...in such daunting terms, Annette? ;-) Except for the "poor judge of character" part, I hardly recognize her as Lady Russell! I think that many of the terrible faults we accuse LR of can be blamed on the fact that she did not have 20/20 foresight.

Also, today we might wonder about an older friend who took such an interest in a younger friend's love life, but I don't think that JA or her contemporaries necessarily saw it that way. IMO, it was part of the hierarchical nature of Regency society that strong interest and even interference by an older, "wiser" friend was considered a sign of love and concern, not the opposite.