In Jane Austen's "Persuasion" (1818), after Anne Elliot reads the letter in which Captain Wentworth declares himself, she accepts her brother-in-law Charles Musgrove's offer to walk her home. When they run into Captain Wentworth, Charles passes on his responsibility for Anne: “[...] I shall have no scruple in asking you to take my place, and give Anne your arm to her father's door. [...] I ought to be at that fellow's in the Market Place. He promised me the sight of a capital gun [...]” — This single-minded focus on guns and shooting may make him look shallow, but here it gives Anne the opportunity she needs to respond to Wentworth's advances. (Andrew Shields, #111words, 12 February 2023)

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