I've started reading Mansfield Park, by Jane Austin, and I'm at the point where the family visits the Sotherton house. One thing I was struck by during the Sotherton visit was how Fanny Price approaches everything with such an attitude of receptivity. On the drive to the house, for instance, she eagerly takes in every detail of the countryside, and in the house itself, she is intensely interested in the tour and the history of the home. It's easy to see why Fanny expresses such great gratitude; she notices all the things to be grateful for.

For others who have read the book, did you also notice a theme of receptivity in Fanny's character? Is she the only character properly disposed to the leisure of the upper class families in the novel? Does her childhood in a less wealthy home predispose her to this attitude of receptivity to beauty?