Lesson from Pride and Prejudice - Essay Example

? Pride and Prejudice Pride and Prejudice is one of the most loved novels of Jane Austen. Published during 1813, the novel tells an intensely personal story in which the money mindedness and pride of the then people influence the family life. This novel unravels the triumph of true love above all barriers of financial security and status offered to all on the basis of monetary benefits. The novelist very powerfully depicts the society in which the characters live with all the charms and blotches. Jane’s views on marriage and married life are conveyed effectively through the characters she introduced. How the traits like pride and prejudice control the familial relations, how a family persuades the society and vice versa, above all victory of true love etc is magnificently woven in the novel. Pride and prejudice can be considered as social commentary which unravels the silliness of common notions in marriage and celebrates the victory of romantic love in marriage . The novel starts with, “It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife (P 5). There Austen exposes the main idea, loveless marriage in the context. The two characters who behave and mould their life above these conventions are Elizabeth Bennet and Darcy .Elizabeth Benet is a tool in the hands of Jane Austin to convey her own attitudes and views about marriage. Unlike the other characters, Elizabeth is free to accept a man whom she likes. She stresses the point that marrying for reasons other than love is ridiculous” Elizabeth’s reaction to Mr. Collin’s proposal is highly deplorable, she prejudices about Mr. Collins,” conceited, pompous narrow minded, silly man ( P 115). In the context of the then society the response of Elizabeth is beyond the existing norms and customs. In chapter 3 the reaction of Darcy to Bingley’s implication to dance with Elizabeth, is the result his sense of pride and social superiority. He says “She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me, and I am in no honor at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy her smiles, for you are wasting your time with me”. But later Elizabeth comes out of her prejudices about him and offers herself to Darcy. He is also able to recognize his own admiration towards Elizabeth. Darcy undergoes a self realization later. He approaches her with his open heart” In vain have I struggled, it will not do. My feelings will not be repressed. You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire you and love you “(p 157). Elizabeth starts to see him in a new light. Slowly the envelop of prejudice in Elizabeth and that of pride in Darcy begin to shed. The marriage between Darcy and Elizabeth gives us a lot about the then concept of marriage. Real love is not love at first sight. It needs time and circumstances to develop. Here Darcy slowly understands that she is the fittest choice to spend the rest of his life. Thus she announces to the readers that a bond beyond the external beauty is necessary to establish a warm relation in marriage. Real happiness in marriage can be achieved by proper understanding of both the partners. Austen’s portrayal of an ideal marital relation become significant in the context of other lovers like Wickham and Lydia, Mr. , Mrs. Bennet and Charlotte and Mr. Collins . These characters serve as tools to draw the upshot of a marriage without the strong basis of love. Lydia and Wickham are the victims of shallow attraction towards each other. This is entirely ignorance and inexperience. Lydia married Wickham because of his high social status and fortune. Lydia has strong opinion about his appearance. Exactly the reverse reaction of Wickham has the same ground. When Lydia reveals her love, immediately he was ready to accept her as his wife. They become the most depressed pairs later. The dissimilarity between a true marriage and a marriage grounded on other attractions is successfully depicted through the life of these characters. The life of Mr. and Mrs. Bennet is another illustration. The cold relation between them was explained in Austen’s words” He had very early in their marriage put an end to all real affection for her. Respect esteem and confidence had vanished forever “P (194). Mr., Bennet wants to pass the family kismet to his heir, while Mrs. Bennet wishes to have a companion. The marriage of Jane and Bingley is rooted only in bodily attractions. Early in the novel Bingley makes comments about Jana as “She is the most beautiful creature I ever beheld ( P 13). But the love between them was genuine and fit to lead a happy married life because they share love and respect equally. Thus Austen portrays another instance of perfect married life through Jane and Bingely. More than love and affection Charlotte needs social security. She explains to Elizabeth, ‘ I ask only a comfortable home ; and considering Mr. Collin’s character , connections I am convinced happiness with him is as fair “(P 105). This novel is a warning note to the then society who places women in an internment and attributes limitations to her deeds and voices. They are never expected to` step out the social norms. When Elizabeth comes with mud-covered skirt Mrs. Bingley and other friend are conscious about it. Lydia’s decision to live with Wickham without wedlock is really a disgrace to Bennet family. But in this situation the writer is found more serious in approaching the matter of reputation. Another point that is stressed here is the treatment of class consciousness in the life of middle class and upper class families. The depiction of Mr. Collin is a fine example of this. Austen mocks at this class consciousness by presenting Mr. Collin’s relation to Lady Catherine. Mr. Darcy is another one who claims to be sophisticated .Miss Bingley also joins them. She dislikes anyone who is socially not accepted. But What Jane Austen wanted to do through this novel, is easily done by arranging marriage s with Darcy-Elizabeth, Bingley- Jane. Raging against the divisions in the society, Austen places love and happiness in married life above all other conventions. The influence of societal norms in the life of individual is always there at any time. The society has some such expectation from a family and its members. As a social animal we are bound to fulfill theses expectations to some extent. Here we have already seen the scandalous relation between Lydia and Wickham and the reaction of the other members. Darcy also considers it as his duty to expose Wickham’s true nature to the society. Austen strongly reminds us the fact that society has the power to introduce certain virtues in the life of the individual. Individual is obliged to society and vice versa. Human life should have the strong ground of values and virtues. They should channelize their interests and ambitions reasonably to lead a good life. In contrast to the character of Lydia, who is never able to control her strong passions, Elizabeth is there waiting for a long time to realize the truth and then submitting her life to the right thing. Another message Austen wants to convey through the novels is the importance of family in molding an individual. Family is responsible for the physical, rational and the ethical development of its children .Bennet family is a failure in providing the same to their children. Lydia’s life directly tells this to the readers. The other characters, Elizabeth and Jane learn this from their experiences with outer world especially by the influence of Mrs. Gardiner. Ignoring Elizabeth, her father allowed Lydia to go to Brighton. It is clear that her father has a role in making her shameless, immoral figure in the novel. Through evaluating the personal life of the characters and their interests, Jane Austen demarcated the need of strong family for a strong society. The theme of marriage, power of wealth in directing the flow of life and the crucial role of family both in personal and societal life etc are conveyed impressively through the novel. Austen always stresses the point that married life should only be based on true love and affection. Mutual understanding of the partners is the foundation of the familial life. The victorious couple presented in the novel, Elizabeth and Darcy, are able to understand the strength and weakness of each other. The novel shows the intense world of the feminine characters of the 19th century where the middle class women struggle to get a life for themselves. Though the setting may be odd to the present generation, the message put across through the novel is quite relevant especially for the youngsters. Work Cited Austen , Jane, Pride and Prejudice , Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1956.. Read More