Journal Prompt: Define love, write about what you think it means, where you see it and the importance of love in society. Does money/income affect love?

First published in 1813, Pride and Prejudice has been Jane Austen’s most popular novel.

The novel depicts life in the proper society of the time period

The title refers mainly to the relationship between the two characters: Elizabeth Bennet and Darcy

The original version of the novel was written in 1796-1797 by the title First Impressions, and was most likely in the form of an exchange of letters

Austen Lived from 1775 to 1817. Her novels are prized for their light irony, humor, and depiction of contemporary English country life, and also their underlying serious qualities.

Wrote six novels, and other minor works Seventh child and second daughter to George

and Cassandra Austen In 1783, Jane and her eldest sister, Cassandra,

went to boarding school in Oxford for their formal education.

But when the school is moved to Southampton and typhoid fever breaks out, they are sent home

In 1785, the sisters attend Abbey School in Reading, and finish their formal education in 1786

Jane meets the nephew of a neighbor, Tom Lefroy, and is believed to have fallen in love based on letters Jane wrote to her sister.

In 1796, Tom is taken away from Stevenson, the Austen family residence, by his family and their previous marriage arrangement cannot be fulfilled as neither have the funds. Jane never sees Tom again.

After this incident, Jane begins First Impressions, which later comes to be known as Pride & Prejudice

In 1802, Jane received her only proposal of marriage from an Oxford- graduate, Harris Bigg-Wither. Harris was a family friend and heir to a large family estate. She takes the offer based on practical reasons, but the next day declines the proposal and claims it a mistake.

In 1813, Pride & Prejudice is published and was a success based on advertisement.

Jane became ill from what researchers are lead to believe as being disseminated tuberculosis passed through exposure to cattle, or unpasteurized milk, common to this time, and later dies in 1817.

Elizabeth Bennet -  The protagonist. The second daughter of Mr. Bennet, Elizabeth is the most intelligent and sensible of the sisters. She is well read and quick-witted, with a tongue that occasionally proves too sharp for her own good. Her realization of Darcy’s essential goodness eventually triumphs over her initial prejudice against him.

Fitzwilliam Darcy -  A wealthy gentleman, owns Pemberley, and the nephew of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Though Darcy is intelligent and honest, his pride causes him to look down on his social inferiors. Over the course of the novel, he begins to admire and love Elizabeth for her strong character.

Jane Bennet -  The eldest and most beautiful Bennet sister. Jane is more reserved and gentler than Elizabeth. The easy pleasantness with which she and Bingley interact contrasts starkly with the mutual distaste that marks the encounters between Elizabeth and Darcy..

Charles Bingley -  Darcy’s considerably wealthy best friend. Bingley purchases Netherfield, an estate near the Bennets, He is a well-intentioned gentleman, whose easygoing nature contrasts with Darcy’s rude manner. He is blissfully uncaring about class differences..

Mr. Bennet - A gentleman of modest income with five unmarried daughters. Mr. Bennet has a sarcastic, cynical sense of humor that he uses to purposefully irritate his wife.

Mrs. Bennet -  Mr. Bennet’s wife, a foolish, noisy woman whose only goal in life is to see her daughters married. Because of her low breeding and often unbecoming behavior, Mrs. Bennet often repels the very suitors whom she tries to attract for her daughters..

George Wickham -  A handsome, fortune-hunting militia officer. Wickham’s good looks and charm attract Elizabeth initially, but Darcy’s revelation about Wickham’s past clues her in to his true nature and attracts her to Darcy.

Lydia Bennet -  The youngest Bennet sister, she is gossipy, immature, and self-involved. Unlike Elizabeth, Lydia flings herself headlong into romance and ends up running off with Wickham.

Mr. Collins -  An idiotic clergyman who will inherit Mr. Bennet’s property. Mr. Collins’s own social status is nothing to brag about, but he takes great pains to let everyone know that Lady Catherine de Bourgh serves as his patroness.

Miss Bingley -  Bingley’s snobbish sister. Miss Bingley has excessive disregard for Elizabeth’s middle-class background. Her vain attempts to get Darcy’s attention cause Darcy to admire Elizabeth’s self-possessed character even more.

Lady Catherine de Bourgh -  A rich, bossy noblewoman; Mr. Collins’s patron and Darcy’s aunt. Lady Catherine epitomizes class snobbery, especially in her attempts to order the middle-class Elizabeth away from her well-bred nephew.

Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner -  Mrs. Bennet’s brother and his wife. The Gardiners are caring, nurturing, and full of common sense.

Charlotte Lucas -  Elizabeth’s best friend. Realistic where Elizabeth is romantic. Charlotte does not view love as the most vital component of a marriage. She is more interested in having a comfortable home. Thus, when Mr. Collins proposes, she accepts.

Georgiana Darcy -  Darcy’s sister. She is immensely pretty and just as shy. She has great skill at playing the piano.

Catherine Bennet -  The fourth Bennet sister. Like Lydia, she is girlishly enthralled with the soldiers.

News broke out that a man named Charles Bingley has rented the manor of Netherfield Park. This sparked up some conversation in the village of Longbourn, especially in the Bennet household.

The Bennets have five daughters, all of which are not married. Jane being the oldest, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia being the younger ones. Mrs. Bennet is desperate to have all of her daughters married.

After hearing all the talk about the man who rented the manor, Mr. Bennet made a social visit to Mr. Bingley.

Later, the Bennets go to a ball where Mr. Bingley is present along with his two sisters, the husband of his oldest sister, and Mr. Darcy.

Mr. Bingley chooses to dance with Jane, two times, more than any other. Mr. Darcy is not very pleased with how the night is going and refuses to dance with Elizabeth, showing his arrogant and obnoxious side. (As he is prejudice to the girls social class)

Many events take place over the next few weeks that makes Mr. Darcy start to notice Elizabeth’s charm and intelligence, which he is attracted to.

Jane’s friendship with Mr. Bingley also continues to flourish, and Jane goes over to Mr. Bingley’s house. On her way to the house she is caught in a rainstorm and becomes sick, forcing her to stay at his house for many days.

Elizabeth travels through muddy fields to get to the Bingley house to help Jane.

Miss Bingley gets angry with Mr. Darcy when she finds out he is flirting with Elizabeth

When Elizabeth and Jane come home, they find Mr. Collins, who is a clergyman who will inherit their dads property, at their house. Mr. Collins is a snobbish, though he is quite fascinated by the Bennet girls.

Shortly after his arrival, he makes a proposal of marriage to Elizabeth. (His cousin!) She turns him down, wounding his pride. So he goes to stay with Elizabeth's friend, Charlotte, who is later married to Mr. Collins because he has a decent social standing.

Meanwhile, the younger Bennet girls have become friendly with militia officers stationed in a nearby town. Among them is Wickham, a handsome young soldier who is friendly toward Elizabeth and tells her how Darcy cruelly cheated him out of an inheritance.

This makes Elizabeth hate Darcy more as she feels he is not only prideful, but cruel.

When Darcy and Elizabeth take a walk, he informs her that his cousin has disrupted a potentially unhappy marriage. She assumes that it means Bingley and Jane, and gets angry at Darcy about it, and even rejects him on his proposal of marriage.

He also writes her a letter the next day and tells her how he did, in fact, break them up. Also, he says why him and Wickham are quarrelling.

Mrs. Bingley is highly upset by all of the marriage trouble going on, especially between Charlotte and Mr. Collins. Also, Lydia gets sent away to keep her safe.

At this point, Elizabeth and Darcy start writing to each other and they start to fall in love, as well as Wickham and Lydia. Then, some months later, she makes a visit to Darcy’s house (Pemberly), and talks with one of his servants. They go on a walk, and Elizabeth meets Georgiana (Darcy's sister).

Mrs. Reynolds attempts to foster the relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy. She tells her how great he is. After this, Lydia runs off with Wickham, and her father goes looking for her. Mrs. Bingley gets mad at Colonel Foster for this.

As it turns out, from a letter that Elizabeth reads, it is Darcy who helped Lydia and Wickham to get married while in London. At this point, they are visiting at the Bennet house.

Mr. Bingley proposes to Jane (again) and she says yes, then Lady Cathrine tells Elizabeth that Darcy wants to marry her, which Cathrine doesn’t like.

In the end, Darcy and Elizabeth get married, and all of the main characters come to the wedding, with the exception of Lady Cathrine, who is upset about the whole ordeal.

Split into three groups to read 3 different sections of Pride & Prejudice.

After a short period of time, the class will come together to explain what their excerpt was about.

Theses excerpts will help to better understand the scenes from Pride & Prejudice we will watch.

“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.”

This is the first sentence in Jane Austen’s novel, now that you know the background of the book, what are your opinions on this statement. Why would Austen make this her opening sentence?