Ashley's Critical Thinking Responses

Section 1 - Marina's Questions 

              2) The first sentence of pride and prejudice, “It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” What does this show about the author and what does it foreshadow in the book?

The first line of “Pride and Prejudice” is brilliant; it sets the mood of the novel which is also hinting the tone and style Austen is going to portray. As I read that quote, I automatically assumed marriage and romance were going to be huge themes in this novel. This quote foreshadows that there will be a man with great fortune, and he will get married. As I read the book, I realized I was right because a wealthy man named Charles Bingley enters Netherfield Park, and Mrs. Bennett considers this a big deal because of his fortune. Mrs. Bennett has five unmarried daughters and when she hears he enters town, she wants one of her daughters to get married to him as soon as possible.

           3) Why is Mrs. Bennett so determined to get at least one of her daughters to marry Mr. Bennett?

When I read this, I noticed Austen is trying to use Mrs. Bennett as a symbol for society’s view for young woman to get married. This makes sense because Mrs. Bennett is a character that cares strongly of how society thinks of her. In my opinion, it seems as if she is trying to get one of her daughters married to a wealthy man (Mr. Bingley) so her future will be secure. She needs one of her daughters to marry a well man so she has somewhere to go when Mr. Bennett dies. This is because when Mr. Bennett dies, he cannot leave his estate to any of his daughters; it must go to the closest male relative.  Another reason for the rush of marriage could also be because she feels her daughters have no ambition and therefore should get married. She could feel as if it is time for them to live on their own and start raising a family. During those days, if you were not married by the time you were in your late twenties, you were considered too old to be considered by men, unless you were wealthy. The Bennett’s unfortunately were not which is why Mrs. Bennett is so determined.

Section 3- Sydney's Questions 

1)      Lydia and Wickham plan to run away and elope. Does this show us who Wickham really is?

Yes this shows us who Wickham really is because he had never really loved Lydia. He is an insensitive jerk because he made Lydia think he loved her and was going to marry her only so they would have intercourse together. He had used Lydia in a horrible way because he knew she had fallen for him. Not only did he try to sleep with her, but he also ruined her and her family’s reputation. By Lydia running off and living with Wickham during those days, no man of a good family would ever consider her to be “marriage material.” Wickham destroyed her because he ruined Lydia’s chances of a good marriage and her sisters’ chances as well. 

       2) Darcy starts to become a gentleman since he was rejected by Elizabeth. Give reasons why she would take him back.

Mr. Darcy becomes a gentleman since he was rejected by Elizabeth because he is in love with her and most likely always will be. He admires her intelligence and beauty. In my opinion, I think Darcy became a gentleman because when he had proposed to her, she had not known the truth about him until she had read his letter. Elizabeth would take him back because she realized he was trying to protect Jane and understood why he had been treating Wickham the way he was. Darcy starts becoming more gentlemen like because he knows the type of person Elizabeth is. When she reads his letter, he will have a better chance of her forgiving him because of the guilt she has. Not only will being nice to Elizabeth help her take him back, but it also proves to Elizabeth, that his love for her is real and he really does want to be with her. 


Section 4- Chantelle's Questions 
        1) After completing the novel, why do you think Jane Austen chose to give the novel the title “Pride and Prejudice?”

I personally think that Jane Austen chose to give this novel the title Pride and Prejudice because those are two of the most important themes in this novel. This title portrays the characters actions in just two words. Pride and Prejudice is shown in this novel by Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy actions towards each other in the beginning of the novel. Darcy shows pride because he thinks he is too good for Elizabeth and her family. Prejudice occurs when Mr. Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth. Elizabeth automatically assumes he believes he is too good for all the women that attended the ball. She also hears rumors that Mr. Darcy is quite rude, and believes them. This book is all about how these two characters judge each other and are ashamed of their assumptions in the end. I think Jane Austen chose a great title because it suits this novel extremely well. 

      2) When or what moment do you think Elizabeth finally realizes that her opinion of Mr. Darcy from the beginning was completely wrong? 

Elizabeth realizes her opinion of Mr. Darcy is completely wrong when she reads the letter he wrote to her. Before she had gotten the letter, Elizabeth thought of Darcy as an arrogant individual that only cared about himself. She did not understand that it wasn’t his intention to ruin Jane’s relationship with Mr.Bingley, or about how Wickham wanted to elope with his sister to obtain her fortune.  She realized that Mr. Darcy was an outstanding man because after Darcy found out about Wickham’s intention, he still had taken care of him. After reading the letter Mr. Darcy wrote to Elizabeth, she felt ashamed for how she treated him and realized her assumptions about him were completely wrong.