Language In Clarissa, Evelina And Pride And Prejudice

from the surface and often not very subtly expressed, as
we shall see in the novels that follow.
Unlike most other kingdoms, England is an island
nation; the empire might well be vast, but the motherland
always will be finite. Competition for British soil, as
in most centuries, remained fierce in the eighteenth
century. However, this century brought new meaning to
owning land since political power no longer belonged
exclusively to the aristocracy. Disquieted by the
intrusion of less than noble families, the aristocracy
resisted the assault as best they could. Their
resistance, however, was weak; money seemed endlessly
necessary.
The wealthy, burgeoning merchant class found the
easiest and simplest way to get land was to marry into
it. Merchant sons and daughters became experts in
inheritance practices and settlements, and aristocratic
sons and daughters became objects of marriage. Strict
settlement made sure land stayed in families and
aggrandizement continued through jointures and
settlements, increasing a family's chance to "raise"
itself to a title or to a seat in the House of Commons.