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dwellordream · 2 years

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“Austen's fiction and her correspondence from her earliest writing days ironically reflects the restricted province in which her sex had placed her. The hitherto unrecognized savagery of her juvenilia, the plight of her heroines and the varied responses of each one to conduct book wisdom, clerical or lay, patriarchal or radical or moderate feminist, all indicate how much Austen had absorbed "the woman question." For example, Fanny Price was probably based on severely diffident and vulnerable neighbors such as the pathologically shy Miss Seymore who apparently lived in permanent "Penitence." Catherine Morland satisfied readers who thought that ignorance is charming in women, and as a daughter, she would have especially pleased Lord Halifax and Dr. Gregory. She and Marianne Dashwood exemplify that intellectual distortion that afflicted women without any formal education.

They both exaggerate feelings and avoid sustained thinking or serious reading, for fear, no doubt, of the philosophism that conduct-book males from Halifax through the pre-Victorian Duff had warned them about without recommending the obvious remedy. Elizabeth Bennet, Emma Woodhouse, Anne Elliot, and Elinor Dashwood all think for themselves; and approval or disapproval from readers, then and now, usually depends on the individual reader's sexual politics. Just as clerical preachers to women differed from their lay counterparts in this or that argument for male dominion and in the rhetoric that advanced their arguments, so Austen's clerical advisors to women, such as Mr. Collins, Mr. Elton, and Edmund Bertram, differ in their euphemistic conduct-book rhetoric, but not in their purposes, from two of Austen's secular heroes, Frederick Wentworth and Mr. Knightley. These two men both exploit the crisp, clear, and authoritative style of Halifax and Gregory, and they also base their arguments upon lay considerations rather than the primary consideration of the divine plan, from which source, to be sure, their assumptions of male superiority originated.

It is an intelligent critical commonplace that the young clergyman, Henry Tilney, does not sound like an ordained Anglican priest, and these critics who are quite unaware of the eighteenth-century war of the conduct books nonetheless unconsciously respond to something uncharacteristic of Austen's typical priests—and therefore of the historical conduct-book clergy—in Tilney's didactic speech. When he is not ironically imitating the anti-female satire of the Augustan wits, he instructs Catherine Morland as though he were a member of the Inns of Court, rather than a rector of a parish. His role is to induce readers to laugh at Catherine's Gothic sensibilities, and thus he is free of the unctuous pastoral metaphors so comfortable to most of Austen's fictional priests. Yet Henry in turn is an authorial target, for his creator understands as he does not that Catherine's fantasies are the predictable outcome of a society that devalues her and leaves her uneducated.

Nor is he troubled because he "consider[s] a certain degree of weakness, both of mind and body, as friendly to female grace" (Edgeworth, "Letter Upon the Birth of a Daughter," 34). As his creator slyly remarks, although to most men, "imbecility in females is a great enhancement of their personal charms," he is "too reasonable and too well informed . . . to desire any thing [nc] more in woman than ignorance" (NA, 111). Austen's judiciousness prevented her from creating heroines who exemplify the conduct-book "pictures of perfection," nor were her heroes, except for Darcy through Volumes I and II, quite as obsessed with their masculine privileges and as indifferent to the humiliations they inflicted upon the heroines as the heroes of Burney and Edgeworth. Austen's satirical techniques are particularly useful in preserving her judiciousness: they function as ricochets, or as boomerangs, in which her satirical characters themselves become the targets of their targets or, fully as often, of the understated authorial voice.

For instance, when Knightley satirizes the clergyman, Mr. Elton, as a man who cannot speak to women without nauseating euphemisms, Austen and her heroine approve. But Knightley himself denied all the evidences of Emma's predicament almost as resolutely as Elton; surrounded as he was with impoverished, exploited, or lonely women, most of them scantily educated spinsters, he could see no generic connections between Emma's case and theirs—that she has been as exploited in other ways to become what she is as they have been to become what they are. Yet his analysis of Emma's moral offenses is legitimate, his syntax on the whole is sensible, and he possesses the reassuring attractions of a squire's authority, which commands most readers' respect, despite his ponderous didactic methods with Emma, and, in many cases, because of them.

But Emma's mockery of his heavy male authority possesses a moral resonance that is rarely recognized as the revolt of an outsider who has been placated with some of the insiders' comforts and securities, without their autonomy of mind or movement. Readers often offer Frederick Wentworth the same forbearance as they offer Knightley, and for the same reason. He is fundamentally a very decent man, and his pride in his talents and achievements is quite legitimate. But because he is free of Anne Elliot's feminine constraints, he has the free person's typical blindness toward other people's fetters, and his proud assumption that he has a right to her prevents him from fighting for her. In fact, he eventually takes his revenge upon her in an ugly way, reminiscent of Henry Crawford. He flirts publicly with two women in front of Anne, thus discomforting three women whose code of feminine decorum prevents them from challenging his duplicity.

Readers do well to feel comfortable when they respond to the appeals of these two heroes, as long as they do not confuse their responses with absolute acceptance of the way the heroes treat women. Frederick Wentworth and Mr. Knightley do both possess a rueful wit with which they are almost never credited, and especially when they admit their own blindness about the heroines. Both of them fully accept their professional responsibilities; and as Alistair Duckworth has pointed out, Knightley's respect for his land is associated with his feudal courtesies toward others (The Improvement of the Estate). Austen's own affectionate respect for responsible laymen is one of her most judicious kindnesses toward the male sex. There are two exceptions to Austen's monitoring of her heroes' rhetoric by profession—lay or clerical—that may seem odd, at first. Edward Ferrars, who is eventually ordained, avoids unctuous rhetoric with women, whereas Colonel Brandon, the layman, does not.

Their relative male empowerment during their young manhood was the same, for they were both treated like younger sons, which Brandon was and Edward was not, and both suffered from tyrannical parents. But Edward had not yet emerged into the authority of manhood, with its assumptions of possessive and didactic privileges over women, whereas Colonel Brandon's military service in the colonies had already prepared him for unquestioned authority over disempowered peoples, unobtrusively as he would wish to administer it. Edward, the clergyman in the making, sounds more like an Augustan wit in an uncommonly relaxed and genial mood, in those rare moments when he smiles and lightly teases the attitudinizing Marianne. Brandon, the layman, does not share Edward's occasional Johnsonian wit and pith. He has chosen to establish his masculine authority with rhetoric far closer to Fordyce than is common in Austen's secular males.

The Augustan wits in their misogynist moods were feminist targets as often as the male conduct books, and mocking Pope's mockery of women was one of the feminists' favorite didactic weapons. But they hardly ever mention Swift's poetry, and perhaps for that reason there are no "bantering" allusions to it in Austen's fiction. Swift's slightly condescending attitude toward Stella would not have appealed to her ideal of robust conversational exchange between the sexes. And a woman who found The Spectator vulgar and insulting to women would have been disgusted with Swift's excretory poems and his Phillises, Corinnas, and Chloes, drowsy in their moist nakedness, not quite harlots and not quite grunting sows. Austen must have been quite as aware as Swift that "Celia shits!" But she would have encountered no literature that would have suggested so grave a suspension of anatomical probability as to preach that women only create such a "sinking Ooze" as part of their postlapsarian punishment.

