Pride and Prejudice: A Character Study of Elizabeth Bennet - Essay Example

of Teacher May, Pride and Prejudice: A Character Study of Elizabeth Bennet I. Introduction: Plot Summary First published in 1813, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice is a novel that revolves around societal issues dealing with etiquette, education, and marriage in 19th century England. The main plot revolves around women’s marriage to men of landed gentry, as emphasized in the Chapter I: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife [1]. Living in the fictional town of Meryton, Herdfordshire, London, Elizabeth Bennet is a second child of the five children of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. Having no male heir in the family, Mrs. Bennet is under the predicament that she and her children will be left homeless and penniless when her husband dies sooner than expected; thus pressuring her children to marry at the soonest possible time. Elizabeth is the least inclined to marry among Mr. and Mrs. Bennet’s children. Several romantic interests have been mentioned in the novel, but no other man has taken interesting impression of her than that of Mr. Darcy. Upon their first meeting in a public dance in Elizabeth’s home village, their eye contact is not pleasant. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy snubs and refuses to dance with her and coldly told his friend Mr. Bingley: "Which do you mean?" and turning round he looked for a moment at Elizabeth, till catching her eye, he withdrew his own and coldly said: "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me...[2]." Within ear shot of Elizabeth, she recanted such remark to her friends with playful disposition and fervent delight of anything ridiculous. At 28 years of age, Mr. Darcy is a wealthy, aloof, intelligent, tall, condescending and excessive pride young man who owns the Pemberley estate in Derbyshire. He does not make a good impression on strangers but is valued by people who know him well. After a few unimpressionable and not-so convivial meetings, Elizabeth is decided that Mr. Darcy is no more than a man who is has excessive pride and primarily concerned with his social status. However, Elizabeth’s prejudice and further abhorrence from Mr. Darcy is fueled by her meeting with the handsome and impressionable Mr. Wickham. Allegedly, Mr. Darcy denied Mr. Wickham of living a life of a clergyman, as promised to him by the former’s father. Furthermore, Elizabeth also learns from Mr. Darcy’s cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam, that he is responsible for disrupting the courtship of her sister Jane and Mr. Bingley. This prompts Elizabeth to generalize that her prejudice to Mr. Darcy is justifiable, as evidenced on both accounts of Mr. Wickham and Mr. Fitzwilliam, as well as her ability to concisely judge human character. While in Kent, Mr. Darcy surprisingly caught Elizabeth unaware of his sudden declaration of love and admiration: In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you [3]. While speaking with apprehension and anxiety, Mr. Darcy asked for Elizabeth’s hand in marriage. But Elizabeth rejected his tempting offer, much to his surprise and anger. Aside from feeling insulted by Mr. Darcy’s arrogance and confession that is against his will, reason, and character, Elizabeth cited his participation in ruining her sister’s relationship with Mr. Bingley and his infliction on Mr. Wickham’s hardship. Mr. Darcy admits that it was he who separated Mr. Bingley from her sister: I have no wish of denying that I did everything in my power to separate my friend from your sister, or that I rejoice in my success. Towards him I have been kinder than towards myself [4] but deny that it was he who caused Mr. Wickham’s state of poverty. He also defended himself that his honest confessions were natural and just: Nor am I ashamed of the feelings I related. They were natural and just. Could you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of your connections?—to congratulate myself on the hope of relations, whose condition in life is so decidedly beneath my own? [4]. The day after their confrontation, Mr. Darcy delivered a letter to Elizabeth defending his participation on his motives for his interference in Jane and Mr. Bingley’s relationship, as well as his lifelong dealings with Mr. Wickham. Mr. Darcy manages to make amends for his smug character when Elizabeth, in the company of her Aunt and Uncle Gardiner, had a spontaneous side trip at Pemberley estate. Thinking that Mr. Darcy is absent from his estate, he unexpectedly comes home and graciously entertains them with kindness and courtesy, and even introduces them to his sister Georgiana. Furthermore, Mr. Darcy has been instrumental in helping Elizabeth’s sister, Lydia, from further embarrassment of elopement by intervening at her marriage to Mr. Wickham. He also encouraged Mr. Bingley to resume his romantic intentions to Jane, thus leading to their engagement. Realizing that she is in love with him, Elizabeth readily accepts Mr. Darcy’s marriage proposal for the second time despite some apprehension from her father, Mr. Bennet. Despite the extensive and distinctive disparity of Pride and Prejudice from today’s setting, social norms, and class, Elizabeth Bennet is an epitome of a modern woman of this new generation: intelligent yet may sometimes be irrational, compassionate particularly for her family, and independent-minded despite belonging to a male chauvinistic society. II. Intelligent and Irrational Elizabeth may lack in formal education or unskilled in playing musical instruments, but Mr. Bennet made sure that his children are well-equipped with books that are within their reach anytime. Her father regards her as the quickest: They have none of them much to recommend them, replied he; ``they are all silly and ignorant like other girls; but Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters [5]. Though she is not as attractive as Jane, Elizabeth is her father’s favorite daughter because of her wit and intelligence. In this aspect, Elizabeth clearly manifests women of today that lack material