Sense and Sensibility: Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis

The narrator describes the Dashwood family, who lived at Norland Park in Sussex, England. The owner of the property was a single man and he invited his nephew Mr. Henry Dashwood to live with him at Norland. Henry had a son by a previous marriage and three daughters by his current wife.

Henry Dashwood’s son, John Dashwood, had a substantial fortune from his mother’s family, which he increased through marriage. Thus, Norland Park was of more importance to John’s half-sisters, who had less secure fortunes, than it was to him. Nonetheless, when the owner of Norland died, he left his property to John and John’s young son.

Henry Dashwood passed away only a year later, and on his deathbed asked John to look out for and help his daughters. The narrator says that John lacked the “strong feelings” of the rest of his family, but was nonetheless deeply moved by Henry’s dying request. John promised “to do everything in his power to make them comfortable.”

John decided to give his three sisters 1,000 pounds each, and was pleased with his own generosity. Right after Henry’s funeral, John’s wife moved into Norland Park immediately without giving Henry’s wife Mrs. Dashwood any notice. John’s wife Fanny “had never been a favourite with any of her husband’s family,” and now her “ungracious behaviour” did nothing to change this.

Mrs. Dashwood was offended by John’s wife Fanny and thought of moving out, but her eldest daughter Elinor persuaded her not to. The narrator says that Elinor “possessed a strength of understanding, and coolness of judgment” in addition to “an excellent heart.” Elinor’s younger sister Marianne was similarly “sensible and clever,” but was “eager in everything” and lacked a sense of moderation.

Marianne and her mother indulged in extreme grief and unhappiness at the recent turn of events: “they gave themselves up wholly to their sorrow.” Elinor, by contrast had more moderation in her behavior. The youngest of the three daughters, Margaret, was “good-humoured” and “well-disposed.” She had some of Marianne’s romantic sensibility but without her modicum of sense.