PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, by Jane Austen
Autor: Nayara | Publicado: 2007-06-27T05:27:00-07:00

“Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves; vanity, to what we would have others think us.”Jane AustenINTRODUCTION                          “Pride and Prejudice”, by Jane Austen, was her most popular novel, published on 28 January 1813 and it is one of the first romantic comedies in history, which received initially the name of First Impressions, but it was never published under that title. However both of them relate mainly to Elizabeth’s and Darcy’s misunderstandings when they got acquainted. The success of the book is probably due to the unusual relationship established between the main characters, the haughty Mr. Darcy, who has inspired many other stories, and Miss Elizabeth, a headstrong girl who attracts readers for her liveliness, as well as the ironies always present in their conversations.PLOT SUMMARY                      The story begins with, perhaps, the most famous phrase of 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, which provides a first thought on what the book is about. Mr. and Mrs. Bennet have five daughters, Jane, Elizabeth, Catherine, Lydia and Mary, and since the eldest was sixteen, the woman’s main object is marriage. She turned in great enthusiasm by the arrival of a young quite rich single man, Mr. Bingley, who was temporarily in the state with his friend, Mr. Darcy, two sisters, Miss Bingley and Mrs. Hurst, as well as her husband. They attend a ball in town and meet the Bennets. Bingley dances with Jane and many other girls, then suggests that Darcy dances with Elizabeth, but he refuses it. Darcy did it only twice with his friend’s sisters, “declined being introduced to any other lady and spent the rest of the evening in walking about the room, speaking occasionally to one of his own party” (p. 11), therefore, people from Netherfield found him “at the same time haughty, reserved, and fastidious, and his manners, though well bred, were not inviting” (p. 15). Besides, when he was asked about Elizabeth’s beauty, Darcy said she was tolerable. On the other hand, Bingley proved to be very agreeable.                Soon after the ball, Mr. Collins, Mr. Bennet’s cousin, who would inherit his property, visits the family to marry one of the girls. Once his patroness, Lady Catharine de Bourgh, said he had to find a wife. He chooses Elizabeth, but she does not accept the proposal, even though her mother insists on this. In the meantime, she meets Mr. Wickham, a handsome and charming young officer. He informs her he knows Mr. Darcy since they were children and tells her his story which creates a prejudice against the haughty man.After Elizabeth’s refusal, Mr. Collin marries her friend, Charlotte Lucas. Some time later, the new couple invite Miss Bennet to visit them. But Mr. Darcy also goes to Rosings to see his aunt, Lady Catharine. So Elizabeth and he meet each other everyday and this leads to a change in Darcy’s feelings for her. Until one day, he declares his love and she refuses it by saying he insulted her family, separated her “most beloved sister” from the man she loved and caused Mr. Wickham’s misfortunes. The next day, he gives a letter explaining everything he had done and the situation with Wickham. This brought about Eliza another opinion of Mr. Darcy.              Many weeks later, she travels with the Gardiners, her aunt and uncle. They reach Darcy’s state, Pemberly, whiles he is not at home. But he comes back one day before and they meet each other unexpectedly. Surprisingly, he acts thoroughly different: talks to her and her family politely. He manages to change Elizabeth’s bad opinions of him and presents her to his sister, Georgiana.              When Darcy and Elizabeth start to get along well, she receives a letter from Jane saying Lydia eloped with Wickham. She cries in front of Darcy and tells him everything, returning home the same day. They discover Wickham has gambling debts and does not intend to marry Lydia. Mr. Darcy pays everything to make him marry Elizabeth’s sister, but keeps Eliza and her family unaware of everything                   Lady Catherine finds out her nephew’s proposal to Lizzy and inquires her if that might be true. As Miss Bennet gives her evasive answers, the lady goes back home and tells her nephew what happened in Hertfordshire. He realizes there is a possibility of marrying Elizabeth. The story ends with two engagements: Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth and Mr. Bingley with Jane and Kitty’s and Mary’s change of behavior.  AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY     Jane Austen was born on 16 December 1775, in Hampshire. Her parents were the Reverend George Austen and Cassandra. In the beginning, she was educated at home and, as a child, wrote comic stories. The first mature work was a novella – Lady Susan. In her twenties, she wrote the novels Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice.  After her father’s death, she, her sister and her mother moved to Chawton Cottage and this was her most productive period. Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park and Emma were published that time. When she finished Persuasion, however, her health began to fail. This one and Northanger Abbey were published at the same time.   She died on 28 July 1817, but her books have never been out of print and are often included on lists of readers' favorites. One believes that she died from Addison’s disease.HOPE YOU ENJOY IT!!>> Read the novel in English <<>> Read the novel in Spanish <<>> Read the novel in Portuguese <<Feedjit Live Blog Stats