Pride and Prejudice
Pride and Prejudice
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Pride and Prejudice is a novel by Jane Austen. First published on 28 January 1813, it was her second published novel. Its manuscript was initially written between 1796 and 1797 in Steventon, Hampshire, where Austen lived in the rectory. Originally called First Impressions, it was never published under that title, and in following revisions it was retitled Pride and Prejudice.[1]
Background
The novel was originally titled First Impressions by Jane Austen, and was written between October 1796 and August 1797.[2] On November 1, 1797, Austen's father gave the draft to London bookseller Thomas Cadell in hopes of it being published, but it was rejected.[3] The unpublished manuscript was returned to Austen and it stayed with her.
Austen revised the manuscript for First Impressions, with significant revisions between 1811–1812.[2] She later renamed the story Pride and Prejudice. In renaming the novel, Austen probably had in mind the "sufferings and oppositions" summarized in the final chapter of Fanny Burney's Cecilia, called "Pride and Prejudice", where the phrase appears three times in block capitals.[4] It is possible that the novel's original title was altered to avoid confusion with other works. In the years between the completion of First Impressions and its revision into Pride and Prejudice, two other works had been published under that name: a novel by Margaret Holford and a comedy by Horace Smith.[3]
Austen sold the copyright for the novel to Thomas Egerton of Whitehall in exchange for £110 (Austen had asked for £150).[5] This proved a costly decision. Austen had published Sense and Sensibility on a commission basis, whereby she indemnified the publisher against any losses and received any profits, less costs and the publisher's commission. Unaware that Sense and Sensibility would sell out its edition, making her £140,[3] she passed the copyright to Egerton for a one-off payment, meaning that all the risk (and all the profits) would be his. Jan Fergus has calculated that Egerton subsequently made around £450 from just the first two editions of the book.[6]
Plot summary
Elizabeth Bennet, one of the five daughters of a country gentleman in 19th-century Hertfordshire, England, faces a dilemma in her future – as their father's property is entailed to a male heir upon his death, they will be turned out of their house and left to fend for themselves unless she and her sisters can find advantageous husbands, something which consumes her mother. An opportunity arrives in the form of Mr. Bingley, a wealthy young gentleman who takes a country estate near to the Bennet's home, accompanied by his sisters and his good friend Fitzwilliam Darcy. Whereas Bingley is well-liked in the community, Darcy begins his acquaintance with Elizabeth, her family, and their neighbours with smug condescension and proud distaste for all of the country people; despite Mrs. Bennet's embarrassing interference Mr. Bingley and Jane begin to grow closer. Elizabeth, stung by Darcy's haughty rejection of her at a local dance, makes it a point to match his coldness with her own venom. When the militia arrive in the town, earning the admiration of Elizabeth's flighty and immature younger sisters, Elizabeth begins a friendship with Mr. Wickham, a charming soldier with a prior acquaintance with Darcy. Upon hearing Wickham's story of his misfortune at the hands of Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth immediately seizes upon it as another, more concrete reason to hate Mr. Darcy. Unbeknown to her, Darcy finds himself gradually drawn to Elizabeth.
When Bingley leaves the countryside suddenly and makes no attempts to contact Jane anymore, the young woman is heartbroken. Elizabeth, having previously thought well of Bingley, believes that there is something amiss in the way that he abandoned Jane and suspects Darcy's involvement. She is also approached by her cousin, the foolish and pompous clergyman Mr. Collins, who offers marriage to her; despite the fact that Collins is the male heir who will inherit her father's property upon his death, Elizabeth is unwilling to subject herself to a union that she knows will be unhappy for her and refuses him, much to her mother's distress. Collins subsequently marries Elizabeth's friend Charlotte Lucas, who invites Elizabeth to stay with them. Collins' parish is adjacent to Rosings Park, the grand manor of Darcy's aunt Lady Catherine de Bourgh, whom Collins is greatly obsequious towards; as a result, Elizabeth is frequently invited to Rosings, where she is again forced into contact with Darcy, who is visiting his aunt at the time. During this time, Elizabeth learns that Darcy indeed played a part in separating Bingley and Jane.
Elizabeth is shocked when Darcy admits his love for her and proposes marriage. Insulted by his high-handed and insulting manner of proposal, Elizabeth refuses him, confronting him with his sabotage of Bingley's relationship with Jane and Wickham's account of their dealings. Shocked by Elizabeth's vehemence towards him, Darcy writes her a letter justifying his actions and revealing that Wickham in fact cheated him, and attempted to seduce his younger sister Georgiana in the process. He also justifies his actions towards Bingley and Jane with the defence that Jane did not visibly show any interest in his friend, whom he was attempting to protect from both heartache and a disadvantageous association with Elizabeth's embarrassing and uncouth mother and younger sisters; Elizabeth is prompted to question both her family's behaviour and Wickham's credibility, and comes to the conclusion that Wickham is not as trustworthy as his easy manners would indicate and her early impressions of Darcy may not have been accurate. During a tour of Derbyshire with her aunt and uncle, Elizabeth visits Pemberley, Darcy's grand estate, and presented with a more flattering, benevolent impression of his character from the locals who know him. When the party encounters Darcy when touring the grounds of Pemberley, he makes an effort to behave in a gracious and welcoming manner towards them, thus strengthening Elizabeth's esteem of him.
