A woman of this time was thought to be well tempered and abiding to her husband's wishes. This era would even accept an even tempered woman, however Mrs. Churchill is far from either. .
Austen demonstrates her anxieties concerning a woman's authority over language through the absence of language. Her implications towards her view that female authors are fundamentally kept silent in literature are reinforced through the absence of dialogue from Mrs. Churchill. Gubar and Gilbert concur with similar views of Carolyn Heilbrum and Catharine Stimpson in that a "presence of absence- can be found in female literature. Activity is "deceptively coded- and hidden within the confines of a piece of work (292). Austen's illustration of Mrs. Churchill's silent activities towards her family proves evident of this silent presence and power. Although Austen might have been forced to write her madwoman locked into a structure created by and for men, her influence cannot be stifled as easily as her speech.
It can also be said that Austen equates Mrs. Churchill's physical illness with her own angst towards nineteenth century's view of women. Her many illnesses are metaphors of the "disease- of woman. Austen demonstrates her rage against the repression of women in her society through the manipulation and deception of Mrs. Churchill's poor health. The author uses Mrs. Churchill's handicap to illustrate the stereotype that women are less capable and inferior in society. However, she diverges from this assumption by exercising the power and control that handicap continues to have over those surrounding Mrs. Churchill. Aside from her illness, Austen's madwoman exerts her influence over her environment, signifying Austen's own feelings about the authority of women in literature.
Does Austen use Mrs. Churchill's manipulation of her family to convey the standard procedure for a woman's satisfaction? An interesting question when the extent of pity and handling Mrs.