Austen's respect for Pope is distinctly guarded. One of her objections must have been his shallow, vain women, his goddesses of spleen and boredom, and his description of them as typifying generic womanhood. She was as capable as he of creating ugly creatures, but her irony is almost always forgiving, or at least understanding. One of the most admirable traits is her habit of explaining the origins of ugly behavior, both in its private and public causes, so that the blame falls upon faulty parentage and hostile social conditions as often as it does on her ugly characters. Pope must have seemed to Austen to lack this Christian and Enlightenment charity toward the fallible human species; above all, to Austen, a member of "an injured body" of people, daily conscious of those injuries, both petty and grave, Pope must have seemed to lack charity toward women (Ν A, 37).

There are two ironic references to Pope in Sense and Sensibility. Elinor Dashwood, the oldest of three penniless young women, combines both the "affectionate heart" so dear to traditional moralists, and the analytical "understanding" that feminist literature of both persuasions stressed as imperative for women's survival. Elinor ironically congratulates Marianne, the second sister, because Marianne's suitor pretends, as a seductive ploy, to feel exactly as she does about literature. He values "the beauties" of Cowper and Scott, and he has reassured Marianne that he admires "Pope no more than is proper" (SS, 47). Another ironic scene in Sense and Sensibility reduces Pope's The Rape of the Lock and all its mocking neoclassical apparatus, to Willoughby's squalid attempt to soften Marianne for seduction.

This version of the rape of a lock is reported through the eyes of Marianne's gaping thirteen year-old sister, who describes how Willoughby waited until there were no adults in the room and then "cut off a long lock of [Marianne's] hair, for it was all tumbled down her back; and he kissed it. .. and put it in his pocket-book" (SS, 60). The oblique contrast between Marianne, a genuinely tender if foolish and solipsistic virgin of seventeen, and Pope's painted Belinda, who knows all the arts of avoiding actual seduction while enjoying its preludes, cannot be accidental. Belinda's "two locks, which graceful hung behind," did so, "to the Destruction of Mankind," whereas Marianne's "long lock," which "tumbled down her back," did so only to her own near destruction. In Pope's mock epic, Belinda's locks are "hairy Sprindges," which "conspir'd" to "insnare Man's Imperial Race."

Yet Pope's epic leaves matters open as to which sex was the more ensnared by the other: Th' Adventrous Baron the bright Locks admir'd, He saw, he wish'd, and to the Prize aspir'd By Force to ravish, or by Fraud betray. But Marianne is not at all conscious that she is sexually appealing, although she finds Willoughby so. Austen, who knew the difference between a heartless flirt and a sexually naive young woman in love for the first time, creates in Willoughby the conduct-book warning first to be found in Gregory and Halifax and later in all the feminist writing: Marianne was lucky to have mere fraud practiced on her, as her friends later remind her. Willoughby was summoned elsewhere, and he left the Dashwoods suddenly without explanation, before he could try "Force" or "Fraud" on a young woman he did not intend to marry.

Elinor's mild irony at Pope's expense implicitly includes Willoughby, whom she already distrusts. Austen was too professional a novelist to ignore the examples of witty syntax that the Augustan wits supplied her. Her own infectious pleasure in Pride and Prejudice, especially the "epigrammatism of the general style," indicates that she acknowledged her male predecessors in the arts of satire (Letters, 300). She adopted their skills with epigrammatical irony, their aphoristic barbs and wise sayings, their zeugmas and syllepses, their balanced cadences, and above all, their gusty pleasure in verbal virtuosities. Her earliest juvenilia called Volume the First is Austen's own version of "A Modest Proposal"; it contains an astonishing demonstration of deliberately unredeemed satire. Here is an example of Austen's syntax when she was twelve.

A duke whose wife has died, "mourned her loss with unshaken constancy for the next fortnight." He then "gratified the ambitions of Caroline Simpson by raising her to the rank of a Duchess." Caroline's sister Sukey, equally ambitious but anxious to achieve her goals through her own efforts, including unmaidenly violence, "was likewise shortly after elevated in a manner she .. . deserved. She was speedily raised to the Gallows" (MW, 28-29). Austen's juvenilia contains one verbal felicity after the other. There is Lady Williams, "in whom every virtue met. She was a widow with a handsome Jointure & the remains of a handsome face." There is "cruel Charles," who "wound[s] the hearts & legs of all the fair" young women for whom he sets steel traps. And there is "the worthless Louisa," who left her husband, "her Child & reputation .. in company with Danvers and dishonour" (MW, 13, 22, 110).

There is a delightfully ebullient moment when Austen, already the author of two novels, and now at work upon a third, writes to Cassandra: "In a few hours, you will be transported to Many down & then for Candour & Comfort & Coffee & Cribbage." And there is an unforgettable "Adm. Stanhope," who was "a gentlemanlike Man, but then his legs are too short, & his tail too long" (,Letters, 302, 129). What a fine rehearsal this verbal dexterity is for that alliterative moment in Pride and Prejudice, when Elizabeth Bennet is leaving Charlotte Lucas, who has disgraced herself by marrying Mr. Collins. Elizabeth is musing to herself about "Poor Charlotte!" and how "melancholy" it was for Charlotte's friends "to leave her to such society" as her husband's: "But she had chosen it with her eyes open; and. . . she did not seem to ask for companions. Her home, her housekeeping, her parish and her poultry... had not yet lost their charms" (PP, 216; emphasis mine).

Elizabeth's sorrow for her friend Charlotte's marital debacle is as genuine as her capacity to refuse to think in cant. Her own bleak future, trapped at home with two outrageous parents and three silly sisters, still seems preferable to marriage with either of the two condescending suitors who had just proposed to her. But Charlotte had been driven to marry for just those motives of feminine desperation against which Halifax, Gregory, and Edgeworth had warned single women, and Austen had warned her niece, Fanny. Austen's juvenilia is both violent and mournful in ways that anticipate her mature fiction. She learned to modify the violence so that it is almost unrecognizable in her novels, but in "Volume the First" there are numerous descriptions of executions, amputations, female starvation, suicides, and attempted and successful murders of all kinds: matricide, fratricide, sororicide, and the attempted infanticide of an unwelcome new born girl, who takes her revenge far more violently than indulging in some "bantering."

She grows up to raise and command an army with which she slaughters her enemies. In "Volume the Second" and "Volume the Third," there is increased sadness and more open explorations of the themes first discussed by the radical and the moderate feminists. There are scenes of feminine deprivation, such as the abandonment of hungry and threadbare spinsters while male relatives dump their children on the trapped women, and amuse themselves spending the women's marriage portions. While one or another male relative "is fluttering about the streets of London," young and indifferent to the welfare of his abandoned wife and child, or "gay, dissipated, and Thoughtless at the age of 57," the women "continue secluded from mankind in [their] old and Mouldering Castle," often obsessed with food, clothing, and loneliness (MW, 111).

