So someone on Jane Austen Reddit shared this comic:
And it got me thinking, do the worse deeds of Jane Austen's villain/dubious men still hold up as bad today?
George Wickham, Pride & Prejudice - this one is tricky, consent laws vary by country, but 16 is generally the age of consent with some exceptions, so sleeping with either Lydia or Georgiana would be legal, though frowned upon. Trying to marry a teenager for her money would still be scummy, though elopement and even marriage would be far less disastrous to Georgiana (easy divorce and better protection for women's assets). Lydia could just go home, especially if they used protection (please do!)
Gambling and debt is still bad, but Wickham could apply for bankruptcy rather than being sent to debtor's prison.
Henry Crawford, Mansfield Park - sleeping with a married woman is still pretty bad, but it's no longer a crime (he would have been charged with Criminal Conversation to make the divorce go through and paid a fine). His punishment socially would probably be similar, though Maria's would be far less
John Willoughby, Sense & Sensibility - again, Eliza is probably above the age of consent and if they used protection, no worries. Otherwise Willoughby is on the hook for possible child support (he would have been in the Regency too, and the courts liked to decide in favour of women in this case so they didn't have to support the poor themselves). Icky, but not as bad as he was in the Regency for ruining Eliza.
Mr. Elliot, Persuasion - Mr. Elliot's crimes are cruelty to his first wife, convincing a friend to spend above his means, and not helping a widow in court. Hopefully, Mrs. Smith wouldn't have as much difficulty with her husband's will in this day and age, so that crime may be gone, but the others remain basically the same or worse. Hopefully his wife would take her money and leave him!
John Thorpe, Northanger Abbey - his only real "crime" is slander against Catherine Morland, but I doubt anyone would charge him for that. He is the worst though and would be just as bad in the present.
Frank Churchill, Emma - his gossip with Emma is less cruel as Jane's reputation doesn't hang in the balance. He's still a jerk for toying with people's emotions.
As for others, one would hope that General Tilney or Mrs. Norris would have been charged with child abuse, but unfortunately I don't think either of them raise to that level. One would hope that the morals of the time would mean they were better, or at least that Mrs. Norris wasn't as tolerated by the Bertrams.
