Is this an old expression or still prevalent?

[eipjoo]

“Are you not very thankful to have such a fine place to live at?”(Jane Eyre)

Being familiar with the expression "aren't you […]," it's quite strange to meet this one. Is it the expression used just in the writer's age, or is it still prevalent?

 

[Grumpy]

This form of words is very seldom used these days. It is almost never heard in normal conversation, but is occasionally used when someone [generally a well-read individual] is trying to draw particular attention to something. For example, some years ago, a judge in a British courtroom said of a witness, "Has she not grace? Has she not fragrance?"

 

[5jj]

... some years ago, a judge in a British courtroom said of a witness, "Has she not grace? Has she not fragrance?"

That [expletive deleted] judge was almost universally mocked for his outdated views. The language he used showed how antediluvian his mindset was.

 

[BobK]

I wouldn't have said antediluvian exactly - they didn't think like that before the Flood! I'd have placed his attitudes nearer the time when the tradition of Courtly Love was established. ;-)

This form is still used by self-important people (usually, like that judge, in positions of power). I can remember teachers and priests (often teaching priests) saying things like 'Have you not thought what you're doing to your lungs?'

b

 

[Tdol]

You'll come across it in some regional forms and, mostly, people trying to be rhetorical or serious. In ordinary speech and writing, it is very uncommon.