Theme Of Social Class In Pride And Prejudice

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Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice is the 200-year-old tale of a man and a woman in an insufferable environment, and their complicated journey to love and acceptance. The story is set at some point in Georgian Era England, a time and place where one’s social status determined their success in life and the possibility of success for their posterity. The extreme social-consciousness of the time, although not living or even physical, becomes the antagonist to the two main characters, Elizabeth and Darcy. With Darcy living as an aristocrat, and Elizabeth standing a class below him as a member of the gentry, their relationship has a very rocky start, to a point where romantic interest seems incredibly unlikely. The couple’s story is presented in …show more content…

The one reason that may stand out the most is that Austen wanted to provide a relatable story. To achieve that, she centered the plot around love, a timeless, ageless subject. Rather than a mild, easy love though, she chose a romance with issues and roadblocks. This kind of story draws interest by providing anticipation for a reader, but it also sets up a platform for Austen to mirror her own time and show exactly what was wrong with it. Austen’s characters in this story show that social class is not nearly as important as it was made out to be, and when focus is taken away from it, things can naturally fall into place. The character’s personalities also show how such priority placed on class can lead to an undesirable nature. Although Pride & Prejudice highlights the flaws of a time period and society, it suggests that these flaws are fixable. The characters’ growth serves as a demonstration. Perhaps Austen intended for her future (our present) to be a place where these problems are fixed. It has not happened entirely yet: class is still relevant in decisions on love and marriage, and pride and prejudice are still prominent, but if the story’s morals still apply, readers can move into the future beginning the change with

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