Who does Marianne Dashwood marry?

Marianne marries Colonel Brandon. She is nineteen when they wed, and she finds lasting happiness with him at Delaford.

Why does Marianne get sick?

Marianne is heartbroken over Willoughby and walks in the wet grass at Cleveland, which gives her a bad cold and then a dangerous fever. She recovers slowly with Elinor’s nursing.

How old is Marianne Dashwood?

She is sixteen when the story starts and seventeen during her love for Willoughby. By the end, when she marries, she is nineteen.

From Sense and Sensibility

Marianne Dashwood

Passionate and musical sister

Sixteen-year-old Marianne feels everything with all her heart. She loves music, poetry and wild walks on the windy hills.

Who is Marianne Dashwood?

Marianne is the middle Dashwood sister, sixteen, warm-hearted and full of feeling. She loves music, poetry and romantic stories, and when she is happy or sad, everyone knows it. Marianne gives her heart away quickly, and through some hard lessons she learns that the truest love grows from kindness and respect.

Marianne Dashwood is a character in Sense and Sensibility, the 1811 novel by Jane Austen, retold for ages 6–9 by Sean Lee.

What is Marianne Dashwood like?

romantic
musical
passionate

Marianne Dashwood’s story

Marianne is clever, generous and eager in everything, and her joys and sorrows have no moderation. When the family moves to Barton Cottage she throws herself into long walks, music and poetry. After her fall on the hillside she is carried home by John Willoughby, and soon the two are reading, singing and laughing together as though they were destined for each other.

Then Willoughby suddenly leaves for London and does not explain. When Marianne follows with Elinor, she writes to him again and again, and he ignores her. At a London party he is cold to her in front of everyone, and a short, cruel letter returns her own letters and the lock of hair she gave him. He is to marry a wealthy woman. Marianne is crushed.

Months later, at Cleveland, she walks out in wet grass, falls ill with a fever and nearly dies. Elinor’s care and Colonel Brandon’s kindness help bring her through. Afterward Marianne sees how selfishly she had behaved and how steadily Brandon had behaved. At seventeen she thought she would never love anyone but Willoughby, yet at nineteen she marries Brandon and comes to love him truly.

“her sorrows, her joys, could have no moderation”

Jane Austen, the narrator, describing Marianne’s feelings. From the original 1811 novel by Jane Austen.

A moment to remember

After twisting her ankle on a rainy hillside, Marianne is carried home by a handsome stranger, and it feels to her just like a fairy tale.

Elinor Dashwood: her older sister
John Willoughby: her first love, who lets her down
Colonel Brandon: the man she marries
Margaret Dashwood: her younger sister
Mrs. Dashwood: her mother

Talk about it

Marianne showed all her feelings, while Elinor kept hers quiet. Which sister are you more like?

Questions about Marianne Dashwood

Who does Marianne Dashwood marry?: Marianne marries Colonel Brandon. She is nineteen when they wed, and she finds lasting happiness with him at Delaford.
Why does Marianne get sick?: Marianne is heartbroken over Willoughby and walks in the wet grass at Cleveland, which gives her a bad cold and then a dangerous fever. She recovers slowly with Elinor’s nursing.
How old is Marianne Dashwood?: She is sixteen when the story starts and seventeen during her love for Willoughby. By the end, when she marries, she is nineteen.