In "Volume The Third," the theme of women as outsiders, vulnerable to every contingency of malice, neglect, or mere custom, is more pronounced. Two young women, marriageable but impoverished orphans, are in "great distress" because they "had been reduced to a state of absolute dependence on some relatives, who though very opulent and very nearly connected with them, had with difficulty been prevailed on to contribute anything towards their Support." The solution of the eldest was one with which Austen was familiar, since her father's dowerless sister was forced to go to India to find a husband. This is Austen's fictional version of the same sad solution, written thirty-five years after her aunt's desperate emigration. Already at sixteen, Austen was subliminally aware of what happened to dowerless spinsters. Her fictional spinster "had been necessitated to embrace the only possibility that was offered her, of a Maintenance."

This polite sale of herself to an elderly and bad-tempered man was "so opposite to all her ideas of Propriety, so contrary to her Wishes, so repugnant to her feelings, that she would almost have preferred Servitude... had Choice been allowed her." For Mary, another and younger dowerless sister, "There was not indeed that hopelessness of sorrow.. . she was not yet married and could yet look forward to a change in her circumstances." But this unfinished story called "Catherine" leaves Mary still abandoned to the charms of a companion's post, and both hopeless and "depressed" (MW, 194-195). Achievements of Austen's magnitude are always something of a mystery, and in Austen's case, the mystery is even greater than it is for her male colleagues. How did she learn to temper her hyperbolically witty yet bleak child's vision, which could imagine only a world of sycophants and of hostile, competing groups?

Where did she learn that buoyancy that she attributes to one of her minor women characters, "that elasticity of mind, that disposition to be comforted, that power of turning from evil to good, and of finding employment which carried her out of herself, which was from Nature alone"? The quietly witty but depressed Anne Elliot asks herself these questions about Mrs. Smith, an ill and penniless widow, betrayed by her husband and now abandoned by society in a back street of Bath. Anne compares Mrs. Smith's buoyant courage, which allows this utterly bereft woman "moments only of languor and depression," to her own permanent state of grieving with far less provocation, she thinks. "A submissive spirit might be patient, a strong understanding would supply resolution, but here was something more... . It was the choicest gift from heaven," and, Anne muses, "by a merciful appointment, it seems designed to counterbalance almost every other want" (Ρ, 154).

If we assume that there are portions of Austen's own hidden self in all heroines, whether transcended or not, we need to examine some of the subversive attitudes of these heroines. We need to watch the way Austen absorbed many feminist theories and transmuted them into the less contentious, more discreet, and sometimes more light-hearted medium of fiction, even while she retained an abiding contempt for those "meaner considerations" that Locke had identified in his Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Her favorite women novelists taught her that women could take as one of their most obvious fictional preoccupations the subject of Priscilla Wakefield's Reflections on the Present Condition of the Female Sex, and all the "meaner considerations" upon which traditional wisdom about women was so often based, and find themselves not only a publisher but a public.”

- Alison G. Sulloway, ““Pride” and “Prejudice” and the Compensatory Equation.” in Jane Austen and the Province of Womanhood

#history #regency #jane austen #sense and sensibility #gender #jane austen and the province of womanhood #pride and prejudice #emma #alison g. sulloway

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iamthenightcolormeblack · 3 years

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Pride and Prejudice 1940: "When Pretty Girls T-E-A-S-E-D Men Into Marriage"

Made during the Great Depression, this classic black and white film is loosely based on Austen's novel and is set in what is likely the 1830s rather than the Regency Era (late 18th century to early 19th century). It is an escapist piece which capitalizes on nostalgia for a simpler time by transporting its viewers to a chocolate-box vision of the past, while paying homage to Austen's social satire by delivering plenty of laughs along the way.

Overall Thoughts on the Film:

The first time I watched this movie, I was confused because the plot as well as the setting was revised significantly (the events after Darcy's first proposal are changed to hasten the happy ending; Darcy's letter and Elizabeth's visit to Pemberley are not included in this movie). This changing of plot points makes the 2005 movie a much more faithful adaptation in comparison with this version, in spite of the creative liberties both take with the novel.

Production Design:

The movie is a typical example of Golden Age Hollywood productions, with beautiful actresses and melodramatic flourishes added to increase the drama. Some of the lines are delivered very quickly, in keeping with the comedic style of the time.

The music: definitely not historically accurate. A lot of sentimental, "ye olde timey" string arrangements that emphasize emotions or fast-paced waltz music for balls/parties.

The 1830s costumes are beautiful; it seems as if no expense (or quantity of fabric) was spared in making them. The bonnets are way taller and have more decorations than typical 1830s bonnets. Some of the patterns/fabric choices are very 1930s, and the costumes are exaggerated in such as way as to make the wearers look like fancy turkeys.

Hair and Makeup: very 1930s, with finger/sausage curls, plucked eyebrows, lipstick/lip makeup, and long lashes.

The sets: the dollhouse-like interiors are lavishly gilded and made to look as opulent as possible. Outdoors scenes are lush, with lots of flowers and bushes; the garden in which the second proposal takes place is gorgeous. The set design transports the viewer into an idyllic vision of the bucolic English countryside.

The Lead Actors:

With the exception of Laurence Olivier, the majority of the actors are American, since this is a Hollywood production. Many of the characters in the film's imaginary vision of pastoral Britain speak American or make clumsy attempts to imitate British English.

Greer Garson: while she is definitely too old for the part, she perfectly conveys Elizabeth's intelligence, outspokenness, and sarcasm. Her facial expressions are killer as well; with the arch of an eyebrow along with a snarky side eye, she captivates us all. All in all, Garson effectively shows off Elizabeth's impertinence through her nonverbal acting (this reminds me strongly of Jennifer Ehle's Elizabeth Bennet).

Laurence Olivier: he effectively conveys Darcy's pride while hinting at his deeper feelings beneath the surface (I can see why Colin Firth spoke so highly of Olivier's portrayal of Darcy). Most importantly, the film emphasizes Darcy's intelligence; he is certainly Elizabeth's intellectual equal. While this portrayal of Darcy is very accurate to the book, Darcy's pride does go away pretty quickly (he and Elizabeth form a tentative friendship early on) and his social awkwardness isn't immediately obvious thanks to his charm. Also the unflattering hairstyle with the greasy hair and painted on sideburns makes me sad.

Key Scenes:

Opening scene: The title card appeals directly to the audience's nostalgia for a sentimental, romanticized past: “It happened in OLD ENGLAND (this was actually capitalized), in the village of Meryton…” The Bennet women are at a fabric shop, where they gossip with aunt Phillips about the rich people moving into Netherfield Park.

The carriage race: this scene, which isn’t in the original novel, represents the rivalry between the Bennets and Lucases. The mothers both want their daughters to be the first to snag the rich bachelors.

