Mansfield Park
Mary Crawford
Edmund's love interest
A witty, musical woman from London who charms the whole neighborhood, Edmund most of all. She is warm and bright, but she values money and position over principle.
Mary Crawford comes to Mansfield with her brother Henry, bringing London spirit to a quiet country parsonage. She is clever, quick and musical, and plays the harp in the Mansfield drawing room. She is friendly to Fanny, but she pities her a little.
Mary is not a cold schemer, and she enjoys Edmund's company. But she is worldly and mercenary at heart. She thinks a clergyman is nothing and a man of talent should be in London, and she measures people by wealth and rank. She is also a talented musician and a lively friend, which is why so many people at Mansfield, Edmund above all, are slow to see her flaws.
“A clergyman is nothing! He does nothing, reads sermons twice a week, and is forgotten by the world.”
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Mary learns to ride on Fanny's mare, rehearses Amelia opposite Edmund, and gives Fanny a necklace that turns out to have come from Henry. At the ball she tells Edmund a clergyman is nothing, and he is troubled.
During Tom's illness she writes a callous letter that hints at Edmund inheriting the estate. When Henry's elopement shocks the family, Mary regards it as bad luck and folly, not as a sin. Edmund sees the truth and leaves her forever.
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