Pride And Prejudice Powerless Women

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Recommended: Questions about gender inequality in the 19th century

There have been many advancements today that promote gender equality in America. Women, for the most part, have the same rights as men; however, due to the lack of knowledge of past gender inequalities, some people fail to recognize or are ignorant to the powerlessness women felt during the nineteenth century. As a result, they cannot fully comprehend the actions of female characters in Jane Austen’s novels; therefore, readers must realize that throughout Pride and Prejudice, women are powerless when compared to men in both political and social realms and are often forced to take actions which are demeaning or undesirable.
One example of the powerlessness of women in this novel is the fact that they are unable to introduce themselves to other people. Instead of being able to introduce her daughters herself to Mr. Bingley, Mrs. Bennet is at the whim of her husband. Mr. Bennet teases his wife by telling her, “You and the girls may go or you can send them by themselves” …show more content…

When Lydia runs off with Mr. Wickham, there is a large uproar about her not being married. Mary states to Elizabeth that they must learn from Lydia’s situation “that the loss of virtue in a female is irretrievable - that one false step involves her in endless ruin” (Austen 275). Because of Lydia’s silliness and folly, she is ruined. On the other hand, Mr. Wickham, because he is a man, comes out of the situation with his reputation hardly scathed. In fact, Lydia must marry Mr.Wickham in order to restore her family’s honor. Upon hearing the news of Lydia, Mr. Collins writes to the Bennets, “The death of your daughter would have been a blessing in comparison of this” (Austen 282). Mr. Collins expresses the opinion of the gentry by saying death would have been better than Lydia’s escapades because she loses her family’s honor and any chance of obtaining a good

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