The first ball: There is a historical anachronism as the music is a waltz by Strauss, who became popular in late 19th century, specifically the Gilded Age; far too early for the Regency Era or 1830s England. Other changes from the original novel include Elizabeth meeting Wickham before Darcy; other events from Aunt Phillips’ ball (which isn’t included in this movie) and Wickham and Darcy’s confrontation are included in this scene.

Elizabeth’s impression of Darcy at the ball: she puts on airs and mocks his casual dismissal of her as tolerable (definitely a parallel with the 1995 version, where Jennifer Ehle does the same, but privately with Jane).

Great comedic change: Darcy introduces himself to Elizabeth after calling her tolerable and asks if she will dance with him (this originally takes place at Mr. Lucas' ball). Right after rejecting Darcy, she instantly agrees to dance with Wickham; in a humorous moment, Darcy evacuates to a corner of the room to sulk while seeing Wickham dance with Elizabeth.

The “Accomplished woman” scene: the dialogue lifted directly from the book for the most part. Darcy, in a departure from his trademark seriousness, shows off his playful side when reacting to Caroline Bingley's "turn about the room." I particularly like this added repartee from Elizabeth Bennet to Darcy, which is clever but also foreshadows her prejudice: “If my departure is any punishment, you are quite right. My character reading is not too brilliant.”

Elizabeth can't stand Mr. Collins: After twirling about his monocle, he pronounces that: “It might interest you to know my taste was formed by lady Catherine de Bourgh.” The best part of this scene is when Elizabeth plucks a wrong note on her harp when Collins gets really annoying.

The Netherfield ball (which is now a garden party):

Elizabeth running away from Mr. Collins: She looks rather ridiculous, almost like an overdressed turkey, in a white dress with puffy sleeves as she runs away from an overeager Collins. Then she hides in the bushes while Darcy helps her to hide, telling Collins he doesn't know where she is. It's fun but most likely not something a proper lady and gentleman would do (two people of the opposite gender out alone, shock!).

The archery scene: Darcy attempts to teach Elizabeth how to shoot a bow and arrow, even though he doesn’t hit the bullseye. She goes on to impress him by perfectly hitting the bullseye every time; Darcy learns his lesson: "Next time I talk to a young lady about archery I won't be so patronizing." Caroline Bingley, very passive aggressive as usual, shows up for her archery lesson right after and it's absolutely perfect.

Mr. Collins attempts to introduce himself to Mr. Darcy: Laurence Olivier captures Darcy so perfectly in this scene (really set the precedent for Colin Firth). When Mr. Collins starts talking (inviting Elizabeth to dance with him) Darcy tries to keep himself well-composed but has a pained expression on his face as if he’s about to pass out. Olivier masters the way Darcy can look so miserable but also disgusted and proud at the same time.

Mr. Collin's proposal to Elizabeth: I like the added touch of Mrs. Bennet pulling Elizabeth back by her skirt when she tries to run out of the room. The dialogue is taken directly from the book, and the scene is made even funnier when Collins holds on to Elizabeth's hand desperately and doesn’t let her get away. My only quibble is that Elizabeth isn’t indignant enough when Mr. Collins doesn't take no for an answer.

Elizabeth and Darcy at Rosings: I like that Olivier subtly indicates that Darcy is clearly affected upon seeing Elizabeth at Rosing, hinting at deeper feelings beneath the surface. I also like how the scriptwriter emphasizes that Darcy indirectly praises Elizabeth and enjoys their conversations, while she remains convinced that he hates her. Sadly, the original dialogue of the piano scene is not included, which is unfortunate as it allows Darcy to reveal his introvert tendencies, calling into question Elizabeth's assertion that he is unpardonably proud.

First proposal: The famous opening lines are mutilated with awkward punctuation: “It’s no use. I’ve struggled in vain. I must tell you how much I admire and love you." While the rest of the dialogue matches up closely with what happens in Austen's novel, both of the actors aren’t emotional enough; instead Elizabeth cries very daintily, and Darcy remains serene, which conflicts with the book's description of both of them being very angry and defensive at each other.

THE SCRIPT:

The first half of the film up to Darcy's first proposal follows the events of the original book closely, though certain blocks of dialogue are moved elsewhere and other events such as Mrs. Phillips' party are skipped over. The most significant changes, besides updating the setting to the 1830s, are made to the second half of the book to squeeze the key events of the story into the movie before delivering the inevitable happy ending.

Brilliant Quotes:

Mr. Bennet's reaction to Mrs. Bennet's despair over the situation of their 5 unmarried daughters: “Perhaps we should have drowned some of them at birth.”

Darcy insists Elizabeth cannot tempt him: “Ugh. Provincial young lady with a lively wit. And there’s that mother of hers.”

Darcy is an arrogant snob: “I’m in no humor tonight to give consequence to the middle classes at play.” (Technically the Bennets are part of the gentry; they just are less wealthy than Darcy).

Elizabeth's reaction to Darcy pronouncing her to be tolerable at best: “What a charming man!”

Elizabeth rebuffs Darcy's offer to dance after overhearing his insult: “I am afraid that the honor of standing up with you is more than I can bear, Mr Darcy.”

Elizabeth favors Wickham after witnessing the bad blood between him and Darcy: “Without knowing anything about it I am on your side.”

Mrs. Bennet's comment after she sends Jane to Netherfield under stormy skies: “There isn’t anything like wet weather for engagements. Your dear father and I became engaged in a thunderstorm.”

Mr. Bennet's reaction to Jane's fever: “Jane must have all the credit for having caught the cold…we’re hoping Elizabeth will catch a cold and stay long enough to get engaged to Mr. Darcy. And if a good snowstorm could be arranged we’d send Kitty over!”

The sisters' description of Mr. Collins: “Oh heavens! what a pudding face.”

Caroline Bingley at the Netherfield garden party: “Entertaining the rustics is not as difficult as I feared. Any simple childish game seems to amuse them excessively.”

Darcy reassuring Elizabeth after helping her escape Mr. Collins: “If the dragon returns St. George will know how to deal with it.”

Darcy learns his lesson after Elizabeth beats him at archery: “The next time I talk to a young lady about archery I won’t be so patronizing.”

Elizabeth comments about a curtain: “Oh that’s pretty. It’s a pity you didn’t make it bigger. You could have put it around Mr. Collins when he becomes a bore.”

Elizabeth on Kitty and Lydia: “2 daughters out of 5, that represents 40% of the noise.”

Elizabeth sees Lady Catherine for the first time: “So that’s the great lady Catherine. Now I see where he learned his manners.”

Lady Catherine's attitude towards philanthropy: “You must learn to draw a firm line between the deserving poor and the undeserving poor.”

Darcy takes Elizabeth's advice: “I’ve thought a great deal about what you said at Netherfield, about laughing more...but it only makes me feel worse."

