There are two references in JA novels where the name of Richard is used in a mocking manner. One is Persuasion, as noted above. The other is in the first paragraph of Northanger Abbey when referring to the heroine's father, "...was a very respectable man, though his name was Richard."

According to the book "Jane Austen and Names" by Maggie Lane, "...this seems to have been a family in-joke. Despite its being such a common male name, Jane Austen has no major character called Richard, only an array of non-speaking parts: the above mentioned Richard Morland, Richard Thorpe, also of Northanger Abbey, Richard Price of Mansfield Park, Richard Hughes of Emma, Richard Pratt of Sanditon, and in S&S a cousin of the Steeles named Richard. p.75