1. Read the following passage carefully.

Write an essay in which you discuss how the

choice of detail, diction, and syntax are used to reveal the speaker’s attitude to Sir
Walter Elliot.

In Persuasion, Jane Austen writes the passage concerning Sir Walter Elliot, her
attitude presented through detail, diction and syntax, key factors in determining Austen’s
tone and implied opinion.
Jane Austen utilizes details of Sir Walter’s lifestyle throughout the passage to
reveal his character. The passage begins, “Sir Walter Elliot…was a man who, for his own
amusement, never took up any book but the Baronetage.” The man does not enjoy
literature, nor does he care for it. Continuing, Austen writes, “he could read his own
history with an interest that never failed.” The Baronetage being somewhat of an
encyclopedia of lower nobility in Britain, it is rare that any person of normal status would
find the article intriguing at all. But Sir Walter is not a person of normal status. No, he is
a baronet, and he cherishes this record of his status, much as someone with a Guinness
World Record would cherish the volume in which he or she is featured. By the end of the
passage, Austen reveals an attitude of distaste for Sir Walter’s character; Sir Walter is
vain, his only mission in life to show off his devilish good looks and elevated social
status. Sir Walter cares not for those who do not share his good fortune; in fact, he pities
them, and at the same time, he envies those who sit higher than him on the hereditary
ladder of Britain. Not only does Austen use detail to reveal her attitude, she also uses
diction.
To describe Sir Walter, Austen uses egotistical and almost mocking diction,
making the baronet out to be one who cares only for himself, rather than others. In the
first paragraph, Austen writes, “for his own amusement…his own history,” indicating Sir
Walter’s self-centered interests. As she describes the passage on the history of the Elliot
family, Austen writes that Sir Walter “improved it,” but put plainly, only the baronet can
possibly believe this to be an improvement, for anything added by Sir Walter himself
ought to be honored and revered. When Sir Walter reads the Baronetage, he sees for
himself “admiration and respect,” that which he craves most, but further reading leads
him to “pity and contempt,” his elevated, yet still low, status digging at him ever more. In
addition to diction and detail, Austen’s use of syntax contributes to the revelation of her
distaste for Sir Walter Elliot.
In her description of Sir Walter, Austen uses parallel structure and organization to
gradually reveal her attitude about his character. At the beginning of the passage, Austen
writes, “there he found occupation….there his faculties were roused…there any
unwelcome sensations…changed…and there, he would read,” each “there” emphasizing
Sir Walter’s love of the Baronetage; the book transports him to a world where he walks
about freely, no one to doubt him, all around him envious of his stature. Though Austen’s
passage begins vaguely of her opinion on Sir Walter, the last paragraph makes her view
quite clear. She writes, “vanity was the beginning and end of Sir Walter’s character:
vanity of person and of situation,” clearing all possibility of misconception; she detests
his shallow nature and reveals that there is not much else to him than his looks and social
status.