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Pride and Prejudice book cover Pride and Prejudice is the most famous of Jane Austen's novels, and its opening is one of the most famous lines in English literature—"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." Its manuscript was first written between 1796 and 1797, and was initially called First Impressions, but was never published under that title. Following revisions it was published on 28 January 1813 by the same Mr. Egerton of the Military Library, Whitehall, who had brought out Sense and Sensibility. Like both its predecessor and Northanger Abbey, it was written at Steventon Rectory.
Plot summarySpoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.The story deals with issues surrounding courtship and marriage among the landed gentry in the late 18th century and early 19th century. The main character is Elizabeth Bennet, a 20-year-old girl possessed of a quick mind, sharp wit, and keen sense of justice. Elizabeth's father, Mr. Bennet, spends much of his time hiding in his study, a refuge from Elizabeth's mother. Mrs. Bennet (whose manners and conduct are decidedly "of the people") is determined to see each of her five daughters successfully married to gentlemen of sufficient fortune to support a wife. The Bennet family's modest estate is entailed in default of heirs male—which means a cousin, Mr. Collins, will inherit the estate on Mr. Bennet's death, due to the lack of sons in the Bennet family. This will leave Mrs. Bennet and any unmarried daughters homeless and trying to live on a very small income. The beginning of the novel describes Mrs. Bennet's excitement over the arrival of a single man "of considerable fortune" in their neighbourhood. The man, Mr. Bingley, has recently leased the estate of Netherfield to live in with his single sister Miss Bingley and his married sister, Mrs. Hurst, whose husband has more fashion than wealth. After a short period, Mr. Bingley goes on a short trip to London and returns with his friend, Mr. Darcy. Shortly after their arrival Mr. Bingley and his guests attend a public ball in the village of Meryton. At the beginning of the ball, Mr. Darcy is widely regarded as a most agreeable gentleman due to his fine figure and £10,000 a year. However, halfway through the party, the neighbourhood comes to perceive him as a most disagreeable sort, one who believes himself above the country folk of Elizabeth's town. This is perpetuated within the Bennet family afterwards because Mr. Darcy slights Elizabeth—Mr. Bingley suggests that Darcy dance with Elizabeth and he notes that "she is not handsome enough to tempt me." Mr. Bingley, on the other hand, proves himself to the neighbourhood to be a fine, most agreeable gentleman. Mr. Bingley also is noted for his admiration of Elizabeth's dearest sister, Jane. Shortly after the ball, Mr. Bennet announces to the family that a visitor will be arriving shortly. Mrs. Bennet and the girls amuse themselves with guesses as to who the man is, but are disappointed to find out it is only their cousin, Mr. Collins, a ridiculous, laughable buffoon of a clergyman. Collins is forever searching for opportunities to drop the name of his patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh, whom he fawns over like a puppy dog. Following Lady Catherine's suggestions that he get a wife, Collins immediately looks to his "poor cousins" to find a wife and make up for his involvement in the oft mentioned ruination of the Bennet girls (the fact that he is even concerned with his role suggests an ignorance of the law concerning entails and Collins's overall ineptitude). Collins, upon being informed that Jane (Elizabeth's elder sister and the only other "sensible" Bennet girl) was "practically engaged" to Mr. Bingley, begins to eye the lovely Elizabeth Bennet. Mrs. Bennet highly encourages the match and tries to force Elizabeth into the marriage. However, Mr. Bennet saves Elizabeth by mentioning that if she does not marry Collins, Elizabeth's mother will never speak to her again, but if she does then Mr. Bennet will never speak to her again. Meanwhile, Elizabeth also begins falling for a recently arrived military officer, Mr. Wickham, a man who claims to have been robbed of his rightful inheritance by none other than Mr. Darcy. Having been rejected by Elizabeth, Mr. Collins turns to Elizabeth's best friend Charlotte Lucas, and they are soon married—to Mrs. Bennet's