Pride and Prejudice - Book Review
Pride and Prejudice
Written by: Jane Austen
“It is a truth
universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune
must be in want of a wife”
Review
English novelist Jane Austen wrote "Pride and
Prejudice" in the late 18th century, precisely on January 28, 1813.
Nevertheless, I was just able to purchase its most recent edition, even though
the book was only just released in 2010 by HarperCollins Publishers. I am truly
intrigued by how the characters in the book and film didn't contradict each
other's personalities because I initially saw the entire plot as a movie.
Overall, there are no differences; the way the roles are being played, the
scenes, and especially the overall plot—are all flawless. Aside from that, it
is clear that this novel genuinely offers the best of everything, including a
fantastic romance, endearing characters, humor, and magnificent writing.
I’m not that fond of classical stories for the reason
that I always prefer genres like thrillers and science fiction. Also, one of
the reasons is that I couldn’t catch up with the kind of wording they are
using. Fortunately, the book I bought has a glossary in it to explain the
useful words and phrases that seem to be too fancy for the readers. However, I believe that
once you try something new, changes become inevitable. For example, right now,
as I'm reading a book that I just started a few weeks ago, I can feel the
atmosphere of the actual setting as if I were one of the characters. This may
sound cringeworthy. Maybe it's just that whenever I get the chance, especially
when I'm really into something, I like to embody what I read. Even though they
are similar in certain aspects, I can state that this book's portrayal of the
consequences of love and the social divisions of the late 18th century is
superior to the movie. I was overjoyed to discover this book out of the blue. I
genuinely loved every page of this fantastic book and did not want it to end. I
would surely recommend this book to anyone-- fans of romance, family-oriented
stories, comedies, most especially, fans of classics.
Summary
The property at
Netherfield Park has been rented by a wealthy young man named Charles Bingley,
which sparks a lot of excitement in the surrounding village of Longbourn,
especially among the Bennet family. Following a social visit from Mr. Bennet to
Mr. Bingley, the Bingleys attend a ball where Mr. Bingley is also present. He
is, however, captivated by Jane and spends a large portion of the evening
dancing with her. While this is going on, Mr. Darcy, a close friend of his, is
less thrilled with the evening and arrogantly declines to dance with Elizabeth,
which makes everyone else think of him as conceited and rude. Over the next few
weeks, Mr. Darcy notices that his attraction to Elizabeth's charm and
intelligence grows. Moreover, Jane pays a visit to the Bingley house as her
connection with Mr. Bingley deepens. Unfortunately, when walking home, she is
caught in a downpour and becomes unwell, which forces her to spend many days at
Netherfield. Elizabeth thus ventures across muddy fields to visit Jane, much to
the disapproval of the snobby Miss Bingley, Charles Bingley's sister, and
arrives with spattered clothing. Elizabeth and Jane discover Mr. Collins, a
young clergyman who will inherit Mr. Bennet's estate, visiting their home when
they get back home. Even though he is completely fascinated by the Bennet
girls, Mr. Collins is a proud idiot. However, soon after his arrival, he
unexpectedly proposes to Elizabeth, which she declines, hurting his dignity. In
the meantime, Wickham, a young soldier who tells Elizabeth how Darcy unjustly
defrauded him of an inheritance, is among the militia officers the Bennet
sisters had grown close to in a nearby town.
The revelation that
Mr. Collins is now engaged to Charlotte Lucas, Elizabeth's best friend and the
underprivileged daughter of a local knight, comes as yet another surprise.
Elizabeth is informed by Charlotte that she is aging and requires the match for
financial reasons. That is why she pledges to pay Charlotte and Mr. Collins'
new house a visit after their marriage. Meanwhile, Jane travels to the city to
see friends as the winter develops, also hoping that she might see Mr. Bingley.
