People
No man is offended by another man’s admiration of the woman he loves, it is the woman only who can make it a torment.
— Jane Austen · Northanger Abbey
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
The passage distinguishes another man's admiration from the woman's response to it. In the speaker's view, the admirer alone does not cause torment; the loved woman can. The statement locates jealousy in the relationship itself, rather than simply in the presence of outside attention.
Context reviewed