Pride and Prejudice Background Information. LITERARY & NARRATIVE TECHNIQUES

Pride and PrejudiceBackground Information

LITERARY & NARRATIVE TECHNIQUES

Satire• Ideas, customs,

behaviors, or institutions are ridiculed in order to criticize human folly and to improve society• Listen closely to

Elizabeth!

Irony• DRAMATIC = the

audience is aware of something the audience/readers are not

• VERBAL = a speaker says one thing but means another (sarcasm)

• SITUATIONAL = a difference between what is expected to happen and what actually does happen

Free Indirect Discourse• The practice of embedding a

character’s speech or thoughts into an otherwise third-person narrative.

• The narrative moves back and forth between the narrator telling us what the character is thinking and showing us the character’s conscious thoughts, without denoting which thought belongs to whom. • a character's thoughts or spoken words

are reported without quotation marks (or some other kind of indication, like the phrase "she thought" or "he said").

• The result is a story that reads almost like it shares two “brains”: one belonging to the narrator, the other belonging to the character.

Elizabeth

LITERARY GENRE

Comedy of Manners• Uses elements of satire to ridicule or expose the behaviors,

manners, flaws, and morals of the middle or upper classes• Love affairs, witty & comical exchanges, humorous revelation

of societal scandals

Comedy of Manners Examples• The characters’

searches for love & financial stability• Social scandals of the

Meryton community• Witty banter

between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy or Mr. and Mrs. Bennet

THEMES

Social Class & Lack of Mobility• By the 19th century, 3

distinct groups made up the social class system: working, middle & upper classes• Mr. Darcy = hereditary

aristocracy• Mr. Bingley = landed

gentry• The Bennets = middle

class

Marriage and Family• Acknowledges that

marriage was a necessity for women in the 18th and 19th centuries

• Also expresses Austen’s disillusionment with the fact that women were often forced into marriage out of financial necessity

• Through Elizabeth, Austen advocates for marriage based on mutual respect and love

Pride and Prejudice• Originally planned to

title the novel First Impressions• First impressions and

premature preconceptions complicate the relationships between the characters • Pride and prejudice

influence these perceptions

THE CHARACTERS

Mr. Bennet• Patriarch of the family• Belongs to the minor

gentry; gets a small income from the land attached to his estate (Longbourn)• Very fond of Elizabeth• No sons, so estate will

pass to Mr. Collins

Mrs. Bennet• Married to Mr.

Bennet for 23 years• Her main goal in life

is to find husbands for her daughters• Fond of Lydia; not as

fond of Elizabeth

Jane Bennet• Eldest daughter• Close to Elizabeth• Befriended by the

Bingley sisters• Known for her beauty

and good nature

Elizabeth Bennet• Second eldest

daughter• 20 years old• Bright and

independent• Tends to speak her

mind

Mary Bennet• Third daughter• The intellectual of

the family• Busies herself with

reading and music

Catherine (Kitty) Bennet• Fourth daughter• 18 years old• Close to Lydia

Lydia Bennet• Youngest daughter• 15 years old• Mrs. Bennet’s

favorite • Very prone to flirting,

especially with the officers in Meryton

• Owner of a country estate called Pemberley• Income of 10,000

pounds per year • Reputation as a

proud and ill-mannered man• Close friend of

Charles Bingley

Fitzwilliam Darcy

Charles Bingley• Inherits the fortune

his father built through manufacturing and trade• Leases Netherfield

Park• Falls in love with Jane

Bennet

Caroline Bingley & Louisa Hurst• Charles Bingley’s sisters• Each command a

fortune of 20,000 pounds• Join Bingley in

Netherfield, but live in London• Louisa is married to Mr.

Hurst; Caroline wants to marry Mr. Darcy

Charlotte Lucas• Eldest child of Sir

William and Lady Lucas• Elizabeth’s closest

friend

Mr. Collins• Mr. Bennet’s cousin• The Bennet’s closest

male relative• According to the laws

of entail, he stands to inherit Longbourn

Mr. Wickham• Member of militia

regimen posted to Meryton• Son of the late Mr.

Darcy’s steward• Known Fitzwilliam

Darcy since childhood

Lady Catherine de Bourgh• Wealthy widow of

high social standing• Lives with her

daughter Anne at Rosings Park• Sister of Darcy’s late

mother and intends for him to marry Anne

Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner• Mr. Gardiner is Mrs.

Bennet’s brother; he is a businessman in trade in London• Mrs. Gardiner is close

to Jane and Elizabeth

Colonel Fitzwilliam• Darcy’s cousin• Develops a friendship

with Elizabeth

Georgiana Darcy• 16 years old• Darcy’s sister• Rumored that she is

intended to marry Charles Bingley• Was previously

involved with Wickham

COMMON QUESTIONS

Cousins Marrying??• Yes, Mr. Collins and the Bennet girls are cousins (distant).• Remember, the priority during that time period was keeping

property within the family – that was much more important than love

What do the “---”s mean?• Austen used "-----" a lot in her writing. Example "------ shire" or

"lord/lady -----". • She did this to avoid insulting or annoying the aristocracy. She

sometimes used real people/events and didn't want any confusion in her books. • If she used a real shire like Oxfordshire (real place) then someone

could argue her book could never have taken place there be of x y or z. So she just omitted real names of people and places to keep her writing credible.