Pride and Prejudice - Enduring Appeal - Essay Example

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE- ENDURING APPEAL It is one thing to like and appreciate a ic; it is totally another to obsesses over it. And if there were ever such a classic, then it has been Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. The novel has captured and retained the attention of readers and audiences since it was first released more than two centuries ago. What is so enduringly appealing about the novel You may ask. It was obviously not set in contemporary times, had a social setup that no longer exists and reading the text can be tiresome at times with unnecessary balls, parties and confusion. What then makes this novel so charming that it had captivated audiences for centuries and has been made into stage plays, television dramas and movies several times. According to Lilian Robinson the 'great subjects' of Pride and Prejudice are 'class, love, money and marriage'. (p. 179) The producer of the television adaptation of this classic feels that 'though it's about many things, it's principally about sex, and it's about money: those are the driving motives of the plot'. (p. v) Sir Walter Scott commented in 1827, Also read again, and for the third time at least, Miss Austen's very finely written novel of Pride and Prejudice. That young lady had a talent for describing the involvements, and feelings, and characters of ordinary life, which is to me the most wonder I ever met with. The Big Bow-wow strain I can do like any now going; but the exquisite touch, which renders ordinary commonplace things and characters interesting, from the truth of the description and the sentiment, is denied to me. (Gilson 475) There are several reasons that account for the enduring charm of this novel. But the main strength of the book lies in its characters that people can easily identify with. Just take away Elizabeth or Darcy from the novel, would it still enjoy the same popularity that it does today, I doubt that. There is something immensely powerful about the way characters have been sketched especially Elizabeth and Darcy. Combined with vibrant characters is the orthodox romance- and together they give us a work that simply refuses to relegate. Elizabeth is a free spirited young woman who hates to be confined by the norms of the society. Miss Bingley at one occasion describes Elizabeth's free spirit as "an abominable sort of conceited independence, a most country town indifference to decorum." (26) Darcy is on the other hand a man with the world at his feet. When such a man falls in love with the otherwise plain looking Lizzy, the world has to sit up and take notice. Isn't this the story we could all relate to with its fairy-tale yet identifiable content Romance has an enduring quality about it and when presented with characters that are both lively and real, you have a deadly combination. That explains why Pride and Prejudice has never failed to attract the audiences in over two centuries. Strong vibrant characters and powerful romance make this work exceptionally outstanding for centuries. According to G.K Chesterton, Jane Austen "knew much more about men" than the Brontes or George Eliot (109). He further claimed that there was "an infallible force to her irony" and a "stunning weight to her understatements" (xv) Having said all that, the fact remains, had it not been for Lizzy's independent spirit and Darcy's arrogance, we wouldn't be obsessing over the enduring appeal of Pride and Prejudice the way we do today. Lizzy was everything that a woman in the 18h century must have hoped to become. She was intelligent and outspoken yet sensitive and loving. Regardless of what some feminist studies might reveal, Lizzy was not a feminist. She was strong and powerful because she was intelligent but she was neither against marriage nor was she above falling in love with men. Another thing that makes her absolutely irresistible is her ordinariness. Lizzy was not beautiful in the traditional sense. But she had her own beauty- beauty that comes from being original. She was a first rate version of herself at all times. Her genuine disregard for convention is endearing since it never overwhelms the reader. Lizzy is not like Emma. She understands the culture and social norms but doesn't mind breaking a few rules here and there just to assert herself and to stamp her individuality on things she does and decisions she makes. Austen's power in the novel comes from being able to present ordinary people in a refreshingly new light. Lizzy was the classic example of that. She was not only an ordinary woman on the surface but was plain looking as well but she had a spirit so genuine and original that her ordinariness takes a back seat while we find ourselves lost in the extraordinariness of her spirit. It is clear from critical acclaim that Austen received over the years that Pride and Prejudice stood as a model of art since its publication in 1800s. One extraordinary example of this was a letter written by G. H. Lewes in which he suggested Charlotte Bronte model her novel after Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Bronte was visibly annoyed and wrote back wondering why Lewes "like[s] Miss Austen so very much" when all she could see Pride and Prejudice depict was "an accurate, daguerreotyped portrait of a commonplace face! a carefully-fenced, highly-cultivated garden, with neat borders and delicate flowers; but no glance of a bright, vivid physiognomy, no open country, no fresh