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It will, I believe, be everywhere found, that as the clergy are, or are not what they ought to be, so are the rest of the nation.
— Jane Austen ‧ Mansfield Park
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
The speaker believes a nation tends to mirror its clergy: when they are what they ought to be, the rest of the population follows, and when they fall short, so does everyone else. It treats moral leaders as setting the tone for society.
Context reviewed