Pride and Prejudice #1-5

            Based on the novel so far, “pride” and “prejudice” seem to be the driving forces in this society. Each character in his or her own way is influenced by a sense of pride. First, we have the Bennet family. Mrs. Bennet reveals her pride by drawing conversation to her daughters and their successes. After the ball, Mrs. Bennet turns the conversation to Mr. Bingley’s impression of Jane, pretending that she has not heard that Mr. Bingley called her daughter the “prettiest” in the room (18). Mrs. Bennet thinks of herself and her family very highly, and she wishes for others to notice them. Her daughters exhibit a certain degree of pride as well. Mary eagerly tries to display her talent when she decides to sing in front of company, and Elizabeth has enough self-confidence not to feel offended when Mr. Darcy initially snubs her at the ball by refusing to ask her to dance. Mr. Darcy exudes a great deal of pride, refusing to condescend to dance with anyone new at the ball or engage in conversation. His haughty manner is not well received by others in attendance, particularly Elizabeth. Mr. Darcy’s aloofness vexes Elizabeth, and she argues with him when she is staying at Netherfield. Perhaps the real cause of this vexation is the clash between two proud and self-confident people. Mr. Darcy tells Elizabeth that “where there is a real superiority of mind, pride will be always under good regulation” (50-51). Pride inevitably leads to prejudice as people think that they are above others. Miss Bingley certainly shares Mr. Darcy’s view that they are superior to the country people living nearby. She harbors a prejudice against the Bennets, thinking that they are unworthy to be associated with people of her social status. The false pretenses of her friendship with Jane are revealed when she leaves for London with the rest of the party and proceeds to ignore Jane’s attempts to meet again. Although Mr. Darcy initially comes across as extremely prejudiced against the country society, he does find himself drawn to Elizabeth Bennet. However, in order for the two of them to forge some sort of relationship, they each must overcome their prejudices and tone down their pride.

            Mr. Collins is another very proud character. He constantly seeks approbation, displaying excessive courtesy to everyone he meets. In particular, Mr. Collins is proud of his social status and relationship with Lady Catherine de Bourgh. This deference to Lady Catherine is evident in his marriage proposal to Elizabeth; indeed, he seems to mention Lady Catherine more often than Elizabeth. Mr. Collins came to Longbourn with the intent of marrying one of Mr. Bennet’s daughters, and this intention is very clear in his proposal. His first three reasons for marrying have nothing to do with Elizabeth, and he clearly formulated them before he met her. He wants to set an example for his parish, “add very greatly to [his] happiness,” and, most importantly, follow the recommendation of Lady Catherine (92). Furthermore, he decided to choose one of Mr. Bennet’s daughters because he is destined to inherit the estate upon Mr. Bennet’s death. By reminding Elizabeth of this fact during the proposal, Mr. Collins attempts to simultaneously present himself as a generous man and guilt Elizabeth into doing what is best for her family. Finally, after “flatter[ing]” himself that his motives will not “sink [him] in [her] esteem,” Mr. Collins thinks it is appropriate to actually refer to Elizabeth and his purported affection for her (93). However, he then quickly moves back to discussing the dowry in order to confirm his generosity by saying that the dowry does not matter to him. Mr. Collins is proud enough to genuinely think that Elizabeth will appreciate his efforts, and he does not consider that she may not accept his offer. He is so self-focused that he cannot see how pompous he seems to Elizabeth. Elizabeth must reject his offer multiple times before he actually begins to consider that she may be serious in her rejection. He logically pieced together the mutual benefits of their marriage, but he did not account for any emotional component when asking for, or rather assuming, her hand in marriage.