses on prose style for Persuasion by Jane Austen. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9 H10 H11 H12 H13 H14 H15 H16 H17
H1. Readability score per chapter. Count
Flesch reading ease for the whole book is about 58 (higher is easier; 60 to 70 is plain English).
Reading ease per chapter, chapter by chapter
H2. Vocabulary range. Count
5,829 different words. On average 50 in every 100 words are new within a 500 word stretch. 2,543 words appear only once.
H3. Signature words: what this author uses far more than others. Count
anne, captain, walter, charles, bath. See the full lens on the book page.
H4. Adverb and adjective rates. Count
About 14.28 words ending in 'ly' and 9.42 likely adjectives per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
'ly' words per 1,000, chapter by chapter
H5. Share of weak verbs such as "was" and "had". Count
'Was', 'were', 'had', 'is' and 'are' make up 4.2% of all words.
H6. Passive voice rate. Count
About 12.1% of sentences use a passive form such as 'was taken'. (rough estimate from word lists)
H7. Variety of sentence openings. Count
The five most common first words start 36% of sentences: i, she, he, the, it.
| First word | Sentences |
|---|---|
| i | 362 |
| she | 326 |
| he | 225 |
| the | 206 |
| it | 180 |
| anne | 127 |
| but | 111 |
| they | 110 |
| you | 78 |
| there | 69 |
H8. Rhythm: how much sentence length varies. Count
Sentence length varies by 0.83 of its mean on average (higher means a more varied rhythm).
Variation per chapter, chapter by chapter
H9. Similes and metaphors: how many, and of what kind. Both
108 likely similes ('like a', 'as ... as'): 1.29 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Ch 1, para 10: That Lady Russell, of steady age and character, and extremely well provided for, should have no thought of a second marriage, needs no apology to the public, which …
Ch 1, para 13: It sometimes happens that a woman is handsomer at twenty-nine than she was ten years before; and, generally speaking, if there has been neither ill health nor anxiety, …
Ch 1, para 14: Elizabeth did not quite equal her father in personal contentment. Thirteen years had seen her mistress of Kellynch Hall, presiding and directing with a self-possession and decision which …
Ch 1, para 16: She had, while a very young girl, as soon as she had known him to be, in the event of her having no brother, the future baronet, meant …
Ch 1, para 22: There was only a small part of his estate that Sir Walter could dispose of; but had every acre been alienable, it would have made no difference. He …
Ch 2, para 4: “If we can persuade your father to all this,” said Lady Russell, looking over her paper, “much may be done. If he will adopt these regulations, in seven …
Austen uses similes sparingly but pointedly, often comparing emotional states to physical sensations or social positions. Metaphors of constancy, firmness, and alteration recur throughout, with the sea and naval life serving as extended metaphors for merit and independence against landed vanity.
Chapters: Ch 4, Ch 7, Ch 10, Ch 23
Once so much to each other! Now nothing! There had been a time, when of all the large party now filling the drawing-room at Uppercross, they would have found it most difficult to cease to speak to one another. (Ch 8, para 3)
These would have been all my friends,” was her thought; and she had to struggle against a great tendency to lowness. (Ch 11, para 16)
H10. Senses used: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Both
Share of sense words. sight 55%, sound 23%, touch 18%, taste 4%, smell 0%. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Sense | Words |
|---|---|
| sight | 415 |
| sound | 176 |
| touch | 135 |
| taste | 34 |
| smell | 1 |
Sight dominates: Anne observes faces, gestures, and social interactions constantly. Sound appears in dialogue and music. Touch is rare but significant in moments of care or assistance. Smell, taste, and proprioceptive sensation are nearly absent, keeping focus on social observation.
Chapters: Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 19, Ch 20
Anne, as she sat near the window, descried, most decidedly and distinctly, Captain Wentworth walking down the street. (Ch 19, para 4)
It was agitation, pain, pleasure, a something between delight and misery. (Ch 19, para 6)
H11. Repetition, lists of three and other patterns. Both
79 lists of three in the pattern 'a, b and c': 0.95 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Lists of three appear in character descriptions and social situations. Repetition of key phrases like 'altered,' 'constancy,' and 'persuasion' anchors the novel's themes. Parallel structures mirror Anne and Wentworth's emotional journeys, with repeated separations and near-meetings.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 4, Ch 8, Ch 23
Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character; vanity of person and of situation. (Ch 1, para 7)
Once so much to each other! Now nothing! There had been a time, when of all the large party now filling the drawing-room at Uppercross, they would have found it most difficult to cease to speak to one another. (Ch 8, para 3)
H12. Old words that may trip modern readers. Count
Old forms that may trip a modern reader: nay, connexion, shew, art, ere, thither.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| nay | 10 |
| connexion | 10 |
| shew | 4 |
| art | 3 |
| ere | 3 |
| thither | 3 |
| hither | 1 |
H13. Showing against telling, with examples. AI
Austen shows character through action and dialogue rather than summary. Anne's inner conflict appears through her observations of others and her physical responses. Mr Elliot's true nature emerges through his behaviour and Mrs Smith's account rather than authorial judgment.
Chapters: Ch 7, Ch 17, Ch 21, Ch 22
His cold politeness, his ceremonious grace, were worse than anything. (Ch 8, para 59)
She had been used before to feel that he could not be always quite sincere, but now she saw insincerity in everything. (Ch 22, para 11)
H14. How much description comes before action. Both
Description is woven into action rather than preceding it. Austen introduces settings through characters' movements and reactions. Emotional states are revealed through physical placement and gesture during scenes rather than in separate descriptive passages.
Chapters: Ch 6, Ch 12, Ch 19
H15. Filter words such as "saw", "felt", "heard". Count
Filter words ('saw', 'felt', 'heard' and so on): 5.4 per 1,000 words.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| seemed | 93 |
| thought | 90 |
| felt | 80 |
| heard | 65 |
| knew | 61 |
| saw | 51 |
| watched | 4 |
| noticed | 3 |
| wondered | 3 |
| realized | 1 |
H16. Shifts in tone. AI
Tone shifts from ironic observation of Sir Walter's vanity to tender introspection in Anne's consciousness to sharp social comedy in Bath scenes. The final chapter adopts a lighter, more conclusive tone after the emotional intensity of the reunion.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 15, Ch 23, Ch 24
Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character; vanity of person and of situation. (Ch 1, para 7)
She is nothing to me, compared with you (Ch 16, para 1)
H17. How the comedy works. AI
Comedy arises from Sir Walter's absurd vanity, the Musgrove family's cheerful chaos, and Mr Elliot's transparent hypocrisy. Austen uses irony to expose social pretension and creates humour through the gap between characters' self-perception and reality.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 15, Ch 21
Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character; vanity of person and of situation. (Ch 1, para 7)
The profession has its utility, but I should be sorry to see any friend of mine belonging to it. (Ch 3, para 14)
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