Elizabeth and Darcy have a conversation with Colonel Fitzwilliam: “He likes the landscape well enough, but the natives, the natives, what boors, what savages … Isn’t that what you think, Mr. Darcy?” With a smile: “It evidently amuses you to think so, Miss Bennet."

CHANGES FROM THE BOOK:

The first half of the film up to Darcy's first proposal follow the events of the original book closely, though certain blocks of dialogue are moved elsewhere and other events such as Mrs. Phillips' party are skipped over. The most significant changes, besides updating the setting to the 1830s, are made to the second half of the book to squeeze the key events of the story into the movie before delivering the inevitable happy ending.

With the exception of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, the portrayals of the characters are (generally) true to the book.

As I said earlier, the film neglects any sort of historical accuracy when setting the story in romanticized "Old England," where genteel people pass simple lives that revolve around dresses, tea parties, social gossip, and marriages. A lot of Austen adaptations present an idealized vision of Regency life, where people are dressed immaculately, flawlessly adhere to "chivalry," and find love in the ballroom. This contributes to the misconception that Austen's novels are shallow chick-lit books with flat characters who live for lavish parties and hot men, instead of stories of unique, complicated women who happen to be well-off but aspire towards love, respect, or independence instead of being content to make economically advantageous marriages. Austen's novels are character novels and she doesn't waste time writing about dresses or tea parties; balls, while exciting, are just another part of daily life for her characters rather than some Extremely Big Special Once In a Blue Moon Event.

Austen's multifaceted view on marriage turns into a game of matchmaking. She recognizes it as necessary for women to survive in the patriarchy, since they cannot provide for themselves unless they marry well, but at the same time, presents marriage as a means for freedom if it is a loving partnership between two people that respect each other. In contrast, marriage is a game of manipulating the partners into wanting to marry (ex. Lady Catherine and Darcy's trickery). Also, it seems to be a given that Elizabeth will marry for love, unlike in the book where it is uncertain whether she will achieve this.

Kitty and Lydia's antics are viewed much more sympathetically as those of young people having fun; in the book, their behavior harms the family's social reputation, reducing the chances the Bennet daughters have of making good marriages.

Louisa Hurst, Georgiana Darcy, and Aunt and Uncle Gardiner are not in the movie.

Wickham is introduced much earlier than in the book; he is friends with Lydia from the very beginning. Interestingly, he doesn't begin to trash-talk Darcy until Bingley leaves; in the book he does so much earlier, before the Netherfield ball.

Darcy is more considerate towards Elizabeth at the Netherfield party (ex. rescuing her from Collins), until he overhears Mrs. Bennet scheming to get the daughters married. Elizabeth forms a tentative friendship with him until finding out that he separated Jane from Bingley.

Jane is more obviously heartbroken over Bingley's departure than in the book, where she keeps her pain to herself. In the movie, she runs away to cry, which is uncharacteristic of her.

Collins is a librarian instead of a clergyman. I dislike this change because some Austen scholars/fans think that Collins being a clergyman is a deliberate choice as part of Austen's social criticism. Collins is representative of how hypocritical the Church is, since he worships Lady Catherine's wealth instead of God, and preaches moral lessons instead of actually using religion to help people. My theory is that the change was made because of the Hays Code, which led to the censorship of movies for "unwholesome" or "indecent" things; the religious criticism could have been offensive.

Elizabeth reacts rather too kindly to Charlotte marrying Collins by showing concern for the loveless marriage. While she does worry about the lack of love in the marriage, initially she is extremely surprised, outright shocked, and confused.

The scene where Darcy tries and fails to talk to Elizabeth (the "charming house" scene in the 2005 movie) just before the proposal is removed.

Darcy's letter is skipped over and Elizabeth overcomes her prejudice of Darcy very quickly, as shown when she tells Jane she regrets rejecting his proposal. This is contrary to the book, where overcoming her prejudice is an emotionally exhausting and slow process that continues all the way up until the second proposal.

The Pemberley visit is removed; instead, Elizabeth returns home to the news that Lydia has eloped. Visiting Pemberley is very important as part of Elizabeth's re-evaluation of Darcy's character and provides an opportunity for Darcy to show Elizabeth that he has changed for her. The visit is key in increasing Elizabeth's love for Darcy, and removing it means that the characters have less personal growth (also wouldn't it have been great for the audience to be treated to another gorgeous estate of "Old England?"). Instead, Darcy visits Longbourn on his own and offers his help in finding Lydia. When the news comes that Wickham accepts very little money in exchange for marrying Lydia, it isn't as shocking as it is in the book because Darcy had already expressed his intentions of helping Elizabeth earlier.

Here's the change that bugs me the most: Lady Catherine becomes good; though she is a busybody, her main priority is Darcy's happiness. Her confrontation of Elizabeth is a scheme hatched between her and Darcy as a test to be certain of Elizabeth's love. This does not make sense on so many levels: first, Darcy insists that "disguise of every sort is my abhorrence," so why would he resort to trickery, however well-intentioned, to find out if Elizabeth still loves him? Second, Lady Catherine is a social snob and objects to Elizabeth's low connections; also she has an arranged marriage planned for Darcy. Third, in the book, because Elizabeth likes Pemberley and gets along really well with his sister Georgiana, Darcy would have had some evidence that Elizabeth, in the very least, cared for him. And the added claim that Lady Catherine approves of Elizabeth because she likes rudeness and thinks Darcy needs a humorous wife irritates me further because the marriage of Elizabeth and Darcy is revolutionary since it was made in defiance of societal rules!!! Why, why, why in the name of comedy did they have to do this?!

Darcy kisses Elizabeth (in a stagey and melodramatic way) after she accepts his second proposal. Seems a bit uncharacteristic of him.

All the sisters get married at the end. Happily ever after.

CONCLUSION

This movie certainly was not aiming for faithfulness to Austen's novel; it ignores her detailed portrait of Regency era society and its attitudes and focuses on the "light, bright, and sparkling" aspect of Pride and Prejudice that gives the story its timeless appeal.

All in all, this comedy of manners is definitely a classic thanks to the clever dialogue and jokes within the script, along with some great acting.

@appleinducedsleep @dahlia-coccinea @princesssarisa @colonelfitzwilliams @austengivesmeserotonin

#pride and prejudice 1940 #pride and prejudice #pride and predjudice #jane austen #movies #movie review #laurence olivier #classic movies #we stan p&p 1940

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nat-20s · 3 years

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📕

I got five words for you: jonmartin pride and prejudice au

More words on this- i think i deserve aus where Jon is the one that starts pining real hard real fast while Martin is like UGH this FUCKIN GUY...oh wait...unless...... and what better au than one of the best love stories ever imo. like god pride and prejudice slaps so fucking hard it is the MOLD which all "not technically enemies but definitely people that didn't want to end up at the same parties to lovers" has been built and "grumpy character that's secretly a ball of awkwardness but cares SO SO DEEPLY about His People" with "Personable and charming character that's deeply sarcastic but also secretly just as flawed and complex as grumpy character" is SO FUCKING GOOD AND ALSO!! THEY!!!!

