content: Persuasion is Austen's version of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling." How does Anne Elliot deal with her "faded bloom?" Throughout the novel, Austen depicts a most sympathetic character, Anne Elliot, that a woman of the 1990's can readily identify with. Anne Elliot is pulled in each and every direction as she tries to fit in and find her own self. This is not just another one of Austen's cliched marriage plots. It is a book about learning to cope and evaluating one's culture.