profound disappointment. Soon after this disappointment, Mrs. Bennet is further discouraged by the sudden departure of Bingley from the neighbourhood. Jane is also heartbroken and Mrs. Bennet's disparaging remarks about Bingley only heighten Jane's sorrow. Elizabeth is invited to visit the newlyweds, Mr. Collins and Charlotte, in their parish. While Elizabeth is visiting the Collinses, Darcy is visiting his aunt, the same Lady Catherine de Bourgh, at her estate Rosings. Elizabeth and Darcy end up spending a lot of time together, leading Mr. Darcy to eventually declare his love for Elizabeth "against his own will" and his desire to marry her. Elizabeth is appalled (especially since she had recently learned that Darcy dissuaded Bingley from proposing to Jane) and informs Darcy "he is the last man on earth [she] would ever desire to marry." The morning after her rejection of Darcy, Elizabeth runs into him on a walk. Darcy gives Elizabeth a letter before coldly leaving. In the letter, Darcy attempts to defend his actions to Elizabeth. He notes that, apart from her embarrassing relations, Darcy did not believe Jane a suitable match for Bingley because of her own seeming indifference to Bingley. (Elizabeth herself admits that Jane's reserved character makes it difficult for others to ascertain her true feelings.) Darcy also reveals Wickham's true character as a womanizing cad and opportunist. This throws all of Darcy's past actions in a new light for Elizabeth and gradually her prejudices against Darcy are broken down. Later, while on vacation in with the Gardiners, her aunt and uncle, she finds herself persuaded to visit Pemberley, the estate of Mr. Darcy. While on a tour around the grounds, she bumps into him unexpectedly. His behaviour, distinctly warmer since her rejection, begins to persuade her that his pride hides a true and generous nature. Just at the point of improving her relationship with Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth finds out that Lydia has eloped with Wickham. In Elizabeth's absence sixteen-year-old Lydia became Wickham's dupe when he fled his regiment to evade gambling debts. Darcy finds Wickham and forces him into marriage with Lydia, but guards this a secret from Elizabeth and her family. Elizabeth finds out about Darcy's help from Lydia's callousness and finally by Mrs. Gardiner's confession. This final action completes a reversal in Elizabeth's sentiments. Finally when his aunt Lady Catherine threatens her because she has heard about Darcy's inclination for a girl lesser than he, she comes to realize that despite her rejection at his first proposal he still loves her and when he brings back Bingley to the country and in her sister Jane's life (and they soon become engaged), she opens up her heart to him and both his pride and her prejudices are forgotten, ensuring their happiness. ThemesMarriage plays a large role in Pride and Prejudice. Some characters marry for security, some marry for wealth and some marry for love. The idea of marriage is very important throughout the novel, primarily because it was often the only way for a woman of the period to secure her freedom, social status, and living standard. Social classes are also taken into account and play a major role as a theme in Pride and Prejudice. People of higher class are very proud of themselves and do not like to socialise with those of lower class. A pure example is Darcy when we first meet him. Also, the Bingley sisters often talk together about the way people of lower classes act and look bitterly upon them. It is also seen as bad for people of higher classes to mingle with lower classes, but Bingley puts this idea away and proves to be a very social character. Jane Austen ridicules almost all of her upper-class characters, and her heroes tend to be upper-middle or middle-class. Lizzie Bennet insists that she is of the same class as Mr. Darcy, and snobbery is one of the characteristics of a villain in Jane Austen's novels. An important theme of all of Jane Austen's novels is how one correctly assess the characters of the people one meets. Because Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters need to marry, and need to marry well, it is vital that they be able to "read" the men in their social circle—or they might end up married to unprincipled, immoral men like Wickham. The "pride" of the book's title refers not only to Mr. Darcy's pride, but also to Lizzie's pride in her