My casting list:

Mr. Darcy- Jon (self explanatory, bad at first impressions, full of love)

Lizzie Bennent- Martin (also self explanatory, funny and sarcastic, lowkey highkey judgemental, kind of goin through it tbh!!)

Mrs. Bennet- Martin's mum, but like. Less awful. Still not great, but at least slightly cares about the wellbein of her son.

Mr. Bennet but not really, mixed with the Gardners- Simon Fairchild. is NOT married to martin's mum, but is the uncle figure that sort of fills a couple of roles

Jane Bennet- Sasha :-) (she's Martin's older half sister in this au, and he ADORES her. Shared mom, different dads)

Kitty/Mary- not in this au lmao

Lydia Bennet, sort of- Gerry. Is actually a live in nurse to Martin's mom, but ends up in the shitty situation that Jon secretly helps out with

Charles Bingley- Tim!!! foot loose and trauma free because his brother is fine in this. speaking of,

Caroline Bingley- Danny. I'm so sorry danny u were probably a nice dude in tma canon before you got got but in this au you're petty and low key in love with jon. that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes okay

Charlotte Lucas- Basira. Not a cop in this, obviously. But like..getting married for practical reasons rather than romantic? that seems very much a basira move to me

Mr Collins- Daisy lmao. WILDLY different personalities, but fufills the narrative role of proposing to Martin initally to end up marrying basira instead. Instead of being a pastor, works security for Lady Catherine

Lady Catherine- Gertrude. Not actually related to Jon, but basically took him on as a ward when his parents died. She doesn't technically control his estate, but she considers herself in charge nonetheless. Expects him to marry her nephew

Anne De Bourgh- Micheal Shelly. Justification is that i mostly thought it would be funny

Georgiana Darcy- who else but Georgie? Not Jon's sister, but she is his other best friend, and she DO be wingmanning

Colonel Fitzwilliam- Melanie! I feel like she would absolutely think she was hyping Jon up when in reality it's like *activates Martin's rage mode*. Also idk i feel like the original character were also mlm/wlw solidarity and I want that to stay

W*ckh*m- okay I want to say this beforehand, but he is NOT a romantic interest for anyone in this au, and he uses/ manipulates people in an entirely different way than wickham does in p and p, with all the focus on the financial aspect. He's a schuckster, not a seducer. But yeah anyway it's elias/jonah. Ugh.

so. yeah. There's definitely some alterations I would make to the original canon, and im not sure if it would be regency or semi modern or anachronistic, but yeah. What it says on the tin. Pride and Prejudice au.

#replies #dreameronthewind #tma talk #jonmartin #fics i haven't written meme

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the-technicolor-whiscash · 3 years

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Fuck Hallmark’s pride and prejudice adaptations the only valid modern era pride and prejudice adaptation was Pride and Prejudice: Atlanta where all of the Bennets and Darcy were people of color and it seamlessly integrated the plot of the book into a modern setting, even keeping Mr Collins as a pastor. It’s not only a great adaptation of the story, but a beautifully diverse one as well.

#the whiscash administration

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ninaemsaopaulo · 4 years

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15 anos da versão de 2005 de Orgulho & Preconceito.

Triste saber que Mr. Darcy, o homem perfeito, caso existisse, votaria no Partido Novo e, por ser dono da metade de Pemberley, iniciaria uma campanha massiva contra Boulos.

Mr. Collins, por outro lado, votaria no Boulos mesmo. Invadir propriedade privada é coisa dele. Mas no segundo turno, qualquer pastor ganharia seu voto. Ou talvez Ciro Gomes, porque fala bonito.

Elizabeth e Charlotte, duas radfem, vão de Dilma, é claro. Muito conflito entre Lizzie e Darcy-o-PT-destruiu-a-minha-vidaaaa.

Porque Caroline Bingley não gosta de pobre, onde o #ajudalusiano vai, ela corre atrás. Histórico anterior: Aécio Neves.

Lydia e Wickham são bolsonaristas, lambem bota de militar. Lady Catherine de Bourgh, outrora apreciadora das artes, também vota em Bolsonaro porque "professor de piano é tudo vagabundo".

Mary Bennet, esquisita e gótica, tem perfil de otaku no Twitter e se assumiu ancap. Bingley e Jane, insossos, não são de direita e nem de esquerda, vão pra frente. Mamãe Bennet não concorda, mas segue as ideias políticas do marido. Kitty ainda não tem idade para votar.

Papai Bennet e os tios de Londres, progressistas, desencantados com o PT, votaram no PSOL. Hoje, Mr. Bennet ostenta flores na barba.

Não existe obra mais atual.

#blog #orgulho & preconceito #pride & prejudice #jane austen #política #2005 #joe wright #Cinema

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sunnymeadrp · 5 years

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Hello, I just wanted to say a couple of things - first off, thank you to everybody who applied. I’ve read through everyone’s app, and I’m super excited to get to know each and every muse and member. You guys have no idea how much I appreciate you all for being a part of this group. There will be another announcement for the opening date, seeing as we’re extremely close to receiving the number of apps required (11/12).

The following applications have been accepted ! Please submit your account to the main, as soon as possible, and take a look at the new member/character checklist and make extra sure you read the rules carefully to avoid confusion in the group.

cassandra, 18, gmt+8→Is that LILY JAMES walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, CATHERINE CHEN just looks like their identical twin! The 24-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for HER WHOLE LIFE. On their good days, CATH is CONSIDERATE & INTELLIGENT, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be SHORT-TEMPERED & JUDGEMENTAL. Keep your eyes on this BALLERINA. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

maverick, 28, est→Is that RICARDO HOYOS walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, ANTONIO NICOLAS-VASQUEZ just looks like their identical twin! The 23-YEAR OLD has been a SETTLER for THREE YEARS. On their good days, TONY is SAGACIOUS & BOLD, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be BRASH & ASTUTE. Keep your eyes on this AUTOMOTIVE MECHANIC. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

marlene, 20, pst→Is that ZOEY DEUTCH walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, SUMMER PARKER just looks like their identical twin! The 24-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for TWENTY-FOUR YEARS. On their good days, SUMMER is CARING & UNDERSTANDING, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be OVERPROTECTIVE & BLUNT. Keep your eyes on this DAYCARE EMPLOYEE. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

kat, 22, pst→Is that KIT HARRINGTON walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, MILES JAMES just looks like their identical twin! The 26-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for TWENTY-SIX YEARS. On their good days, MILES is INSIGHTFUL & DEDICATED, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be FLAKY & DISHONEST. Keep your eyes on this PHYSICIAN. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

jade, 19, gmt→Is that AARON TVEIT walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, JESSE ABRAMSEN just looks like their identical twin! The 31-YEAR OLD has been a SETTLER for FIVE YEARS. On their good days, JESSE is BENEVOLENT & INDUSTRIOUS, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be RESTLESS & GUARDED. Keep your eyes on this HIGH SCHOOL MUSIC TEACHER. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

