Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

2010

Snobbery to Husbandry: Reassessing Ideals of Mr. Darcy

As Jane Austin establishes, through the voice of Mrs. Bennet, “…Lizzy does not lose much by suiting his fancy; for he is a most disagreeable, horrid man, not at all worth pleasing” (Austen 9) she forms the general consensus of the sentiment that a majority of the characters feel for Mr. Darcy throughout Pride and Prejudice. Cold, rude, arrogant, and snobbish are what many characters consider Darcy due to his actions towards society and, especially, Elizabeth, Jane, and Wickham throughout the story. At the commencement of the tale, Darcy refuses to dance with Elizabeth due to his premature prejudices against her looks and “inferior connections” (8). However, at the story’s conclusion, he transforms into a more empathetic person. Disobeying the wishes of the Lady Catherine de Bourgh, Darcy proposes to Elizabeth. When Darcy realizes that he need not follow the strict societal rank rules that he learned during his childhood in the manner that he obeys them, he undergoes a mental awakening,. Darcy believes that his principles are moral and correct; however he does not take into accord the emotions and feelings of others. This leads him to act snobbishly while assuming himself to be righteous. Once Darcy overcomes the flaws in his belief, he realizes that he has the freedom to marry whomever he wishes. Though initially highly prejudicial and, in the opinion of other characters, evil, Darcy’s psychological awakening creates a spiritual reassessment within him, which has a significant impact on the story as a whole.

Throughout Pride and Prejudice, a majority of the characters consider Darcy a social elitist because of plot occurrences from the rising action of the nov...

... middle of paper ...

...dd to the notion that Darcy and Elizabeth will marry. Every aspect culminates into the resolution of the story.

Fitzwilliam Darcy begins Pride and Prejudice as an arrogant, overbearing elitist. He feels that everyone is beneath him, and all should obey his command. When he pushes this attitude onto Elizabeth, she does not insult or attack him, but challenges him. Elizabeth forces Darcy to look inside himself and reevaluate his own character and personality for the first time in his life. This sparks a psychological awakening inside of him that causes a reassessment of his principles leading all the way back to his childhood. Darcy then transforms into a more humble and less proud person. Through this change, Darcy is able to realize who he truly is and that he should, in the end, be with Elizabeth out of mutual attraction and love.

Word Count: 1537 words.