ability to read characters, which turns out to be faulty. Another major theme is that pride and prejudice both stand in the way of relationships, as embodied in the persons of Darcy and Elizabeth respectively. Pride narrows the vision of a person and causes one to underestimate other mortals. Prejudice blinds the vision and leads to false perceptions about others. Darcy’s pride and Elizabeth’s prejudice come in the way of understanding each other and keep them apart. Only when Darcy becomes more humble and Elizabeth becomes more accepting can they relate to one another and find happiness together. Principal charactersMr. Bennet — An English gentleman with an estate in Hertfordshire. He is married with five daughters, a circumstance relevant to his legacy. The terms of Mr. Bennet's inheritance require a male heir. Because he has no son, upon his death, his property is to be inherited by his closest male relative, Mr. Collins, a clergyman with whom he has had a poor relationship. Mr. Bennet, a gentle and caring man, is very close to his two elder daughters, Jane and Elizabeth. However, he has a poor opinion of the intelligence and sensibility of his wife and his three younger daughters, frequently declaring them "silly" and visiting them with insulting remarks as well as gentle teasing. Mrs. Bennet — wife of Mr. Bennet. Her main concern in life is the prospective loss of her property and home to Mr. Collins upon her husband's death. This anxiety has spurred her to take a keen interest in seeing her daughters married well. She angles for her new neighbour, Mr. Bingley, as a match for one of them. She also hopes for a match between one of her girls and Mr. Collins himself. Jane Bennet — the eldest of the Bennets' five daughters and the one considered the most beautiful. She has a reserved personality and tends to hide her feelings. She is incapable of suspecting the worst of people, preferring to see only the good. Elizabeth Bennet — the second sister, 20 years old, and the protagonist of the story. Mary Bennet — The third sister, bookish and shy. She disdains the frivolous interests of her sisters and seeks to impress others with her scholarly yet ill-timed aphorisms and musical abilities. Catherine "Kitty" Bennet — The fourth sister, 17 years old, generally follows the lead of her younger sister, Lydia. Lydia Bennet — the youngest of the five sisters, 15 years old. She is extremely flirtatious, naive and reckless. William Collins — a clergyman and cousin to Mr. Bennet. Mr. Collins, as the closest male relative to Mr. Bennet, stands to inherit the Bennet estate. Collins is sycophantically devoted to his patroness, the noblewoman Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Charlotte Lucas — close friend of Elizabeth and daughter of a neighbouring landowner. Charles Bingley — a wealthy young man who leases property near to the Bennets' estate. Louisa Hurst and Caroline Bingley — Mr. Bingley's sisters, who look down upon the Bennets and their society. Fitzwilliam Darcy — Mr. Bingley's close friend, a reserved and proud man, who is wary of his friend's getting entangled romantically with unsuitable women. Lady Catherine de Bourgh — aunt to Mr. Darcy and patroness of Mr. Collins. A proud and domineering woman, she has hoped for the marriage of Mr. Darcy and her daughter since they were infants. Georgiana Darcy — sister to Mr. Darcy. Anne de Bourgh — daughter to Lady Catherine and presumed betrothed of her cousin Mr. Darcy, suffers from some infirmity. George Wickham — an attractive young soldier who wins the friendship of Elizabeth Bennet. There is enmity between him and Mr. Darcy. Colonel Fitzwilliam — nephew of Lady Catherine and friend and cousin of Mr. Darcy. Mrs. Philips — sister to Mrs. Bennet Edward Gardiner — brother to Mrs. Bennet and Mrs. Philips. Mrs. Gardiner — wife of Mr. Gardiner. She is the favorite aunt of the Bennet sisters, particularly Elizabeth Bennet. Other media adaptationsPride and Prejudice has been the subject of many film and television adaptations [1].
There were three additional BBC television productions of Pride and Prejudice made in 1938, 1958, and 1967. Trivia
See also
See also: Pride and Prejudice, the Musical for a recent musical adaptation. External linksWikisource has original text related to this article: Pride and Prejudice Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Pride and Prejudice
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