sara, 21, est→Is that LILY COLLINS walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, ADRIANA SIMMS just looks like their identical twin! The 25-YEAR OLD has been a SETTLER for TWO YEARS. On their good days, ADRI is CARING & AMBITIOUS, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be PESSIMISTIC & OBLIVIOUS. Keep your eyes on this WRITER. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

shelby, 25, est→Is that PHOEBE TONKIN walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, ADRIENE MONTGOMERY just looks like their identical twin! The 28-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS. On their good days, ADRIENE is EMPATHETIC & MODEST, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be IMPULSIVE & INSECURE. Keep your eyes on this ART TEACHER AT SUNNYMEAD HIGH. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

luci, 22, est→Is that BRUNA MARQUEZINE walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, JULIANA CARVALHO just looks like their identical twin! The 23-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for TWENTY-THREE YEARS. On their good days, JULIANA is STRONG-WILLED & AFFECTIONATE, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be BLUNT & APPREHENSIVE. Keep your eyes on this ENERGETIC WAITRESS. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

enci, 23, gmt+1→Is that BETHANY JOY LENZ walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, DARCY PALMER just looks like their identical twin! The 34-YEARS OLD has been a SETTLER for FOUR YEARS. On their good days, DARCY is JOYFUL and ADVENTUROUS, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be IMPATIENT and QUICK-TEMPERED. Keep your eyes on the OWNER OF AMERICAN GRUB. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

thatch, 21, est→Is that CALLUM TURNER walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, GABRIEL LOCKHART just looks like their identical twin! The 32-YEAR OLD has been a SETTLER for NINE YEARS. On their good days, GABRIEL is GENTLE, UNDERSTANDING, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be NAIVE, SECRETIVE. Keep your eyes on this GOOFY PASTOR. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

thatch, 21, est→Is that GRANT GUSTIN walking down Old Town Front Street? Nah, CHRISTOPHER "FOX" HAMMOND just looks like their identical twin! The 26-YEAR OLD has been a NATIVE for 26 YEARS. On their good days, FOX is INQUISITIVE, CHARMING, but if you catch them on a bad day, they may be PRIVATE, DISTANT. Keep your eyes on this RECLUSIVE AUTHOR. Wonder what they’ve been up to lately in Sunnymead!

