Elinor Dashwood

Elinor Dashwood
Jane Austen character
In-universe information
Full nameElinor Dashwood
GenderFemale
FamilyHenry Dashwood
and Mrs. Dashwood
RelativesJohn Dashwood (half-brother)
Marianne Dashwood
Margaret Dashwood
HomeNorland Park
Barton Cottage

Elinor Dashwood is a fictional character and the protagonist of Jane Austen's 1811 novel Sense and Sensibility.

In this novel, Austen analyses the conflict between the opposing temperaments of sense (logic, propriety, and thoughtfulness, as expressed in Austen's time by neo-classicists), and sensibility (emotion, passion, unthinking action, as expressed in Austen's time by romantics). In this conflict, Elinor, a reserved, practical, and thoughtful young woman who largely embodies the "sense" of the title, is juxtaposed with her younger sister Marianne who mostly embodies "sensibility".