Leaping Into Freedom
Amanda found it more convenient not to make a direct answer to these assertions; she preferred to resume the subject from her point of view:
"You are a very warm friend of Mr. Martin, but as I have said before, you are unfair to Harriet; her titles to a good marriage are not so slight as you make them out to be: her intelligence, while not remarkable, is not in the least inferior to the average. I do not insist, however, on this point: let us assume that it is simply as you describe it; pretty and friendly. Let me tell you, to the degree that she possesses these qualities, they are serious assets in the world. She is actually extremely pretty; at least that will be the opinion of ninety-nine people out of a hundred! Now, as long as men do not show philosophical detachment in the face of beauty and persist in falling in love with graceful faces and not with pure intelligence, a young girl endowed with the physical charms of Harriet is likely to be admired and sought after; she is consequently able to choose. Her amiable nature, on the other hand, is no small advantage; her manners are gentle, her character always even, she is modest and willing to appreciate the merit of others. I am very much mistaken if your sex in general does not consider these two gifts - beauty and good grace - as primordial in women.
"On my word, Amanda, to hear you reason like that, I'll end up sharing that view." It is better to be devoid of intelligence than to employ it, as you do.
Very good ! she continued, laughing. That's what all of you are thinking; a young girl like Harriet corresponds precisely to the ideal of your sex.
I have always augured ill of this intimacy, I see today that it will have disastrous consequences for Harriet: you will give her such a high opinion of herself that she will believe herself to have titles to an exceptional destiny. and will find nothing more to his liking. Vanity in a weak brain takes its toll. Despite her beauty, Miss Harriet Smith won't see the marriage proposals pouring in as fast as you'd think. Smart men, whatever you say, don't want a foolish woman; men from large families will not insist on marrying a young girl of mediocre distinction, and most reasonable men will hesitate before the mystery of an origin which could hold unpleasant surprises. Let her marry Robert Martin and behold her safe and happy forever; but if, on the contrary, you encourage her in ideas of grandeur, she is very likely to remain all her life a boarder with Madame Goddard; or rather (for I believe that a young girl of Harriet's nature always ends up getting married) she will stay there until the day when, disillusioned, she falls back on the son of the old writing master!
Our views differ so completely that there can be no use in prolonging this discussion, Mr. Knightley; we will only end up antagonizing each other. For my part, I cannot intervene in any way: Harriet's refusal of Robert Martin is final. It is possible that before having lived in a circle of decent people she might not have found him disagreeable: he was the brother of her friends and he tried to please her; but circumstances have changed and henceforth only a man of education and good manners can claim to please Harriet Smith.
"What nonsense talk!" cried Mr. Knightley; Robert Martin's manners are natural and agreeable, and he has more true nobility of mind and heart than Harriet Smith is capable of appreciating.
Amanda didn't answer and tried to look indifferent; in fact she was beginning to feel uneasy and very much wanted to end the interview. She did not regret her intervention and continued to find herself a better judge on a question of feminine delicacy than her interlocutor; yet, as she was accustomed to respecting Mr. Knightley's opinion, she did not like to find herself in such flagrant contradiction with him. A few minutes passed in an awkward silence that Amanda tried to break by talking about the weather, but he seemed not to hear. He meditated and finally said, "Robert Martin is not a great loss, at least if he can see things in their true light. Your plans for Harriet are known only to you, but, as you make no secret of your taste for combining marriages, it is natural to suppose that you have a plan now and, as a friend, I must say that if you have Mr. Elton in view, you're wasting your time.
Amanda laughed as she protested these allegations. He continued :
"Elton is a charming man and an excellent curate, but he is not in the least inclined to make an imprudent marriage. He may affect a sentimental air in his speeches, but he will nonetheless act in accordance with reason. He is as aware of his own merits as you are of Harriet's. He knows that he is a very pretty boy and he is not unaware of his successes; from the way he speaks in moments of expansion, I am convinced that he has no intention of not taking advantage of his advantages. I have heard him allude to a family where the young girls who are the intimate friends of his sisters each have a dowry of five hundred thousand francs.
'Thank you very much,' replied Amanda; if I had dreamed of marrying Harriet to Mr. Elton, it would have been charitable to open my eyes; but for the moment I especially want to keep her with me.
"Good-bye," said Mr. Knightley, rising abruptly; and he left the living room.
He realized how disappointed Robert Martin would be, and he was especially upset at Amanda's part in the matter.
Amanda, on her part, did not feel absolutely satisfied, and her adversary's calm persuasion that he was right on his side did not fail to arouse in her some doubts as to her own infallibility; it was quite possible that Mr. Elton was not indifferent to the question of money, but was not a real passion enough to combat selfish motives?
On the other hand, Mr. Knightley, who had not witnessed the various phases of this love, was not, in Amanda's assessment, in a position to measure its scope: better informed, he would probably have trusted in the ultimate success.
Harriet explained her delay in the most natural way; she was in very good spirits. Miss Nash had told her of a conversation she had just had with Mr. Perry, who had been called to Mrs. Goddard's for a pupil. Harriet repeated this tale with visible satisfaction.
Returning the day before from Clayton Park, the doctor met Mr. Elton heading for London; he was very surprised to learn that he would not be home until the next day, for that evening there was a meeting at the whist club of which Mr. Elton was a regular member. Mr. Perry pointed out to him how petty it would be of him to absent himself that day and deprive them of their strongest player; he tried to persuade him to put off his departure until the next day but without success. Mr. Elton had made up his mind to continue his journey, and he said, with a singular air, that he was going on a matter from which no consideration could deflect him; he implied that it was a most delicate commission and that he was carrying an extremely valuable deposit. Mr. Perry did not quite understand what it was all about, but he is sure that a lady must have been involved in this adventure: he did not hide his suspicions from Mr. Elton who then put on a mysterious and walked away with pride". Harriet added that Miss Nash had spoken at length again of Mr. Elton, and had said to her, looking at her insistently.