#town rp #city rp #appless rp #oc rp #new rp #sunnymeadadmin

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bitchy--baby-blog · 7 years

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La famiglia Bennet è composta dai coniugi Bennet e dalle loro cinque figlie: Jane, Elizabeth (per gli amici Lizzy o Eliza), Mary, Catherine (detta anche Kitty) e Lydia. L'obiettivo rimasto alla signora Bennet, vista la mancanza di un figlio maschio che possa ereditare la loro tenuta di Longbourn nell'Hertfordshire, è quello di vedere sposata almeno una delle sue figlie prima possibile. La signora Bennet è una donna frivola mentre il signor Bennet è un uomo intelligente, sarcastico e imprevedibile. È tuttavia affezionato a Jane e soprattutto a Elizabeth, ragazza di carattere assennato e ragionevole. Quando un ricco scapolo, il signor Bingley, si trasferisce a Netherfield, una bella dimora in affitto nelle vicinanze, la signora Bennet freme affinché le figlie gli vengano presentate quanto prima e prega il marito di presentarsi a porgere i propri omaggi al nuovo vicino. È sua precisa intenzione, infatti, quella di combinare un matrimonio tra il signor Bingley e una delle sue figlie e non vuole correre il rischio di vederselo accaparrato da qualche altra vicina. Il signor Bennet, nonostante l'apparente reticenza, si presenta al nuovo arrivato, ma le figlie hanno il piacere di incontrare Bingley solo durante il ballo dato da Sir Lucas, vicino di casa dei Bennet, dove finalmente le graziose ragazze possono essere oggetto dell'ammirazione del giovane. Il signor Bingley è giunto a Netherfield in compagnia delle sue due sorelle, Caroline e la signora Hurst, del marito di quest'ultima e del suo più caro amico, il signor Darcy. Bingley è un giovane ragazzo cortese e socievole e si attira subito le simpatie della compagnia, è inoltre immediatamente evidente la sua grande ammirazione per la maggiore delle signorine Bennet, Jane. Al contrario, Darcy rimane in disparte, si rifiuta di ballare con le signorine che non conosce e non mostra alcun interesse nel voler coltivare amicizie con i membri della compagnia. A causa di questo suo comportamento, viene subito etichettato come un uomo orgoglioso e altero, e ai presenti non basta il pensiero della sua grande ricchezza per dimenticare la grande antipatia che Darcy ha suscitato in loro. Durante il ballo Elizabeth viene definita da Darcy "Appena passabile ma non abbastanza bella da tentarmi". Elizabeth lo sente e, pur mostrando ironia per l'accaduto, lo prende in antipatia. Il signor Bingley e Jane, invece, ballano tutta la sera con gran diletto. Essendo diventata amica delle sorelle del signor Bingley, Jane viene invitata da queste a pranzo nella tenuta di Netherfield. La madre rifiuta di darle la carrozza poiché in questo modo la figlia sarà costretta a soggiornare a casa di Bingley.La ragazza è quindi obbligata ad andare all’appuntamento a cavallo, prendendo freddo a causa di un temporale ed ammalandosi:in seguito dovrà rimanere alla tenuta come era stato previsto dalla signora Bennet. Venuta a conoscenza dell'accaduto tramite una lettera, Elizabeth si precipita in soccorso della sorella, percorrendo a piedi diverse miglia ed esponendosi quindi alle critiche delle sorelle di Mr Bingley. Jane ed Elizabeth rimangono ospiti nella tenuta per circa cinque giorni, durante la quale quest’ultima e il signor Darcy hanno accesi dibattiti a proposito delle qualità che una donna debba possedere e dei rispettivi caratteri. Guarita finalmente Jane, le due sorelle possono tornare a casa. Qualche giorno dopo, la famiglia di Longbourn riceve la visita del signor Collins, cugino delle ragazze nonché pastore anglicano. William Collins è per legge il legittimo erede di Longbourn e spera di poter sposare una delle figlie dei Bennet, ritenendo questa proposta come una sorta di degnazione da parte sua per risarcire la famiglia dalla futura perdita della tenuta. La sua inevitabile scelta ricade immediatamente su Jane, la più bella. Ma Il signor Collins viene ben presto informato dalla signora Bennet che Jane sarà presto fidanzata. Questo lo induce quindi a spostare le sue attenzioni su Elizabeth, seconda a Jane sia per nascita che per bellezza. Il signor Bingley organizza un ballo a Netherfield, come promesso alle sorelle Bennet. Il suo trasporto nei riguardi di Jane è visibile, tanto che la società locale dà il loro matrimonio per certo. Bingley comunica ai Bennet che è sua intenzione recarsi a Londra l'indomani per pochi giorni e viene invitato dalla signora Bennet ad un pranzo informale per quando sarà tornato. Tuttavia, pochi giorni dopo, le sorelle di Bingley e Darcy, rimasti a Netherfield, lo lasciano all'improvviso per raggiungere Londra. Per spiegare l'inaspettata partenza Caroline manda un biglietto a Jane, cui spiega che gli affari del fratello non sono tali da potersi risolvere in pochi giorni ed è quindi meglio per loro raggiungerlo a Londra, dove resteranno tutto l'inverno. Caroline aggiunge malignamente che così facendo suo fratello avrà la possibilità di rivedere la sorella di Darcy, a cui è molto legato. Elizabeth, letta la lettera, sospetta che, non ritenendo Jane abbastanza altolocata per ambire al signor Bingley, le sorelle e Darcy abbiano intenzione di trattenerlo a Londra appunto per porre fine al suo attaccamento per Jane e confessa il suo sospetto alla sorella maggiore. Ma Jane è un'anima candida che non pensa mai male di nessuno e si ostina a difendere le amiche, aggiungendo che, comunque stiano le cose, se Bingley fosse davvero innamorato di lei non basterebbe il volere delle sorelle a trattenerlo a Londra. Ma Elizabeth ha poca fiducia nel carattere debole del giovane, ed entrambe si angustiano nel non vederlo tornare dalla città. Nel frattempo il signor Collins, personaggio cerimonioso e insopportabile, continua a fare una corte sfrenata ad Elizabeth, corte che culmina con la richiesta della mano della secondogenita Bennet. Questa, basita, rifiuta categoricamente, nonostante le rimostranze della madre. Il signor Collins, deciso a tornare a casa con una moglie, decide di sposare Charlotte Lucas, la migliore amica di Elizabeth la quale, avendo già 27 anni, accetta ben volentieri. Mentre Lizzy è ospite nella tenuta di Collins e la sua nuova fidanzata Charlotte Lucas, sua grande amica, il signor Darcy, scoprendosi innamorato della secondogenita Bennet, le fa una proposta di matrimonio, che lei rifiuta avendo scoperto che è colpa sua se Bingley e le sue sorelle hanno lasciato Netherfield. Egli le scrive allora una lettera in cui spiega il perché delle sue azioni. Elizabeth è sorpresa talmente dalla lettera che comincia a mutare i suoi sentimenti per Darcy. Elizabeth e Darcy, ognuno turbato dopo tali fatti, ripartono ben presto per le rispettive dimore. Giunta l'estate, Elizabeth, con l'intento di distrarsi dai suoi pensieri per Darcy, riparte con gli zii londinesi per un viaggio di piacere nel Derbyshire, durante il quale si trovano vicino a Pemberley, la tenuta in cui vive Darcy. Convinta che il legittimo padrone non sia in casa, Elizabeth acconsente con grande interesse a visitare la tenuta. Tuttavia, durante la visita incontra proprio il signor Darcy, rientrato prima del tempo. Quest'ultimo rimane sorpreso, ed Elizabeth imbarazzata. Eppure ella nota che i modi di Darcy sono molto mutati: sembra essere socievole e gentile. Infatti Darcy, sempre innamorato di Elizabeth, dopo il suo rifiuto aveva deciso di dimostrarle che poteva cambiare. Per Elizabeth, intanto, Il sentimento di ammirazione per Darcy si sta trasformando in amore, anche se è ovviamente impossibile esprimerlo all'interessato, già da lei respinto precedentemente. Darcy si dimostra interessato a conoscere i signori Gardiner, ed Elizabeth è felice di potergli presentare dei suoi parenti brillanti ed intelligenti che non abbiano la superficialità e la frivolezza di sua madre e delle sue sorelle minori. Il giorno seguente, Darcy le presenta la sorella Georgiana, desideroso che le due giovani facciano amicizia. Elizabeth ha anche occasione di incontrare il signor Bingley, il cui comportamento la induce a sperare che sia ancora innamorato di Jane. Purtroppo in quei giorni Elizabeth viene raggiunta da una pessima notizia: Lydia, che era in vacanza a Brighton, ospite del colonnello Forster e sua moglie, è scappata a Londra con Wickham, che pare non abbia intenzione di sposarla. Elizabeth, nell'emozione del momento, non riesce a tacere la verità a Darcy, e proprio quando un così scandaloso avvenimento allontana la possibilità di una seconda proposta da parte di Darcy, Elizabeth si rende conto di amarlo. Assieme agli zii, la ragazza rientra a Longbourn e lo zio raggiunge il signor Bennet a Londra, dove si era recato per cercare la coppia di fuggiaschi. Il signor Gardiner convince il signor Bennet a tornare a casa dalla famiglia, e pochi giorni dopo li avverte di aver trovato Lydia e Wickham. La situazione scandalosa viene messa a tacere con un matrimonio di convenienza. Qualche tempo più tardi, Elizabeth viene a sapere da Lydia, e poi da sua zia Gardiner, che il signor Darcy è colui che ha salvato la reputazione della ragazza, convincendo il riluttante Wickham a sposare la sorella che aveva disonorato: la zia la informa infatti che Wickham è stato profumatamente pagato per sposare Lydia, e che il signor Darcy si è offerto di pagare tutti i suoi debiti. Questa notizia fa ulteriormente aumentare la stima di Elizabeth per Darcy. Pochi giorni dopo giungono a Longbourn Darcy e Bingley, col pretesto della stagione di caccia. Le attenzioni di Bingley per Jane riaffiorano ed Elizabeth sospetta che Darcy abbia confessato all'amico il suo errore nell'allontanarlo da Netherfield. Pochi giorni dopo, infatti, Bingley chiede la mano di Jane, che, ancora teneramente innamorata, l'accetta. Elizabeth, oltre al senso di gratitudine, è ormai innamorata di Darcy, che tuttavia non solo non si dichiara, ma si mostra nuovamente grave e taciturno, ben diverso dal Darcy che Elizabeth aveva incontrato a Pemberley. Elizabeth viene sorpresa da una visita improvvisa di Lady Catherine De Bourgh. La benefattrice dei Collins vuole sapere se è fidanzata col nipote e, sapendola libera, le chiede di promettere solennemente che mai si congiungerà in matrimonio con il signor Darcy, che lei desidera di vedere sposato all'unica figlia. Elizabeth rifiuta di promettere una cosa del genere. Darcy, che viene a sapere dell'accaduto, allora e solo allora è certo del fatto che Elizabeth nutre qualcosa di nuovo per lui, sapendo bene che, dato il suo carattere, se fosse stata del tutto contraria ad un'eventuale matrimonio con lui non avrebbe esitato a dirlo a sua zia. Quindi, il giorno successivo, Darcy si ripropone a Elizabeth che accetta con piacere, mostrandosi più innamorata che mai. L'epilogo è il matrimonio tra Elizabeth e Darcy e quello tra Jane e Bingley.

#literature #film #jane austen

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