Lit IA 2nd Draft

8/7/2019 Lit IA 2nd Draft

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PRIDE

& PREJUDICE

‘The other side of Austen …Elizabeth Bennet’

Candidate Name: AbiDemi WilliamsCandidate # :Centre # :Literatures in EnglishInternal Assessment: Question 1; Option D

Acknowledgement



The successful completion of this paper would not have been

possible without assistance. Firstly, I would like to thank my

teacher, Mrs. Webster, for equipping me with the ‘know-how’ to

approach this task. I would also like to thank Alexander Powell for

playing the role of muse and for his continued moral support. Last,

but not least, I give thanks to God for His guiding hand throughout

this task.

‘The Other Side of Austen…Elizabeth

Bennet’



‘I begin already to weigh my words & sentences more than I did, &

am looking about for a sentiment, an illustration, or a metaphor in

every corner of the room.’ –Jane Austen1

It is commonly said that one can only write about what

he knows; that being the case, how is a fictional novel, such as

‘Pride and Prejudice’, with its apocryphal love possible? The

answer is that the writer’s imagination is able to weave a story

comprised of bits and pieces of fact and his own subconscious

desires. His writing becomes an illustration of his inner-most

thoughts. Such is the case with Jane Austen’s work; essentially,

her sardonic manipulation of Elizabeth Bennet’s character is a

ploy for the reader to extend himself past the threshold of

myopic reading and understand the illustration of a cloistered

personality. Arguably, Elizabeth Bennet is representative of a

more free-spirited Jane Austen, released through her writing, as

depicted by the model.

Superficial perusal of the novel, ‘Pride and Prejudice’,

will at first yield the misconception that the story is being

narrated by Elizabeth Bennet, its protagonist, and not the

omniscient narrator. This is due to the parallelism between the

omniscient narrator and Bennet’s own thoughts and actions,

creating the allusion of a most intimate connection between the

two. However, as the reader increases his depth, her, Elizabeth

Bennet’s, ‘lively and playful disposition’, though captivating,

becomes second to the developmental journey she undertakes

1 Letters to Cassandra (1809)



wherein the reader is able to discern the disparities between

narrator and character – the differences more resembling two

sides to one person.

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in

possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."

The opening line of ‘Pride and Prejudice’, perhaps the

most renowned line of any nineteenth-century novel, sets the

stage for the story to unfold amidst the background and norms,

particularly those relating to love and marriage, in England

during the Regency era. The ironic undertone which Austen

uses, however, also prepares the reader for differences in

opinion as the plot unfolds. She stays true to this promise when

the reader is introduced to Elizabeth Bennet who mirrors

Austen’s unconventional ideals. The reader is led to understand

the general consensus of Austen’s society pertaining to

womanliness, love and marriage, mainly through the characters

of Charlotte Lucas, Mrs. Bennet and Caroline Bingley.

Essentially, they are a representative of society whilst Elizabeth

repudiates their customs.

In Volume 1 of the novel, Charlotte Lucas says

‘Happiness in a marriage is entirely a matter of chance’, to

which Elizabeth responds that the idea is unsound and that she,

Charlotte, ‘Would never act in this way…’ Elizabeth’s response

to the matter not only foreshadows the outcome of her future



romantic relations, but reflects Austen’s own youthful

engagement which was nullified because she decided she did

not love the gentleman. Additionally, the sentiment Elizabeth

expresses here justifies her initial behaviour toward Mr. Darcy.

Coupled with her belief that marriage should be more than mere

convenience and financial stability, Elizabeth’s own pride and

independence would not allow her to adopt such a mindset. In

their initial encounter at the Meryton ball, Darcy greatly offends

Elizabeth’s pride, a feat which is not easily forgiven. However,

in the aftermath of that encounter, Elizabeth does not directly

accost Darcy about his rudeness. Instead, the arch manner in

which she relates to him subtly conveys her true feelings. With

reference to the image located in the top left-hand corner of the

model, depicting them dancing at the Netherfield ball,

Elizabeth’s erect posture and seeming aloofness is also

testimony to her true feelings at the time. Similarly, Jane

Austen, in her writing, does not directly condemn the social

norms which she criticizes; instead, the evident sardonic

undertones express her true views at length. The distinct social

margin which exists between Elizabeth and Darcy would have

her be submissive to his authority and oblige his every whim.