wealth or family inheritance but is readily fortified with education that will equip them to lead better lives. Elizabeth’s being irrational or craziness may be rooted from her fondness to things that are rather absurd: …there are such people, but I hope I am not one of them. I hope I never ridicule what is wise or good. Follies and nonsense, whims and inconsistencies do divert me, I own, and I laugh at them whenever I can [6]. Despite being materially inferior to Miss Bingley and Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth has achieved to take life in a stride by loving life’s absurdities. She manages to hide this insecurity because of her being crazy or maintaining a positive mental vibe at all times. In this crazy modern world, women of today stay tough and proud as they continue to hurdle these absurdities with happy disposition life. On the other hand, Elizabeth’s tendency to judge people based on first impression is a downside her irrational character. Mr. Darcy may have redeemed himself from her accusations; nonetheless, irrationality has managed to overcome Elizabeth’s mental intellect and severely wounded the former’s pride and compassion towards her. Jane Austen’s lead role portrayal has made Elizabeth the modern heroine of today’s society, intelligent, with pride, yet prone to mistakes and prejudices. III. Compassionate Elizabeth’s anger towards Mr. Darcy’s intrusion of Jane and Mr. Bingley’s relationship, as discussed in Chapter 34, sparked her compassion towards family. Though she does not have any business of interfering with her sister’s relationship with the opposite sex, Elizabeth’s concern for Jane’s happiness showed that her sister’s happiness comes first before hers: …do you think that any consideration would tempt me to accept the man, who has been the means of ruining, perhaps for ever, the happiness of a most beloved sister?[7] Hence, she did not consider Mr. Darcy’s proposal simply because the latter has been thought to be instrumental in ruining her sister’s happiness. Traditionally, elder siblings protect their younger siblings. In this particular scenario, it was Elizabeth, the second child, who protected Jane, the eldest child. Had it not for Elizabeth’s own inquiry, Jane would not have been able to reconcile with Mr. Bingley. On the other hand, Lydia’s elopement to Mr. Wickham (Chapter 46) managed to elicit Elizabeth’s deep concern for her family’s social standing. She felt compelled to take a stand and make a final resolution to Lydia’s antics. Elizabeth acted a man’s role in protecting her family from such inevitable life struggles. Her deep compassion for her family has made her their pillar of strength. In today’s modern society, women are not only considered “the light of the home,” but as well as the pillar of strength of the man of the house. Women’s compassion, love, and support to their spouses provide a solid foundation for a stable home for the family. IV. Independent-minded Most of Jane Austen’s heroines in her other publications do not have anyone to confide in, or whose advice they can thoroughly rely on (The Republic of Pemberley, 2010). In Elizabeth’s case, she makes her own decisions independently. She does not reveal anything to Jane or to any of her other siblings of her true and transformed feelings to Mr. Darcy until the latter’s second marriage proposal. And like Elizabeth, Jane Austen has been said to be of the same independent nature: …in a letter of November 30th 1814 to her niece Fanny Knight, discussing whether Fanny should engage herself to one Mr. Plumtre, Jane Austen wrote: "...you must not let anything depend on my own opinion. Your own feelings & none but your own, should determine such an important point [8]. Clearly, Elizabeth and Jane Austen provided a comprehensible view of what a modern woman should and what has now become, independent, opinionated, and decisive. V. Summary and Conclusion Based on the three character traits mentioned, there is a clear evidence to support the claim that Elizabeth Bennet is worthy of being equated as a heroine in today’s modern society. Like Jane Austen, Elizabeth embodies the role of women in a male-dominated culture, intelligent and irrational, compassionate, and independent-minded. Works Cited [1] It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife [Chapter 1]. [2] "Which do you mean?" and turning round he looked for a moment at Elizabeth, till catching her eye, he withdrew his own and coldly said: "She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me… [Chapter 1]. [3] In vain I have struggled. It will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you [Chapter 34]. [4] I have no wish of denying that I did everything in my power to separate my friend from your sister, or that I rejoice in my success. Towards him I have been kinder than towards myself [Chapter 34]. [5] They have none of them much to recommend them, replied he; ``they are all silly and ignorant like other girls; but Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters [Chapter 1]. [6]…there are such people, but I hope I am not one of them. I hope I never ridicule what is wise or good. Follies and nonsense, whims and inconsistencies do divert me, I own, and I laugh at them whenever I can [Chapter 11]. [7] …do you think that any consideration would tempt me to accept the man, who has been the means of ruining, perhaps for ever, the happiness of a most beloved sister? [Chapter 34] [8] …in a letter of November 30th 1814 to her niece Fanny Knight, discussing whether Fanny should engage herself to one Mr. Plumtre, Jane Austen wrote: "...you must not let anything depend on my own opinion. Your own feelings & none but your own, should determine such an important point [Republic of Pemberley, 2010]. Please properly cite Jane Austen’s book. Howells, William Dean. 1901. Heroines of Fiction, Volume 1. Harper and Brothers. pp. 37–48. Nardin, Jane. 1973. Those Elegant Decorums: The Concept of Propriety in Jane Austens Novels. Albany: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0873952367. The Republic of Pemberley. 2010. 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