Though many members of the Jennings family no longer bear the surname, their presence is felt throughout the novel. We are told that the late Mr. Jennings “had traded with success in a less elegant part of ,” than the Mayfair address in which his widow now lives, suggesting that theirs is a fortune borne from trade.
Members of the Jennings Family met or discussed in the novel include:
- The Late Mr. Jennings
- Mrs. Jennings
- Her eldest daughter, Lady Middleton, who married Sir John Middleton and had the following children:
- Her second daughter, Mrs. Charlotte Palmer, who married Mr. Palmer and has her first child over the course of the novel.
The narrator says that Mrs. Jennings “had only two daughters,” who have now both married, leaving her with nothing to do, suggesting that there are not other Jennings children.
Mrs. Jennings maintains a home in Upper Berkeley Street where Charlotte lived until her recent marriage. It is unclear how long ago Mr. Jennings passed away.