Instead, however, Elizabeth challenges Darcy during their dance

by saying, for example, ‘It is your turn to say something now,

Mr Darcy…you ought to make some kind of remark…’ The

playful sarcasm which Austen uses here highlights her view that



social divisions should not act as restrictions between two

persons of equal intellectual capacity.

Aside from alluding to the disdain she holds for Darcy,

Elizabeth’s posture in the image is a reflection of her confidence

and the independence and pride afore mentioned. This

independence impacts not only her views on marriage, but also

her womanliness. In that era, an accomplished woman was seen

as one who had ‘a thorough knowledge of music, singing,

drawing, dancing, and the modern languages’ in addition to ‘a

certain something in her air and manner of walking’. It is

evident that Jane Austen does not share this view, expressed in

response to Caroline Bingley’s list of attributes the conventional

‘accomplished woman’ should have, Darcy says ‘and to all this

she must yet add something more substantial, in the

improvement of her mind by extensive reading.’ The use of the

phrase ‘all this’ comes across as mocking in response to

Caroline’s superficial criteria for an accomplished woman.

Elizabeth Bennet is indeed an avid reader, as was Jane Austen.

Her love of reading, a singular exercise, aids in portraying her

independence, as well as her depth. Essentially, the message

Austen conveys is that an accomplished woman is one who is

able to exhibit a certain depth of character through an

independent air and intellectual prowess; attributes which

Elizabeth Bennet adequately exemplifies. In fact, feminist



critics such as Judith Lowder Newton have envisioned the novel

as a triumphant fantasy of female autonomy,

The novel, originally an epistolary, utilizes letters,

books, and the motif of reading on a whole to aid in

characterization and plot development. Essentially, it is this

motif of reading which aids Darcy’s attraction to Elizabeth and

her subsequent transition from disgust to love for him, as

portrayed by the model. The reading motif, however, is closely

tied to that of the journey. Journeys in the novel are both literal

and metaphorical. The first literal journey Elizabeth makes,

depicted in the model, is a three mile walk from her home at

Longbourne, to the Netherfield mansion. This walk epitomizes

her unconventionality and again, her independence. Historic

letters have shown that Jane Austen, though not quite as radical

as Elizabeth’s character is depicted, was rather unorthodox

herself and similarly enjoyed solitary walks. It is no surprise

then that Elizabeth’s character is made to do such a maverick

deed. In an era where it was completely unheard of for a young

woman to go such a distance on her own, Elizabeth breaks

many unwritten rules. The literal journey, however, aids in solid

characterization, in that, her blatant disregard of social norms in

conjunction with the fact that she is unperturbed by her

dishevelled appearance, appeal to the reader’s appraisal of her

as an ‘intriguing’ character; she stands out amidst her

counterparts. The metaphoric aspect of the journey is, of course,



the more pressing of the two. In essence, this symbolism of

Elizabeth moving from one point to another is representative of

her personal growth, and also Austen’s journey as a writer,

‘Pride and Prejudice’ being her second novel. Elizabeth, who at

the outset of the novel exhibits strong tendencies of prejudice,

through a myriad of events, is able to progress and overcome

her flaws. It is this self transformation, and the transformation

between herself and Darcy as an item, on which the novel is

pivoted.

The contempt with which Elizabeth regards Darcy is

based primarily on her belief of what he had done to Wickham.

