Femininity on Pride and Prejudice - Term Paper Example

Outline I. Introduction A. Background B. Orientation topic: Femininity C. Thesis: Pride and Prejudice offers a lot of femininity, in many ways, such as the way a man believes a perfect woman should be. D. Main point: There is a medieval view of how women should be, which is to say perfect and talented, being worthy of the attention of a man. II. Intro to the book and author III. Why the author wrote the book/what made it happen IV. Point 1: Mr. Darcy’s opinion of women is very high, though talented Elizabeth still seems unable to meet them. V. Point 2: Women were not allowed to display the same affection towards men that were displayed towards them. VI. Point 3: Woman know what men want before men do; yet, women aren’t allowed to pursue this. VII. Conclusion A. Restate thesis B. Why was it important Femininity in Pride and Prejudice The 1800s were a time in which the concepts of being a proper female were very important guidelines for women to follow, especially if they wanted to marry. Indeed, women were often placed on a pedestal, and their every quality ripped to shreds to see if they were worthy of the attention of a man. The same idea can be seen all throughout Pride and Prejudice, where the concepts of femininity are a harsh, difficult to follow set of unspoken, assumed rules (Gleason, 2008). Pride and Prejudice offers a lot of concepts and rules of femininity, in a variety of ways, such as the way a man believes a perfect woman should be. There is an almost medieval view of how women should be, which is to say perfect and talented, doing everything she can to make herself worthy of the attention of a man. Jane Austen is the author of many heroine-based novels, centered around the manners of her time and class. She wrote a total of seven novels and numerous short story period-pieces throughout her life. Pride and Prejudice tells the story of the Bennet family, a family consisting of five daughters, and their attempts at appealing to Mr. Bingley, a wealthy man that has just moved in up the road from them, as well as soldiers that have come home. While two of the girls remain unconcerned, the other three attempt to woo over the men of the choice; Elizabeth, however, catches the attention of Mr. Darcy, who seems compelled by her independence. Jane Austen wrote Pride and Prejudice due to her subtle rebellion towards the treatment of women in the late 1700s to the early 1800s. She grew up in this era herself and was subjected to all sorts of criticism as a female. Even though she was educated and successful as a writer, she still had to meet the expectations of potential suitors (“Pride”). She uses her novels to display the kind of person that she was growing up, and how the strongest women are those that are independent of the thoughts and expectations of others. Mr. Darcy is one of the main characters of the story, as well as the most pompous and unimpressed eligible men. Although the other men of the story are easier to please with women, Mr. Darcy sets a rather high standard of them. While it was common for men to be curious about the skills, education, and accomplishments of potential, Mr. Darcy seemed to have had personal requirements of the females that he courted; Elizabeth Bennet was a very accomplished, intelligent woman, yet even she was unable to be appealing to Mr. Darcy. Others do not have these same expectations, and scold Mr. Darcy in his pickiness, yet he does not seem to want to change his standards and would rather scoff at Elizabeth, regardless of what she has done. Furthermore, he makes it known that he truly does expect women to be perfect down to every last detail. “Your list of the common extent of accomplishments,” said Darcy, “[...] all this she must possess.” “I never saw such a woman. I never saw such capacity, and taste, and application, and elegance, as you describe, united (Austen, 1996, pg. 35).” During the ages of desired feminine principles, women also had to watch how they acted towards those that they were interested in. Men were allowed to express their desire for a woman, and dote upon them, but it was considered inappropriate when a woman would treat a man in those ways. This can be found a lot throughout Pride and Prejudice, especially in regard to the Bennet daughters that are trying to catch the attention of the soldiers. Furthermore, women were expected to be shy and appreciative of the attention that they would get from men. It was considered to be unwomanly for a woman to display an attractive, interested emotions, as this would make them appear unattractive to others. This shows, yet again, that women had to focus more on how they appeared to men, according to men, rather than how they would appear to female friends or family members. “‘You must give me leave to flatter myself, my dear [...] proposals will not fail of being acceptable (Austen, 94).’” From the beginning of the book, the tone and theme of the story is pretty much set up. “It is a truth universally known that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife (Austen, 5).” Women know what men want, but men do not know what they want, nor do they understand that women are already aware of this. What is more, women are not allowed to make the first move, with the exception of the Bennets, who seem eager to do things backwards, so they must wait for the men to realize that there are eligible women about them. In the current era, it is quite common for both men and women to pursue relationships; in the era written about in Pride and Prejudice, it is ungainly for a woman to be the one seeking out a relationship (Zhisong). In fact, it is expected of her to wait for a man to come to her. Pride and Prejudice shows the distinctions between men and women and relationships. Men believe that they should be the ones to take charge of a relationship, yet women are tired of waiting for someone to take notice of them, so they decide to make themselves known. Men have a set idea of how they want their women to be in regard to appearance, intellect, and skills; men in the 1800s appeared to be rather shallow towards their ideal women. Women, however, simply wanted their men to be wealthy, so that they could be guaranteed to be taken care of. Pride and Prejudice offers a lot of rules of femininity, ones that, if women did not follow, they would not appear appealing to potential suitors. It was believed that since women had to be appealing to men, then men should be the ones to lay down the ideals of what constitutes as a perfect woman. However, throughout Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen redefined these rules through the character of Elizabeth Bennet, who was not so keen to sway a suitor based on her accomplishments and beauty (Harish, 2010). Femininity in Pride and Prejudice is important because it shows how things have changed from the 1800s to the 2000s in regard to what is and is not proper behavior of women, and what men expect of them. Works Cited Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. New York: Signet Classic, 1996. Print. Gleason, Jessica. “Jane Austen and Feminism.” Suite101.com. Victorian Fiction, 2 July 2008. Web. 11 April 2010. Harish, Janani. “Feminine Individuality in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.” Worldacademy.org. World Academy of Art & Science, 02 March 2010. Web. Online. “Pride and Prejudice -- Notes on Education, Marriage, and Status of Women.” Pemberley.com. Pride and Prejudice, Hypertext, n.d. Web. 13 April 2010. Zhisong, Zhang. “Feminism in Pride and Prejudice.” Fld.ustc.edu. Ninety Five, n.d. Web. 12 April 2010. Read More