Coming Out

In Chapter 3, on page 58 of Mansfield Park Mrs. Crawford raises the question of whether Fanny is out or not. Fanny, the reader assumes, is not out. To an outsider like Mrs. Crawford, however, it is difficult to discern because of Fanny’s quiet nature that conflicts with the fact that she dines along with her cousins who are. The state of being out is an important one to establish because in this era marriage is a given for all women, lest they be social pariah. While mention of out-ness appears a few times throughout the novel, there is never a formal coming out for Fanny. This reader was surprised to discover in Chapter 22, that “her being out was known only to her two aunts.” I had assumed that there were formal “coming out” parties during the Regency Era, just as there were popular just a few decades ago in the upper crust of American Society (my friend’s mum, for instance). The closest sort of coming out occasion that we see for Fanny occurs at the Mansfield ball that Sir Thomas throws for her and William, where she and Mr. Crawford led the dance. The question of Fanny’s outness coincides with her growth in personal constitution and courage. With further research, I’d hope to find the particulars of the coming out ritual (if there was one during the Regency Era) and how this was to affect the behaviors of women and potentially interested men.