But on the other hand, Mr. Bingley neglects to pay her any visits. In the
spring of that year, Elizabeth pays a visit to Charlotte, who has since moved
close to the residence of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, a supporter of Mr. Collins
and Darcy's aunt. When Darcy visits Lady Catherine, he runs into Elizabeth, and
as a result of her presence, he makes several trips to the Collins' house,
where she is staying. He makes a startling marriage proposal one day, which
Elizabeth promptly rejects. She reprimands Darcy for leading Bingley away from
Jane and disinheriting Wickham after telling him that she finds him conceited
and nasty. After leaving her, Darcy quickly brings her a note. He acknowledges
in this letter that he advised Bingley to keep his distance from Jane, but he
argues he only did so because he believed their romance was not serious.
Elizabeth reconsiders her feelings for Darcy after reading this letter. When
she gets back home, she treats Wickham harshly. The departure of the militia
upsets the younger, rather man-obsessed Bennet girls. Wickham's regiment will
be stationed in Brighton, and Lydia can convince her father to give her
permission to spend the summer there with a retired colonel. When June finally
shows up, Elizabeth embarks on another trip, this time with the Bennets'
relatives, the Gardiners. She travels to the north and ultimately arrives in
the vicinity of Darcy's mansion, Pemberley. After confirming that Darcy is
absent, she visits Pemberley and enjoys the home and grounds while learning
about Darcy's great, kind lord from his staff.
The couple may be
cohabitating outside of marriage, however, as soon as a letter from home
informs Elizabeth that Lydia has run off with Wickham and that they are no
longer in sight. Elizabeth rushes home out of concern for the embarrassment
such an event would put on her entire family. Mr. Bennet finally comes home
after Mr. Gardiner without finding Lydia and goes to look for her. When it
appears like there is no hope left, Mr. Gardiner writes to say that the pair
has been located and that Wickham has agreed to wed Lydia in exchange for a
yearly salary. The Bennets believe Mr. Gardiner has released Wickham from his
debts, but Elizabeth discovers that the source of the funds, was none other
than Mr. Darcy.
Wickham and Lydia, who
are now married, briefly visit Longbourn, where Mr. Bennet treats them rudely.
After that, they set off for Wickham's new job in the north of England. Bingley
continues courting Jane shortly after his return to Netherfield. Darcy stays
with him and visits the Bennets, but he never expresses his wish to wed
Elizabeth. Contrarily, Bingley pursues his suit and asks Jane to marry him,
much to the joy of everyone except Bingley's arrogant sister. Lady Catherine de
Bourgh pays a visit to Longbourn while the family is having a party. She
confronts Elizabeth and claims to have learned that her nephew Darcy intends to
wed her. Lady Catherine wants Elizabeth to vow that she won't accept him since
she thinks a Bennet is an inappropriate marriage for a Darcy. Elizabeth politely
declines, stating that while she isn't engaged to Darcy, she won't make any
promises that might jeopardize her happiness. Later, while Darcy and Elizabeth
take a stroll together, he admits that his sentiments haven't changed since the
spring. After she compassionately accepted his proposal, Elizabeth and Mr.
Darcy got married, along with Jane and Mr. Bingley.
Analysis
1. Sociological Criticism — Social
status has always been a key component of English society, even before. In the novel,
the author utilizes sarcasm and satirical words or phrases to attack various
facets of society. She masterfully employs sarcasm to highlight the absurd
characters, who serve as a vehicle for the author's social criticism.
2. Gender Criticism — The author
critiques traditional stereotypical gender roles that see women as objects and
beautiful statues with no rights in addition to critiquing society's overall
perspective. She is also against how society views marriage. However, the
system of entailment and the absence of self-actualization opportunities—the
eventual restriction of family estate ownership to specific descendants—can
also be considered examples of gender inequality.
3. Feminist Criticism — The issue of
women's reputation in the book is there for a reason. At this time, the primary
character, Elizabeth Bennet, portrayed feminism as she made an argument for the
situation knowing that men were indeed superior to women in Georgian England.
In addition, she struggles with the tension between societal stigmas and moral
justice.
The plot of the story
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