When this notion is disproved through a letter from Darcy after

his first proposal, reiterating the motif of reading as it is this

letter which facilitates the transformation, Elizabeth’s world is

shattered as she then has to look into herself and realize her

errors. The beauty of the story, however, begins at this point

wherein she begins to fall in love with Darcy. She is able to

regard all his positive traits, and gradually all her former

prejudices are removed. Where his pride had been the source of

her disgust, she begins to see it in a new, positive light. It is

through this self-journey that Elizabeth and Darcy, in the typical

hero/heroine fashion which romantic novels employ, are able to

overcome their seeming dichotomy and come together as a

couple. This capitalizes on Austen’s idea of growth and

revamping. That is to say, her rejection of norms in favour of



new ideals extends to an individual basis, meaning, she believes

that nothing, particularly people, should be left stagnant. The

other characters in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ do not exhibit signs of

growth and in this respect, Elizabeth can be considered a foil to

them, driving home Austen’s point of individual growth being

merited. Additionally, it also echoes her perspective of marriage

needing to be the result of mutual attraction and not mere

convenience as well as the sentiment that both parties should be

able to benefit from each other outside of the financial realm.

The fact that Elizabeth and Darcy are inevitably so well suited

for each other, on the grounds of common interests and

expectations of life, reflects her belief of what a good marriage

should be based on. In a response to Marilyn Butler’s article,

‘Jane Austen’s Politics’, Irvin Ehrenpreis states ‘Radical

novelists were indeed tendentious. That habit is part of their

radicalism. In literary history it may also be a reason that they

have not lasted so well as Austen. I try to distinguish between

doctrine and formula, between teachings deliberately advanced

by a work of art and those it takes for granted as shared by

author and reader or spectator.’ In essence, this supports the

notion that Austen assumes distinct moral positions and invites

the reader to join her through the coy manipulation of her

protagonist to represent her beliefs.

The afore given argument, supported by the images

which the model bears, gives rise to the notion that the character



of Elizabeth Bennet is an archetype for Jane Austen’s own

ideals against those of society. She is cast in the role of a more

liberated side to Austen, wholly expressed through the freedom

of writing. In fact, none of the novels which Austen wrote in her

lifetime were attributed to her at the time. Instead, they were

simply described as being written ‘By a Lady’, according to

Anke Werker. Therefore, the character Elizabeth Bennet is

indeed representative of Austen’s own ideals. Essentially, she is

the ‘free’ Jane Austen, released through writing, and

unencumbered by the sheer reality of social norms.

Critics have often remarked on the ostensible link

between Elizabeth Bennet and her creator Elizabeth's wit and

playfulness, the argument goes, reflect Austen's own

personality. It has also been indicated that this observation,

innocuous as it seems, devalues the artistry of the novel,

implying as it does a lack of design on the author's part.

However, the argument provided within the confines of this

paper should highlight that by blurring the distinction between

Elizabeth's voice and that of the omniscient narrator, Austen

controls the reader's point of view, and that in controlling the

reader’s point of view, she inevitable adds to the literary appeal

of the novel. According to A. Walton Litz, Austen tells the

story "from the point-of-view of one character while qualifying

and expanding that viewpoint through dramatic irony and direct

comment. Such a method ... combines in a limited form the



omniscience of third-person narration with the immediacy of

first-person narrative ..."2 Thus, the posited notion that Elizabeth

Bennet is ‘the other side of Austen’ is effective to the extent that

it not only identifies how the author is able to create the

parallelism but also provides evidence that it contributes to the

appeal of the novel.

2 Quote excerpted from Jane Austen Journal articles



Word Count: 1900

Works Cited

* Austen, Jane. Letters to Cassandra (1809)

* Butler, Marilyn. Jane Austen’s Politics (1979)

* Ehrenpreis, Irvin. Response to ‘Jane Austen’s Politics’

* Werker, Anke. Archetypal Austen (1998)

* Persuasions: The Jane Austen Journal articles (January

2003)

Documents

Lit IA 2nd Draft