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Northanger Abbey Heroism Essay

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When one is born, is one atomically bound for heroism? Written herosim at first glance may portray images of super heroes such as superman or batman. However, they’re all fictional. Most novels are flooded with heroism; in which, a protagonist overcomes a obstacle to immerge as a hero. Coming of age novels focus on a young protagonists journey where they evolved from a immature young child into a mature adult. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, is a realistic example of a early 19th century young girl maturing into a young adult by being naïve, vulnerable to imagination and becoming a married adult.

The first sentence of the novel stats “No one who had ever seen Catherine Morland in her infancy would have supposed her born to be an heroine …show more content…

She learns she would rather “[be] ten thousand times rather have been with [Henry] (Austen,2002, p.70 )” than exploring her imagination and assumptions. Although she makes a major mistake, she learns from her mistake that allows her to grow as a person. Maturing and growing is the basis of a coming of age character and Catherine demonstrates her transition in only a year. She is rewarded with the hand in marriage with Henry, in which was her main objective when entering Bath. Realistically, a women’s main goals in life in the early 19th century is to get married and have children. Since Northanger Abbey is set in the 19th century, it is realistic image of young female instead of the common Gothic novel. A typical gothic novel is filled with danger, challenges and violence; however, Austen creates a satire of gothic novels and thus makes the storyline and characters more realistic. Such as protagonist Catherine has no special talents and achieves her goal of getting married to a wealthy man and maturing as a person during the course of her adventure.

In conclusion, Northanger Abbey by Austen is a realistic coming of age novel in the 19th century. Catherine commences as a naïve young girl whom like most youth mistakes fiction with reality. She learns from her mistake and is rewarded in the hand of marriage with Henry. Catherine exemplifies a early 19th century coming of age character whom Austen successfully

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