Pride And Prejudice By Jane Austen - 1423 Words

Austen uses Pride and Prejudice as a means to express her views on marriage, without being didactic. She frequently satirises views which oppose her own. Austen was a believer that men and women should be more equal. This view was also shared by feminist activist Mary Wollstonecraft, who had once said, â€Å"virtue can only flourish among equal†. However, Wollstonecraft disliked the social hierarchy, whereas Austen respected it and thought whoever was at the â€Å"top†, deserved to be there. Austen believed that marriage should not be a means of climbing this hierarchy she idealised. Although this opposes the social conventions, Austen agrees that elopement should be condemned and accepts that wealth and social standing must be taken into†¦show more content†¦This is made clear by Austen agreeing that Lydia and Wickham’s elopement is unsuitable and irresponsible. She does this by ending Lydia and Wickham’s storyline with â€Å"[Wickham’s] affected for her soon [sinking] into indifference†. The unity of Wickham and Lydia was entirely based on their passion for each other and Lydia’s naà ¯vetà ©. Austen looks down upon their silly antics and therefore â€Å"punishes† Lydia by ruining her marriage to Wickham. We must also acknowledge that if Lydia was not so rash with her marriage and had just waited a few months she would be in higher circles due to both Elizabeth and Jane’s â€Å"good† marriages and therefore would have had a better chance of a successful marriage herself. Also, the way Austen describes Wickham’s affections which had â€Å"sunk into indifference†, expresses how their marriage had once floated and bobbed with life by now it has sunk it is dragging her and her family’s reputation down with it. Her family’s reputation being ruined is also later talked about when Mr Collins says â€Å"that the death of [Lydia] would have been a blessing in c omparison to this†, this view despite being exaggerated makes sense that Lydia’s death would not have brought the same negative attitude as that of her elopement.This strong view that elopement was wrong and should be looked down was one shared by eighteenth society. The norm was for the husband to firstShow MoreRelatedPride And Prejudice By Jane Austen Essay1724 Words   |  7 PagesThe 18th century novel, Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, is a fascinating book about a young woman’s struggle with family and love. Pride and Prejudice was originally published in 1813, but, the most common version of the story, and the one used for this research, is from the version published in 1892, still by only Jane Austen, though many other authors have contributed to this book over time. Austen often references the class system at the time, often noting one of the multiple heroine’s struggleRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen1467 Words   |  6 Pages Prid e and Prejudice by Jane Austen is a classic novel that has remained relevant even years after its release. Its themes and symbols are understandable to even the most modern of reader. One of the many themes is sisterhood, something that is focused on constantly throughout the novel. Elizabeth Bennet, the protagonist of the novel, finds many of her decisions to be based upon the actions of her sisters. Making sisterhood a main driving force. Whether they are confiding in each other for marriageRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen872 Words   |  4 PagesIn my personal cherished novel, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, the worlds of two immensely divergent people display the marxist idea of the importance of social status and its affect on the people. The two main characters seem to be on opposite ends of the earth in terms of an affluent Mr. Darcy being so privileged while on the contrary, Miss Elizabeth Bennet is of a lower class. Throughout the novel, there is a fine dist inction between their clashing opinions and actions that are highly influencedRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen Essay1711 Words   |  7 Pageshe 18th century novel, Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, is a fascinating book about a young woman’s struggle with family and love. Pride and Prejudice was originally published in 1813, but, the most common version of the story, and the one used for this research, is from the version published in 1892, still by only Jane Austen, though many other authors have contributed to this book over time. Austen often references the class system at the time, often noting one of the multiple heroine’s struggleRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen1285 Words   |  6 PagesPride and Prejudice Analysis I.Introduction Jane Austen wrote her novels during the time period known as the Regency. The Enlightenment and the Age of Reason, a time where ideas like democracy, secularism, and the rise of developing sciences were making their way across Europe had come to an end.It was replaced with the wave of horror that was the French Revolution, a once minor revolt that escalated into a violent war, concluding with the rise of Napoleon, which whom England fought against the majorityRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen1384 Words   |  6 PagesNicole Voyatzis Professor W. Acres HISTORY 1401E May 26, 2015 Discussion Paper - Pride and Prejudice Pride and Prejudice written in 1813 by Jane Austen tells the story of The Bennet’s and their five unmarried daughters. The family live as part of the lower gentry in early 19th century England. With that being said, Mrs. Bennet’s primary focus in life is to ensure that all her daughters are married, preferably to wealthy men. The book begins with Mrs. Bennet seeing an opportunity for her daughtersRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen1570 Words   |  7 PagesThe comical novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen depicts the love life of women in the early 1800’s. Austen shows the hardships young women in that time period had to go threw to find their place in this world. Women were thought of as objects to the men, they were supposed to be stay at home mothers, or simple just a accessory to their partner. Women were the subordinates in life, as they still are today. Austen tells the story of how Mrs. Bennet (a mother of 5) works tirelessly to get her daughte rsRead MoreJane Austen: Pride and Prejudice 1086 Words   |  5 PagesJane Austen, born December 16, 1775, was an English novelist whose works of romantic fiction earned her a place as one of the most widely read authors in English literature. Austen’s novels critique the life of the second half of the eighteenth century and are part of the transition to nineteenth-century realism. Though her novels were by no means autobiographical, her fictional characters do shed light on the facts of her life and but more importantly, they offered aspiring writers a model of howRead MorePride And Prejudice By Jane Austen914 Words   |  4 Pages Bell 1 Natalie Bell Pedersen English 4 honors 29 February 2016 Pride and Prejudice Essay Jane Austen s novel, Pride and Prejudice, focuses on the social conflicts of England during the 1800s. Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy fall in love, and face social criticism. Mr. Darcy struggles with the ideology of societal expectations while falling in love with Elizabeth Bennet. After persistent self-reflection, Mr. Darcy overcomes the stereotype of whom he should marry, and marries ElizabethRead More Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 1104 Words   |  5 Pagesrate of over 50% from 1970-2010. However, during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, marriage was often one of the few choices for a woman’s occupation. Reading Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen from the twenty-first century perspective might make some matters that are stressed in the book seem dated or trivial. As Pride and Prejudice was set sometime during the Napoleonic Wars, it is only fitting that finding a proper marriage is on the minds of many of the women in the book. Marriage and marrying