air, no blue hill, no bonny beck. I should hardly like to live with her ladies and gentlemen, in their elegant but confined houses" (January 12, 1848). Lewes reflected on this and responded by saying: "It is easy for the artist to choose a subject from every-day life, but it is not easy for him to so represent the characters and their actions that they shall be at once lifelike and interesting. . . . But Miss Austen is like Shakespeare; she makes her very noodles inexhaustibly amusing, yet accurately real. We never tire of her characters" (Kaminsky 91-92). Such was the power of ordinary in Austen's novels. Elizabeth Bennett turned into the most extraordinary heroine in literature through her shining spirit and vibrant personality. She was not even a little bothered by comments made by Darcy about her looks and was more than delighted to share the story with her friends. Even though the comment: 'She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men" (7-8) would agitate even the most thick skinned person, Lizzy was delighted by its sheer absurdity as Austen tells us: "She told the story however with great spirit among her friends; for she had a lively, playful disposition, which delighted in any thing ridiculous." (p. 8) From that moment onwards, Elizabeth had established the character of Darcy in her mind. She made it clear that while she wouldn't mind his pride, she couldn't possibly allow him to mortify hers. (p. 13) It was interesting then that the more Elizabeth disliked him, the more Darcy started noticing her. He was pleasantly surprised by the easiness of her manner. Lizzy's character was so well developed that Austen never wavered from that even for a single moment. She was presented as an independent playful character and every event, incident and dialogue confirmed this side of her personality. Darcy was intrigued by her intelligence and casual disregard for convention. "Elizabeth was far from suspecting that she was herself becoming an object of some interest in the eyes of his friendhe was forced to acknowledge her figure to be light and pleasing; and in spite of his asserting that her manners were not those of the fashionable world, he was caught by their easy playfulness." (p. 16) Time and again, Elizabeth shunned Darcy's attempts at friendship making it absolutely clear she wasn't in awe of him. The most interesting line is spoken early in the book when Elizabeth is offered a chance to dance with Darcy at Sir William's party. When Sir William tries to pair off Elizabeth with Darcy, she is quick to retreat: 'Indeed, Sir, I have not the least intention of dancing. --I entreat you not to suppose that I moved this way in order to beg for a partner.' (18-19) Even though Elizabeth was fully aware of what it meant to be the object of Darcy's affection, she was resolute in her dislike for the man. It speaks volumes about her character that refused to change simply because someone's feelings towards her had altered. Any other woman would have been pleased to be loved and admired by Darcy but Elizabeth felt she had more than one reason to dislike him. She was not only prejudiced by her own opinion of the man, but was also repelled by his role in separating Jane from Mr. Bingley. Darcy's ardent proposal: "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 and love you" (145) was met by a cold response that exposed Elizabeth's pride, sensitivity, vulnerability and mental strength. "'why with so evident a design of offending and insulting me, you chose to tell me that you liked me against your will, against your reason, and even against your character". Had not my own feelings decided against you, had they been indifferent, or had they even been favourable, 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'" (146) Elizabeth consistent rejection results in stronger love and the sexual tension that it creates is unmistakable. That combined with indifferent charm of Darcy's makes for electric romance. And what is more enduring about this romance is its universal appeal. People around the world in different times have been able to identify with this kind of strong affection for someone who had once appeared not pretty enough. The story also contains the fairy-tale element that has turned stories like Cinderella immortal. When you have obstacles in the way of love and you see the characters falling for each other in spite of them, it adds fairy-tale charm to the story. People yearn for fairy tales to come true. They buy dreams and that explains why Pride and Prejudice has been so successful. However having said that, we must not forget that even a fairy tale can die a natural death if it doesn't have strong characters. The enduring appeal of Pride and Prejudice is definitely grounded in its vibrant characters especially Elizabeth Bennett and Darcy apart from other contributing factors mentioned above. References Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice. James Kinsley edition. Oxford University Press. Oxford. 1980 Lilian S. Robinson, 'Why Marry Mr Collins', in Sex, Class and Culture [1978], London: Methuen, 1986 Sue Birtwistle and Susie Conkin, The Making of'Pride and Prejudice, London: Penguin Books, BBC Books, 1995 Kaminsky Alice R. Literary Criticism of George Henry Lewes. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1964. Gilson David. A Bibliography of Jane Austen. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982 Chesterton, G. K. The Victorian Age in Literature. London: Williams & Northgate, 1925 Read More