Elizabeth and Darcy's renewed acquaintance is threatened when news arrives that Wickham and Elizabeth's reckless younger sister Lydia have eloped, thus threatening the family's reputation and the Bennet sisters with ruin. Lydia and Wickham are soon found and married, delighting Mrs. Bennet. Elizabeth is surprised to learn from Lydia that Mr. Darcy was secretly responsible for both finding the couple and arranging their marriage at great expense to himself. Soon after, Bingley and Darcy return to the area; Bingley proposes marriage to Jane, and this news starts rumours that Darcy will propose to Elizabeth, prompting Lady Catherine to confront Elizabeth and imperiously demand that she never accept such a proposal. Elizabeth's refusal to bow to Lady Catherine's demands convinces Darcy that her opinion towards him has changed, and he once again proposes marriage; Elizabeth, who is now in love with Mr. Darcy as well; accepts, and the two are married
Main characters
Elizabeth Bennet is the main female protagonist. The reader sees the unfolding plot and the other characters mostly from her viewpoint.[7] The second of the Bennet daughters at twenty years old, she is portrayed as intelligent, lively, attractive and witty, with her faults being a tendency to judge on first impressions and perhaps being a little selective of the evidence she uses to base her judgments upon. As the plot begins, her closest relationships are with her father, her sister Jane, her aunt Mrs. Gardiner and her neighbour Charlotte Lucas.
Fitzwilliam Darcy is the main male protagonist. At twenty-eight years old and unmarried, 'Mr. Darcy' is the wealthy owner of the famously superior estate Pemberley in Derbyshire. Portrayed as handsome and intelligent, but not convivial, his concern with decorum and moral rectitude is seen by many as an excessive concern with social status. He makes a poor impression on strangers, such as the people of Meryton, but is valued by those who know him well.
Mr. Bennet has a wife and five daughters. Portrayed as a bookish and intelligent man somewhat withdrawn from society and one who dislikes the frivolity of his wife and three younger daughters, he offers nothing but mockery by way of correction.
Mrs. Bennet is the wife of Mr. Bennet and mother of Elizabeth and her sisters. Her main objective in life is to find (wealthy) husbands for her five daughters, but she lacks the subtlety to execute her goals. She is portrayed as frivolous, excitable and narrow-minded. She is susceptible to attacks of tremors and palpitations, and her public manners are embarrassing to her eldest daughters. Her favourite daughter is the youngest, Lydia.
Jane Bennet is the eldest Bennet sister. Twenty-two years old when the novel begins, she is considered the most beautiful young lady in the neighbourhood. Her character is contrasted with Elizabeth's as sweeter, shyer and equally sensible but not as clever; her most notable trait is a desire to see only the good in others. Jane is closest to Elizabeth. She later marries Mr.Bingley.
Mary Bennet is the middle Bennet sister, aged around eighteen. The only plain one of the five, she strives to be the most accomplished. She spends most of her time reading and studying, but without understanding. Of the sisters, she thinks most highly of Mr. Collins.
Catherine (Kitty) Bennet is the fourth Bennet sister, aged seventeen. Portrayed as a less headstrong but equally frivolous shadow of Lydia.
Lydia Bennet is the youngest Bennet sister, aged fifteen. She is repeatedly described as frivolous and headstrong. Her main activity in life is socialising, especially flirting with the military officers stationed in the nearby town of Meryton. She dominates her older sister Kitty and is supported in the family by her mother. She later marries Mr.Wickham.
Charles Bingley has just rented the Netherfield estate near Longbourn when the novel opens. Twenty-two years old at the start of the novel, handsome, good-natured and wealthy, he is contrasted with his friend Mr. Darcy as being less intelligent but kinder and more charming (and hence more popular in Meryton). He lacks resolve and is easily influenced by others.
George Wickham is an old acquaintance of Mr. Darcy, and an officer in the militia unit stationed near Meryton. A superficially charming man, he forms a friendship with Elizabeth Bennet, prompting many to remark upon his suitability as a potential husband. He spreads numerous tales about the wrongs Mr. Darcy has done to him, colouring the popular perception of the other man in local society; it is eventually revealed that these tales are distortions, and that Darcy was the more wronged man in their acquaintance.
Mr. William Collins is Mr. Bennet's cousin and a clergyman. Since Mr. Bennet has no sons, Collins is in line to inherit Mr. Bennet's estate. Jane Austen described him as "not a sensible man, and the deficiency of nature had been but little assisted by education or society". Collins is thought to be naively stupid by Mr. Bennet, and Elizabeth rejects his marriage proposal. She is very distressed when her friend Charlotte Lucas decides to marry Mr. Collins out of interest in his estate rather than his personality. Collins constantly boasts about his acquaintance with the wealthy and pompous Lady Catherine de Bourgh.
Lady Catherine De Bourgh is haughty, egotistical, and domineering. Because of her wealth and social standing she believes she can command anyone around her. People such as Mr. Collins contribute to this personality by acting as sycophants who bow to her every command. Her nephew Darcy initially does whatever his aunt requests out of respect for her, but by the end of the text, he makes the choice to go against her wishes and marry Elizabeth.
Major themes
Many critics take the novel's title as a starting point when analysing the major themes of Pride and Prejudice; however, Robert Fox cautions against reading too much into the title since commercial factors may have played a role in its selection. "After the success of Sense and Sensibility, nothing would have seemed more natural than to bring out another novel of the same author using again the formula of antithesis and alliteration for the title. It should be pointed out that the qualities of the title are not exclusively assigned to one or the other of the protagonists; both Elizabeth and Darcy display pride and prejudice."[8]
A major theme in much of Austen's work is the importance of environment and upbringing on the development of young people's character and morality.[4] Social standing and wealth are not necessarily advantages in her world, and a further theme common to Jane Austen's work is ineffectual parents. In Pride and Prejudice, the failure of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet (particularly the latter) as parents is blamed for Lydia's lack of moral judgment; Darcy, on the other hand, has been taught to be principled and scrupulously honourable, but is also proud and overbearing.[4] Kitty, rescued from Lydia's bad influence and spending more time with her older sisters after they marry, is said to improve greatly in their superior society.[9]
